Visa/ESTA for returning to US after J-1 program
I currently have both an Australian and a British passport. I am studying in the United States as a J-1 student, however, my J-1 program ends on Dec 21. There is a grace period until Jan 21 but I am not allowed to travel outside the United States or I will not be permitted to re-enter.
I had already booked flights to Canada for a week, at which point I was supposed to return to the US and fly out to Italy for 2 weeks and then return the US again to fly home to Australia.
If I apply for an ESTA with my British Passport is this ok, and will I be allowed to enter back into the US if I am approved for the ESTA and only travel back from Canada on my British passport?
Best Answer
You can apply for and enter the US with an ESTA (if you meet ESTA requirements). With ESTA,
- You can stay in the US for up to 90 days; you cannot extend your stay.
- You cannot change your status.
- You cannot study.
- An ESTA "does not guarantee that you are admissible to the United States". A CBP officer might ask you questions about the purpose of your trip.
Once you leave the US, your change of status petition will be considered abandoned.
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Answer 2
Since you're traveling to Canada, you may be eligible for automatic visa revalidation. Check here to see if it applies to your status: http://www.travel.state.gov/content/visas/english/general/automatic-revalidation.html
Don't forget that status and visa are different things in US. As our international office explained it to us: visa is like a key to the apartment, and status is a permit to stay.
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