-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 On 09/06/2010 09:06 AM, Yoav Nir wrote: > > People from Europe, Japan, Australia, and some other countries don't need a visa at all to go to an IETF meeting in the US. People from China, India and the other countries are generally backed by employers, who can vouch for their travelling "on business", and generally should not have any trouble obtaining the US visa. > This is becoming less and less true, with the US stacking new requirements on the visa waiver program all the time. Mandatory fingerprinting and mugshot on each visit, having to request ESTA permission beforehand, and having to pay for that privilege almost makes getting a real visa just as easy. Also, they do in fact deny waivers sometimes, and once that has happened you do need a visa for each visit (anecdotal information disclaimer: this has happened to me, and I missed Anaheim because of it. Oh and it is definitely not a fun experience). Another fun fact to keep in mind if visas are a part of the location decision is that if you need a visa to enter the USA, you also need one if you have a transfer in the USA, for instance to fly on to south america or canada. > I would go so far as to say that getting a US visa seems easier than getting one to China. Who are the people for whom it's easier to visit a European country than it is to visit the US? > This is certainly not true. Getting a visa for china was a breeze for me. Of course not needing one would be much better. > On balance, I think US venues are generally better suited, and lead to less angst than either European or Asian venues. Even if they're in a cold place like Minneapolis. > I disagree, but that may not count since I'm European :) Jelte -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: GnuPG v1.4.10 (GNU/Linux) Comment: Using GnuPG with Mozilla - http://enigmail.mozdev.org/ iEYEARECAAYFAkyF7/sACgkQ4nZCKsdOncXrmwCgrw51tkWeLDG9CeEIjGgZ1ISA EaYAoMwWSr1ZiAquhYynaup4n2azABKs =tdDH -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- _______________________________________________ Ietf mailing list Ietf@xxxxxxxx https://www.ietf.org/mailman/listinfo/ietf