I am planning to transit through the US en route to Canada, for which I have already obtained a transit ESTA. However, after my week in Canada, I intend to visit the US for tourism. In this case, do I need to reapply for an ESTA or update my current one?
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1There is no such thing as a 'transit ESTA', only ESTA. This allows you up to 90 days, which will be determined at the port of entry. If you first enter the US, the time spent in Canada will be treated as if you have not left the US. – Mark Johnson Sep 01 '23 at 05:14
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@MarkJohnson Thank you for your kind reply. There was an option to indicate transit on the form(maybe it was a checkbox I think), so I was wondering if I need to reapply or update for the ESTA. – Isaac Lee Sep 01 '23 at 05:18
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Yes, that is meantioned here: Official ESTA Application Website, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, but such a ESTA is valid for multiple trips within 2 years. Inform the Immigration Officer at the point of entry your plan to return back through the US. – Mark Johnson Sep 01 '23 at 05:24
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Oh that would be great. Thank you for the quick response. – Isaac Lee Sep 01 '23 at 05:30
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@MarkJohnson "the time spent in Canada will be treated as if you have not left the US": it's not as simple as that. – phoog Sep 01 '23 at 07:49
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1Related question Does the 90 days VWP rule expire if you travel from the US to Canada – Traveller Sep 01 '23 at 07:53
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1I notice that we have an earlier question from another user in the same situation who took the opposite approach: ESTA query ticked no on transit query. Perhaps you could let us know whether CBP says anything one way or the other. You can post an answer describing your experiences on one of the duplicate questions. It would be great to have a first-hand account of CBP's reaction (or, I suspect, non-reaction) to this situation. Thanks. – phoog Sep 01 '23 at 08:33