VISA USA
Because we are traveling for multiple months in the USA and we don’t want to be in a rush, we opted for a B2 visa. This is a tourist visa valid for 10 years, allowing multiple entries into the USA, with a maximum stay per entry of 180 days (6 months). Depending on the border crossing, you can even extend it to a stay of one year. The drawback of this visa is that it is expensive, and the application process is quite cumbersome—more on that later.
For traveling in the USA, the easiest option could be an ETA, a quick and cheap electronically arranged visa. However, an ETA is only valid for 3 months and cannot be extended. It will also not be renewed if you go to Canada or Mexico for a short period and want to enter the USA again. If your road trip in the USA will be more than three months, you’d better opt for a B2 visa.
The B2 visa application process is as follows: first, you need a specific passport photo, then you can complete the online application form, a very extensive form taking 2-3 hours to complete. In the end, you need to upload your passport photo. The next step is to schedule an interview at an American embassy, consulate, or organization in your country that handles this via their own website. At this point, you will also need to pay for your visa and any other applicable fees. You’ll need a lot of evidence to take with you to the interview in hard copy. In the end, we did not need to show anything, but you must be able to provide evidence of what you are telling them in case they ask. After the interview, you hear directly if your visa is approved (in our case) or not. If approved, your request will be processed, and you leave your passport there. The visa will be placed in your passport, and you will have to pick it up again, or it will be sent home if they provide this service (this can take 2-4 weeks, so bear in mind you won’t have your passport for a couple of weeks).
When we applied in December 2022 (5 months prior to our departure), we were stressed out because we barely had enough time to arrange the B2 visa due to waiting times! We thought we considered waiting times and were on time by starting 5 months in advance, but we were wrong. It might be better now, but at that time, there were still backlogs due to Corona. The interview appointment had a waiting list of months, even a year! As a European citizen, you can go to any USA embassy or consulate in Europe. That saved us because after trying at 5 different spots in The Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany, we managed to find a spot in Frankfurt that was still in time.
In 2023, the costs of the B2 visa were €180 per person for the online application form, but you’ll also need to consider the specific passport photo you need, your trip to a USA embassy or consulate (especially if it is abroad), and the courier costs of sending your passport back home to you if they have this option. Everything together, including a train to Frankfurt and back, hotel, and courier costs, we had to spend €600 just to obtain our B2 Visa.
If you are overlanding into Canada, you do not need a visa when entering the country as a European citizen and are planning to stay a maximum of six months. This compensates for the hassle of the USA visa. If you are planning to stay longer or if you want to work, a visa is needed.