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I'm on a New Zealand passport.

From most US Embassy webpages:

The Visa Waiver Program (VWP) enables nationals of certain countries, including Australia, New Zealand, and the U.K., to travel to the United States for tourism or business for stays of 90 days or less without obtaining a visa, if certain requirements are met. Under the VWP, time spent in Canada, Mexico, and adjacent islands counts towards the maximum of 90 days stay allowed under the program.

Now I'm spending 3 days in Hawaii en route to Vancouver. This seems to imply that 90 days after touching Hawaii, my time will be up and I won't be able to get back into the US, as my living in Canada will not reset the count. What if after this time I want to say, pop across the border to Seattle? How can I re-start the 90 days, without having to resort to say, flying to Japan and back just to reset it??

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Can you clarify what you mean by 'living' in Canada? What is your legal status in Canada - a resident, a tourist, or something else? – Doc Mar 6 '12 at 23:52
I'll be there on a 1 year working holiday visa starting when I arrive in Vancouver. – Mark Mayo Mar 7 '12 at 0:14
@MarkMayo BTW I can't find the page that says that. – Karlson Mar 7 '12 at 1:56
@MarkMayo Well if it isn't a government operation. london.usembassy.gov/vwp3.html basically implies that you can re-enter even after 90 days just need to re-apply for VWP. Besides Curacao mentions 27 countries which are now 36. – Karlson Mar 7 '12 at 3:10

2 Answers

up vote 9 down vote accepted

There's an important distinction between leaving the US temporarily, and leaving permanently, which is as much as anything dictated by you returning to your place of residence.

If you are in the US under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) and you leave the US for a few weeks to visit Canada (or Mexico) with an intent to return to the US then you are deemed to have only temporarily left the US for that period, and thus your 90 days carries through - even though you're out of the country. In the days of the I-94W forms (the green form you used to fill in when arriving in the US), you would actually keep your I-94W in your passport even when you left the US.

If you are leaving US to return to your place of residence, then you are leaving permanently. In this case your VWP period would end when you left the country, and historically that's when you would have turned in your I-94W.

As you have a work visa to be in Canada, for the period of that visa Canada would be your place of residence. That means that every time you leave the US your visit will have deemed to have ended as you've returned to your place of residence, and thus permanently left the US - which means that when you re-enter the US the VWP clock will be restarted.

At the end of the day the Canada/Mexico condition is intended to stop people doing visa runs from the US to Canada/Mexico, thus getting another 90 days on their VWP. If it's clear that's not what you're doing then you'll have no issues.

Don't forget that to enter the US under the VWP you will first need to obtain an ESTA.

(Note: Usual provisions apply. IANAL, but I've entered the US around 40 times both on VWP and on Visas so I know the processes fairly well! If you want a definite answer, either contact USCIS, or talk to a qualified immigration lawyer)

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thanks. Yes I've got an ESTA valid until November, it was just the 90 days I was concerned about. Great answer! – Mark Mayo Mar 7 '12 at 4:45
You only need the ESTA when entering the USA by commercial vessel, i.e not if you drive from Canada by car. – txwikinger Mar 12 at 2:25
Correct, ESTA is not needed if entering via car, but you will need to fill in an I94W form at the border instead. – Doc Mar 13 at 6:38
up vote 2 down vote

From the VWP description page

VWP travelers who have been admitted under the Visa Waiver Program and who make a short trip to Canada, Mexico or an adjacent island generally can be readmitted to the United States under the VWP for the balance of their original admission period. See the Department of Homeland Security’s Customs and Border Protection (CBP) website for additional details. Also VWP nationals resident in Mexico, Canada or adjacent islands are generally exempted from requirements to show onward travel to other foreign destinations. Learn more at the CBP website.

Which to me means that if you leave the country and prove that you have by turning the I-94W your timer under the VWP stops.

EDIT

Best solution for the problem: Obtain a written explanation from a US embassy or consulate.

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According to your other link (london.usembassy.gov/vwp3.html) the I-94W was being phased out 2 years ago... – Mark Mayo Mar 7 '12 at 3:30
@MarkMayo As I said if it isn't a government operation. I like to deal with the about as far as I can throw them. – Karlson Mar 7 '12 at 3:37
I-94W's (Green forms) were phased out years ago, shortly after the ESTA process was introduced. If you're entering the US on a Visa you will still need to fill in an I-94 (White). If you're entering under the VWP there's no paperwork, but you'll need to have applied for a ESTA in advance. – Doc Mar 7 '12 at 4:43
Actually the I-94W were phased out when entering via commercial carrier. If you enter the USA at land border with car, the I-94W is still required (however, in this case there is no ESTA requirement) – txwikinger Mar 12 at 2:33

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