Traveling to the USA on ESTA after being in Syria

Upvote:2

if I apply for ESTA Visa Waiver how would they know I have been to Syria

As you entered and exited overland, they're very unlikely to know. Don't bring any pictures or other evidence of having been to Syria, though.

What are the risks doing so?

It would involve lying on an official form. If discovered, you can say goodbye to ever setting your foot in the US.

Would it be better to apply for ESTA with my British or French passport?

On one hand the UK shares a fair deal with the US as part of the Five Eyes agreement; on the other hand your trip was on your French passport. As such I'd go with the British passport, declaring your French citizenship and your current (empty) French passport.

I won't say "DON'T ATTEMPT IT!", but rather: up to you to judge, as I realistically can't see you not getting away with it, but know you'd be in violation of the law.

Upvote:4

As the answer by JakeDot said, don't even try.

Since you traveled by car and through a land border, they may be a realistic chance that the French authorities never learned about the visit in the first place.

However, you cannot be sure that the visit wasn't recorded in some database, as visits to Syria are under scrutiny.

You may want to consult a professional for this one, especially if you have any ties to Syria, have an Arabic name or anything like that.

Basically, from the US point of view it will sound suspicious that you just took a car and went to a country that is in a civil war and for which there are clear travel advisories.

  • If you apply truthfully, you are legally fine, but you may wake sleeping dogs and have to overcome the initial suspicion - at least.
  • If you lie, and they find out, all alarms can go off. You can be banned for life, and you may end up on any kind of watchlist. And the US share those with their allies, causing you trouble elsewhere.

In such a case I wouldn't bet everything on an opinion of someone on the internet, but at least consider consulting a specialist.

Upvote:8

Hello and welcome to Travel Stackexchange. I'll try to answer your questions, however I currently can't provide sources, just from memory:

DON'T ATTEMPT IT!

if I apply for ESTA Visa Waiver how would they know I have been to Syria?

Because it's a French passport, the risk is quite high that they have the info from the French authorities. I would not recommend trying to get an ESTA, the B2 visa would probably be less of a hassle.

As Traveller mentions in the comments, the VWP (Visa Waiver Program) participating countries "are required to share intelligence and cooperate in matters of security with the United States [and] you can’t be sure exactly what immigration data is shared".

What are the risks doing so ?

The almost 100% risk is being banned from the VWP formally - which you technically already are, as you aren't eligible with your travel history - and maybe also being banned from any other visitor's visa to the U.S. for misrepresentation, fines, imprisonment, deportation, getting on terrorism watchlists, etc. when discovered.

Would it be better to apply for ESTA with my British or French passport ?

The best way would be to apply for a B visa as officially required.

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