How Long Can You Stay in the US on ESTA? The 90-Day Rule

If your passport is from a Visa Waiver Program country such as the UK, Germany, Japan or Australia, an ESTA lets you stay in the US for up to 90 days per visit. The ESTA itself is generally valid for 2 years, but that is a separate clock. Here is how the 90 days are counted, what a trip to Canada or Mexico does to them, and what to do when 90 days is not enough.

How long you can stay in the US on an ESTA

Each time you enter the US under the Visa Waiver Program, you can be admitted for up to 90 days as a visitor for tourism or business. The ESTA is the online travel authorization you need before you board. The stay itself is set by the CBP officer when you arrive.

Your limit is the Admit Until date on your I-94, the electronic arrival record CBP creates when you enter. That date is the one that counts, not anything on your ESTA approval, so look it up yourself after you land.

An approved ESTA is not a promise of entry either. It shows you are eligible to travel under the program, and the officer at the port of entry can still find you inadmissible.

Who needs an ESTA, and who does not

ESTA covers citizens of Visa Waiver Program countries who travel on that country’s passport, for trips of 90 days or less. US citizens never apply for one: the ESTA is for visitors coming into the US, and visa-free stays on a US passport follow each destination’s own day limits instead.

Even a connection needs one. Visa Waiver travelers must apply for an ESTA when they are only transiting the US on the way to another country, and enter “In Transit” in the address field.

CBP also asks for a machine-readable passport valid 6 months beyond your planned stay, unless your country is on the State Department’s list of countries exempt from that rule. An expired passport rules you out.

ESTA validity vs the 90-day stay

The ESTA and the stay run on 2 separate clocks. CBP’s ESTA FAQ says an approval is valid for 2 years, or until your passport expires if that comes first, and it covers multiple trips in that time. CBP is explicit that an approval does not let you stay 2 years: each trip is still capped at 90 days. Since 6 Jul 2023, a new ESTA on a Brunei passport lasts 1 year at most.

Your ESTA only has to be valid on the day you arrive. If it expires mid-stay, your departure is not affected, and you can stay until your I-94 date. You need a new ESTA, and a new fee, when you get a new passport, change your name or citizenship, or when an answer to one of the eligibility questions changes. As of October 2026 an application costs $40.62: $10.62 for processing, charged even if you are refused, plus $30.00 once you are approved.

	ESTA authorization	Each stay in the US
How long it lasts	2 years from approval, or to passport expiry if sooner	Up to 90 days per admission
Where you check it	Your approval on esta.cbp.dhs.gov	The Admit Until date on your I-94
What ends it early	A new passport, name or citizenship, or a changed eligibility answer	Leaving the US, apart from a trip to Canada, Mexico or an adjacent island
If it ends while you are in the US	No effect on your departure	Every further day is an overstay

Hannah, a sample traveler on a German passport, had her ESTA approved on 12 Nov 2024. Her passport runs until 2031, so the ESTA is valid until 12 Nov 2026.

• 15 Oct 2026: she lands in Boston. The officer admits her under the Visa Waiver Program, and her I-94 shows an Admit Until date in mid-January 2027.
• 12 Nov 2026: her ESTA expires while she is in the US. Nothing changes: her stay still ends on the I-94 date.
• 5 Jan 2027: she flies home on day 83 of her stay, counting her arrival day as day 1, inside her 90.
• Spring 2027: for her next trip she applies for a new ESTA and pays the fee again.

Can you extend a 90-day ESTA stay?

No. CBP’s Visa Waiver Program requirements say visitors on the program may not apply to extend their stay past 90 days, or to change to another immigrant or nonimmigrant status from inside the US. USCIS lists the program among the categories that cannot file for an extension.

Many countries let a visitor extend a tourist stay at a local immigration office before the last day. The US does the same for B-2 visa holders, through Form I-539, but not for anyone admitted on an ESTA.

The one exception is an emergency. Under 8 CFR 217.3(a), if an emergency stops you leaving within your authorized stay, immigration officials can grant up to 30 days of “satisfactory departure” at their discretion. Leaving within that period counts as completing your visit without an overstay.

Does a trip to Canada or Mexico reset the 90 days?

No. A short trip next door does not give you a new 90 days. The rule covers Canada, Mexico and what US law calls adjacent islands: Saint Pierre, Miquelon, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Bermuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, Jamaica, the Windward and Leeward Islands, Trinidad, Martinique and other British, French and Netherlands territory in or bordering the Caribbean (8 U.S.C. 1101(b)(5)).

