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No. Your time in xMexico is included in your 90 days. Since you are staying more than 90 days in the US and xMexico combined, you will overstay your US visa waiver.
If you rearrange your Costa Rica trip to go before your 90 days are up (starting from when you entered the US for your current trip, 22 June), you will end the VWP period. If you then go to xMexico, time there is not included, and you can obtain a new waiver when you re-enter the US later.

Usual caveat: All entry is at the discretion of the official you receive.

271

Thank you for your reply. I have called immigration several times and various immigration lawyers. None of them mention the possible overstay, but they do say that my re-entry depends on the official. Could you please cite the source where you got this information? Since I have trouble getting a concrete answer from other sources.

Edited by: chloevdhaar

272

The US Embassy in Australia has done a great job of writing up Visa Waiver information. It applies to any visitor, not just Australians.

Visa Waiver Program

From that page (emphasis added). "Adjacent islands" are islands in the Caribbean.

The Visa Waiver Program (VWP) enables nationals of certain countries... 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.

Q: What are the other requirements of the Visa Waiver Program?

A: Citizens of the above countries may use the VWP if:

• Traveling for business meetings or pleasure (not on federal government business or as members of the media). Transit through the United States is generally permitted, if the total time in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and adjacent islands is less than 90 days.
• Staying in the U.S. for less than 90 days (this includes time spent in Canada, Mexico, and adjacent islands)

[snip of additional requirements]



Q: What if I enter on the Visa Waiver Program and then decide I want to stay longer than the 90 days?

A: You cannot extend the time on the Visa Waiver Program. The 90 days also includes any time spent in Canada, Mexico and adjacent Islands. Therefore you cannot cross the border into these areas and then return for another 90 days. You can however ask for re-entry on the Visa Waiver Program if you have left the continent.



Q: If I travel to Canada or Mexico, can I re-enter the U.S on the VWP, and if so does the 90 days then start again?

A: VWP travelers who have been admitted to the U.S. under the Visa Waiver Program and who make a short trip to Canada, Mexico or an adjacent island generally can be readmitted to the U.S. under the VWP for the original admission period. They do not, however, get a new 90-day admission period.

273

Hi everyone,

My Lithuanian girlfriend is hoping to visit me in the US for a week, and I'm trying to get my head around the ESTA requirements. They say that along with an ESTA form, she requires a passport - does a Lithuanian national ID card qualify as such? Let's assume it's machine-readable.

Thank you very much in advance for your help!

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She absolutely must have a passport. Everyone entering the US from a foreign country, even US citizens, must have a passport.

The US Embassy in Vilnius says

Visa Waiver Program

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Kokie yra paso reikalavimai kelionei pagal Bevizio režimo programą?

276

Me and my girlfriend are flying to Seattle next week. We are planning to stay in the US for maybe two months (or more) traveling south towards Central America and maybe to South America. We would like to travel by land to Mexico.
As I have understood we will need to have an outbound ticket from the US in hand when we arrive in Seattle. We were thinking about booking a refundable ticket that we show when we arrive and then cancel, and hopefully get most of the money back from the ticket.

My question is; if we go by land to Mexico, what will happen at the border? Say we stay 89 days in the US and then enter Mexico by land. Will they stamp our passport and everything will be OK or would there be any trouble, in regard to the “you have to be out of North America within 90 days from when you entered the US”.

We will have an outbound ticket from Mexico City booked before we enter Mexico – as we understood you must have this to enter Mexico. So what we actually are worried about is that the 90 days we get for US will still be counting after we enter Mexico, and that if we do not leave Mexico before those 90 days from when we entered US, we would be considered overstaying and have problems coming back to US in the future.

Sorry if I’m not that good at explaining my question, but this is all a bit confusing to us. Hope some of you can help us. Big thanks in advance!

Edited by: Mat1az

277

Unless procedures have changed, nothing will happen on the US side of the border - there is normally no exit check. The Mexicans will stamp you in but as far as the US is concerned the 90 days keeps totting up, possibly for ever, possibly until you fly out of Mexico. Just crossing the Mexican border is not enough so even if you were checked out it would make no difference

Sorry to say this - but you should have done more research and got a visa, months ago. Too late now, there isn't time.

Best advice is to fly from the US to somewhere south of Mexico (that will definitely terminate your visit) and make your way back to Mexico

278

Big thanks for clearing this out. Yeah, we should have taken a VISA instead. But now we know till next time.

Fortunate for us we found a cheap ticket to El Salvador from Los Angeles just four days after our 90 days runs out. So we will continue our travels in Central America from there.

279

What do you think the effect of that 4 day overstay will be?

280

ah sorry for my error. What I meant was 4 days BEFORE the 90 days runs out.

281

Early 90s I did a trip to the US, had a 90-day extension (i.e. on the default 90 days allowed at the time). Mid-90s another shorter trip. Fairly sure I did not overstay, although memory is a little cloudy.

Is there any way to double-check past history of visits? These days I'd just look for my flight receipts in gmail.

I have a training in the US coming up later in the year and it would be good to cover all bases before travelling. Am a UK citizen.

Edited by: leopardi

282

AFAIK there is no way of checking.

Applying for an ESTA would provide some assurance - if you get it you are not an obvious 'baddie' - but is not foolproof

And applying for a visa would make it certain - 'a training' might not be allowed anyway on ESTA/VWP depending on what it is

283

If it's not allowed on the VWP, it wouldn't be allowed on a B-2 either.
But "training" is usually ok.

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ESTA cost $79. It was free exactly 3 years ago.