Help with ESTA
 

Hi, I'm visiting the US from New Zealand this coming summer to spend time with my partner as well as do some road trips. I currently hold a return ticket in and out of LAX with 4 months between arrival and departure. This exceeds the 90 day stay allowed by the ESTA programme for which I'm eligible. My question is, if I leave the US and go to India for around 2 weeks on business in the middle of my 4 month US stay (therefore dividing it into say 60 days prior and 45 after) is that likely to be okayed by US Immigration? I've struggled to find a clear and concise assessment of the requirements of ESTA online so hoping someone here can help. Thanks so much!

AFAIK a two year ESTA allows 90 days per visit, not per year. So you would be visiting twice -- neither would be an overstay. BTW ESTA doesn't guarantee you entry (though it most likely will be fine) so if the multiple entries raise any sort of suspicion you could be asked more questions than normal.

As you have laid it out there shouldn't be any conflict . . . But contact the US Consulate in NZ to make sure.

I travel to the US regularly on the ESTA program, the stamp in my passport states I can stay for 90 days per visit. If you have never had an ESTA before, you will need to join the regular line for the immigration officer rather than join the lines for the self service kiosks. This also applies if you have a new ESTA ie you have traveled on the ESTA program before but it has expired and you have a new ESTA OR you have a new passport which means you have to apply for a new ESTA even if the existing one has not expired. So your second visit, you should be able to use the kiosks, the kiosk prints out a slip of paper which you hand to the immigration officer for the self service line. Those immigration officers don't usually ask many questions, if any. If the slip that the kiosk prints has an X on it, you will be asked to join the regular immigration line, which usually is a very long line and many more questions, plus fingerprints etc.
As already stated, the ESTA is no guarantee of entry to the US, just the same as holding a visa is no guarantee to entry.

> is that likely to be okayed by US Immigration?
The absolute, final, definitive answer is -- "Maybe, maybe not."
The Visa Waiver Program (VWP), for which New Zealand is eligible, is meant to allow person to visit the U.S. for 90 days, but not one day longer. You are clearly trying to extend your visit beyond the 90-day limit for VWP, figuring that a two-week trip to India would "reset" the 90-day countdown clock. It might, it might not. A one-day trip to Canada would definitely NOT do so, but yours is a bit longer and much further away.

If, when you arrive at the U.S. airport after your two weeks in India, a Border Patrol agent tells you that you are extending your stay beyond that limit, it won't do you much good to reply, "But a complete stranger on Fodors.com told me I could do so." Nor will the statement, "I couldn't find an answer online, so I presumed I could do so." I strongly urge you to either (1) apply for a B-2 visa or (2) discuss this with the U.S. embassy, and get the answer IN WRITING.

Thank you all for these helpful replies. I am certainly going to err on the side of caution and not push any boundaries. I still have plenty of time so will be contacting the Consulate in Auckland soon. Thanks again!