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I have an emergency (loss of a friend) and I am looking at tickets to the US to leave in a matter of hours. I know an ESTA is valid for 2 years. I travelled to the US for the last time 18 months ago but I do not remember if I used a previous ESTA or not at the time.

I want to buy a ticket for a plane that leaves in 6 hours, if I apply for an ESTA online, will it be ok? They recommend doing it at least 72 hours in advance.

Some background: I lived in LA for 11 years with a student visa and never had any trouble with any government agencies (police, immigration etc...). I do not think it will be a problem but I know the immigration agency can be very tedious about their reglementation.

Karlson
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solalito
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2 Answers2

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Yes. You need an ESTA, either a new one or an old one if it is still valid.

It normally only takes a matter of minutes at most, but there is no guarantee.

You can use the CBP website to check your ESTA status (use the option for "I Do NOT Know the Application Number"). If you don't have a valid one, apply right away.

Zach Lipton
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Yes, you need an ESTA. The ESTA website will check for you if a valid ESTA exists for your passport. Simply enter a new ESTA and after entering all your information, before submitting payment, the system will warn that there's already a valid ESTA and ask if you want to pay for a new one (don't).

ytoledano
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