Machine Readable Passport Required for Visa Waiver Countries

Effective June 26, 2005, all travelers from the 27 Visa Waiver Program (VWP) countries must have a machine-readable passport to enter the United States without a visa. The original date of October 1, 2003 as set forth by the Immigration and Nationality Act, was postponed to October 1, 2004 to accommodate 23 of the 27 countries. Officials warn however, that strict enforcement will begin on June 26, 2005. Machine-readable passports include two optical-character, typeface lines at the bottom of the biographic page of the passport that confirms the identity of the passport holder quickly.

The Visa Waiver Program (VWP) under certain circumstances, enables nationals of the following countries to travel to the United States for tourism or business for stays of 90 days or less without obtaining a visa: Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brunei, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, San Marino, Singapore, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.

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