B-1, B-2, & ESTA Visitor Visas
The U.S. government has designated the B-1 visa for use by international visitors who will be engaged primarily in business and professional activity.
For information about the appropriate use of, and how to apply for a B-1 visa, please go to https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/tourism-visit/visitor.html
The U.S. government has designated the B-2 visa for use by international visitors who will be engaged primarily in tourist activity.
For information about the appropriate use of, and how to apply for a B-2 visa, please go to https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/tourism-visit/visitor.html
Visa Waiver Program
Visitors from 35+ countries are eligible under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) to travel to the U.S. to engage in business or tourist activity without first having to obtain a B-1 (business) or B-2 (tourist) visa stamp from a U.S. consulate abroad.
To travel to the U.S. under the terms of VWP, travelers must register with the Electronic System for Travel Authorization, or ESTA, at least 72 hours before they depart for the U.S. VWP is sometimes referred to as ESTA.
For information about traveling to the U.S. under ESTA, please review the information about VWP and ESTA at https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/tourism-visit/visa-waiver-program.html
WB and WT Status
Visitors admitted to the U.S. pursuant to ESTA are granted WB (business or professional activity) or WT (tourist activity) status, depending on the primary reason for their travel to the U.S. WB is the ESTA equivalent of B-1 status. WT is the ESTA equivalent of B-2 status.
“Visa Waiver”
Somewhat confusingly, the U.S. government uses the word waiver to refer to different kinds of waivers from various immigration requirements. Examples include VWP (ESTA), J-1 waiver, and National Interest Waiver (NIW). The information here pertains only to VWP (ESTA) for B-1, B-2, WT, or WB admission to the U.S.
Yes. Canada is not a VWP country and citizens of Canada are not eligible to enter the U.S. under ESTA.
But Canadian citizens do not need to obtain B-1 (business or professional activity) or B-2 (tourist activity) visa stamps from a U.S. consulate abroad before traveling to the U.S. to engage in business or tourist activity.
To request admission to the U.S. in B-1 or B-2 status, a Canadian citizen only needs to present an unexpired Canadian passport to Customs and Border Protection (CBP) along with evidence they intend to depart the U.S. within 180 days of arrival.
Travelers admitted to the U.S. pursuant to B-1 or B-2 visas (including Canadians who may enter the U.S. without B-1 or B-2 visa stamps):
- May request admission from CBP for up to 180 days, although CBP may, at its discretion, provide admission for fewer days (sometimes only 90 days).
- May request an extension of B-1 or B-2 status by filing a Form I-539 Application to Change of Extend Nonimmigrant Status with USCIS.
Travelers admitted to the U.S. pursuant to ESTA:
- May request admission from CBP for up to 90 days, although CBP may, at its discretion, provide admission for fewer days (30 or 60 days).
- Are not eligible to request an extension of their WT or WB status from USCIS.
Honorarium
Honorarium payments are a form of self-employment income for professional services provided for the benefit of the payer.
Honorarium Payments to B-1, B-2, and ESTA Visitors
B-1, B-2, and ESTA visitors are eligible to receive honoraria payments but the regulations surrounding honorarium payments to B-1, B-2, or ESTA visitors, and the process of actually paying the honoraria to them, can be complicated.
If you are a VCU department that is interested in paying an honorarium to a B-1, B-2, or ESTA visitor, please contact GEO before finalizing an offer of an honorarium to the visitor.
If you have already offered to pay an honorarium to a B-1, B-2, or ESTA visitor, please contact GEO as soon as possible to discuss the payment process.
There is no legal requirement for a B-1, B-2, or ESTA visitor to be invited to the U.S. or to engage in a tourist or business activity.
Millions of B-1, B-2, and ESTA visitors travel to the U.S. annually to engage in business and tourist activity without “invitations.” They are simply traveling to the U.S. for business and tourist visits.
However, if the B-1, B-2, or ESTA visitor has been invited to VCU by a university department to (for example) deliver a lecture or participate in a workshop, the visitor could benefit from a CBP letter—whether or not they will receive an honorarium for the activity.
In the context of this guidance, a CBP letter is a letter:
- Prepared by the visitor’s VCU host department and signed by the department chair;
- Addressed to the U.S. consulate and/or CBP;
- Detailing immigration-specific aspects of the visitor’s intended activity at VCU in language the U.S. consulate and/or CBP will readily grasp.
There is no legal requirement that the B-1, B-2, or ESTA visitor obtain a CBP visa letter, and it is unlikely that either a U.S. consulate or CBP will ask to see such a letter.
The main benefit of a CBP letter is to provide a layer of VCU support to the visitor—especially if the visitor is not accustomed to traveling to the U.S. or if there is any concern about a language barrier.
In the event that the consulate or CBP ask the visitor detailed questions about their planned activity at VCU, they can simply present the CBP letter to the consulate or CBP instead of worrying about explaining the purpose of their visit to the U.S. accurately to the U.S. consulate and/or CBP.
If you would like a template CBP letter please send an email to GEOIS@vcu.edu (Subject Line: B-1, B-2, or ESTA visa letter)
VCU cannot provide a CBP letter for friends or relatives who want to visit you in the U.S. The reason for this is that your friends and relatives are not coming to the U.S. to visit VCU, per se. They are coming to the U.S. to visit you!
As noted above, there is no legal requirement for a B-1, B-2, or ESTA visitor to be invited to the U.S. or to engage in a tourist or business activity.
Millions of B-1, B-2, and ESTA visitors travel to the U.S. annually to engage in business and tourist activity without “invitations.” They are simply traveling to the U.S. for business and tourist visits.
If friends or family would like to visit you in the U.S. and they will do so in B-1, B-2, or ESTA status you are welcome to write a brief letter to them inviting them to do so.
The letter (which could be a simple email to your friends or family) would just indicate the dates of the intended visit and the reason for the visit (example: to attend VCU graduation).
GEO cannot provide a template letter or email for this purpose since your invitation should be in your own words.
If you or your friends or relatives need VCU documentation of your enrollment and good standing as a student, or if they need evidence of VCU’s planned graduation dates, please contact Records and Registration for support (https://rar.vcu.edu/).