Under 8 CFR 217.3(b), a Visa Waiver visitor who leaves for one of those places and comes back can be readmitted for the balance of the original admission period. Your I-94 date stays where it was.

A related rule applies when you first fly in. Arriving by air or sea, you need a return ticket that takes you out of the US, and the trip cannot end in Canada, Mexico or an adjacent island unless you live there (8 CFR 217.2(c)).

Arriving by land has its own conditions. CBP’s I-94 page, last updated 22 Jul 2026, says Visa Waiver travelers now need an approved ESTA before they reach a US land border. At a land crossing you also show the officer evidence of funds and a home abroad you intend to return to.

Oliver, a sample traveler on a UK passport, is admitted at Miami on 1 Jun 2026. His I-94 shows an Admit Until date at the end of August.

Date	What he does	What it does to his stay
1 Jun 2026	Lands in Miami on his ESTA	Day 1 of an admission of up to 90 days
10 Jul 2026	Flies to Cancun	Day 40; his I-94 date keeps running while he is away
20 Jul 2026	Flies back to Miami	Readmitted for the balance of the June admission; the I-94 date does not move
End of August	Flies home to London	Leaves by the original I-94 date

If Oliver had spent those 10 days in Lisbon instead, his return on 20 Jul would be an application for a new admission. The officer could admit him again or refuse him, and nothing guarantees a fresh 90 days.

How long to wait between ESTA visits

There is no fixed gap. The US has no rolling count like Europe’s 90/180 rule, which caps your days in any 180-day window. CBP’s FAQ says there is no set waiting period between visits, but the gap should be long enough that the officer does not conclude you are living in the US.

That makes each entry a judgment by the CBP officer on the day. Under the Visa Waiver Program you have also given up the right to have the officer’s decision reviewed or appealed, and the right to contest removal except by applying for asylum (8 U.S.C. 1187(b)).

The same goes for spending 6 months a year in the US: no Visa Waiver rule sets a yearly cap, so no number of days a year is safe in advance. If you want more than 90 days at a time, apply for a B-2 visitor visa.

How to check your I-94 date and prove you left

When you leave by air or sea, CBP records the departure from the passenger information the airline or ship sends. Leaving by land is different: CBP warns that a land departure may not be recorded accurately. It suggests carrying evidence of your departure, such as an entry stamp from Canada’s border agency (CBSA) or Mexico’s immigration institute (INM), transport tickets, pay stubs or receipts.

Check your ESTA and your 90 days

1. Look up your ESTA on esta.cbp.dhs.gov and note its expiry date; it only has to be valid on the day you land.
2. Apply for a new ESTA before you fly if you have a new passport, a new name or citizenship, or a changed answer to an eligibility question.
3. Pull your most recent I-94 from the I-94 website or the CBP Link app after you arrive, and note the Admit Until date.
4. Fit any side trip to Canada, Mexico or the Caribbean inside that date, since it will not add days.
5. Book your flight out on or before the Admit Until date.
6. Ask CBSA or INM for an entry stamp if you leave by land, and keep your tickets and receipts.

What happens if you overstay on an ESTA

Staying even 1 day past your I-94 date is overstaying your admission. Unlawful presence starts the day after your I-94 date. More than 180 days of it, but less than 1 year, brings a 3-year bar on returning, counted from the day you leave; 1 year or more brings a 10-year bar (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(9)(B)).

Staying longer than 90 days: the B-2 visitor visa

For a visit longer than 90 days, CBP says you need a visa from a US embassy or consulate, applied for before you travel. The usual one for tourism is the B-2 visitor visa.

Under 8 CFR 214.2(b), a B-2 visitor is normally admitted for 6 months, and a visitor can be admitted for up to 1 year. Unlike an ESTA stay, a B-2 stay can be extended from inside the US in steps of up to 6 months. Form I-539, the extension application, costs $470 on paper or $420 online as of October 2026 (8 CFR 106.2 and 106.1(g)). USCIS recommends filing it at least 45 days before your I-94 date.

	ESTA (Visa Waiver Program)	B-2 visitor visa
Longest stay per entry	90 days	Normally 6 months, up to 1 year
Where you apply	Online at esta.cbp.dhs.gov	A US embassy or consulate
Cost as of October 2026	$40.62	The visa application fee, plus $470 on paper or $420 online for an I-539 extension
Extension inside the US	No; only up to 30 days of satisfactory departure in an emergency	Yes, Form I-539, up to 6 months at a time
Change of status inside the US	Not allowed	Can be applied for with USCIS
After an overstay	Visa Waiver access lost; bars past 180 days	Visa void; bars past 180 days