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I am a citizen and resident of Spain who is married to a US citizen. I am trying to travel to the States next week. I have an approved ESTA from one week ago and have already booked my flight. I would like to know what problems I could face and if I am going to be able to enter the US. I am planning on visiting my husband for probably one month. I know I am exempt from the general covid-19-related ban on visiting the US by Spanish residents. my esta got canceled!

claudia preiss
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2 Answers2

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The US embassy in Spain has a page that you should read. It says in part:

If you have a valid visa or ESTA and believe, after reading the proclamation and the updated information in the FAQs, that you qualify for an exception, please send an email to MadridNIE@state.gov

Due to the large volume of inquiries, we will only respond to those who have imminent travel and who qualify for an exception. Please note travel for the primary purpose of tourism remains suspended.

A comment to a similar question suggests that if you try to travel without doing this your ESTA will be cancelled. (People are reporting on flyertalk that this is happening.) If that happens, you may be unable to use the VWP in the future.

Also note the last quoted sentence. You may need a more compelling reason to travel than "visiting my husband." You should definitely read the proclamation and give that some thought before writing to the given address.

phoog
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  • I am just visiting for a month, i would come back to spain in a military flight since my husband is in the military, it would be still a problem? – claudia preiss Aug 16 '20 at 19:26
  • @claudiapreiss I suspect so. I haven't read the proclamation recently, but from the FAQ I linked to, it seems that you may need a reason to visit your husband that satisfies some qualifying criteria. You haven't yet stated a reason for visiting him, so there's no way to know whether the reason is sufficient. Your option depends on the reason for visiting your husband. – phoog Aug 16 '20 at 19:31
  • okay so i need to talk to them first , before trying to travel? – claudia preiss Aug 16 '20 at 19:35
  • @claudiapreiss correct. If you do not, it seems, your ESTA may be cancelled. As to the reason for your travel, it may be that I am overly cautious. Proclamation 9993 exempts spouses of US citizens without regard to the reason for travel. Yet the FAQ talks about reasons. That may apply only to those who need visas. But it may also apply to you because of some other proclamation. I haven't been following it closely enough to understand why they mention it. – phoog Aug 16 '20 at 19:50
  • I wrote them an email, i hope i can find some answers, because i already paid my flight and i don’t wanna lose that money – claudia preiss Aug 16 '20 at 20:16
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    @claudiapreiss please let us know what happens. You can post your own answer to this question. When is your flight? – phoog Aug 16 '20 at 20:29
  • 25 august, i hope i can find a way! – claudia preiss Aug 16 '20 at 20:56
  • also, if you know someone who makes it let me know please – claudia preiss Aug 16 '20 at 20:58
  • Do note that OP can also spend 14 days in a non Schengen country and then travel to the US - even for tourism. Turkey, Serbia and Mexico are currently the most common options. – JonathanReez Aug 16 '20 at 21:01
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    At the end of June I was on a flight from Schengen Area to US, there were several Euro area passport holders on the flight (so it is possible). At least one was asked (and showed) "the letter from the US Embassy" before boarding the flight. So contact the Embassy. HTH. – noob2 Aug 16 '20 at 21:33
  • us embassy? or the us embassy in spain? I tried to contact the u.s. embassy in spain and they say they just attend american citizens emergencies. – claudia preiss Aug 16 '20 at 21:40
  • those eu passport holders had to be exempt of the proclamation , right? using an esta – claudia preiss Aug 16 '20 at 21:42
  • Yes, and from the above I believe you have an exemption also (because married to a US citizen). But how are you going to prove it to airline employees at the airport? They just follow procedures. That is why I suggest you contact US Embassy in Spain by Email, to get some backup for your exemption. Give them all your information, including name of your husband, that you already have a reservation for a return flight, etc. – noob2 Aug 17 '20 at 01:09
  • With my marriage certificate, i already talked to the embassy let’s see what they have to say – claudia preiss Aug 17 '20 at 07:41
  • @claudiapreiss did the embassy respond to your e-mail message? – phoog Aug 19 '20 at 16:11
  • yes they did they told me everything was perfect and they arranged my trip with DHS, now i receive a email saying my esta changed its status and it says travel not authorized – claudia preiss Aug 19 '20 at 17:06
  • @claudiapreiss I would e-mail them again and ask what happened. – phoog Aug 19 '20 at 17:09
  • @claudiapreiss Did you manage to travel into the US? How did you get in touch with the US Consulate? Through email? – xocasdashdash May 16 '21 at 11:12
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As the spouse of a US citizen, you are exempt from the bans for people who have been in certain countries in the last 14 days (e.g. the one on the Schengen Area, which you would otherwise be subject to as you are in Spain). So you can enter the US by air if you would normally be able to.

Like any other foreigner entering the US as a visitor, you can still be denied entry due to immigrant intent. This is more so in your case since you are married to a US citizen living in the US, so there is a good chance you want to settle down in the US, and it would be very easy for you to just change your mind and decide to stay, and do Adjustment of Status to get a green card when in the US.

user102008
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