Group ESTA application: how does it work?

Traveling to New York with family or friends? Everyone, including children, needs to apply for an ESTA (Electronic System for Travel Authorization). This authorization is required for all Europeans visiting the United States under the visa waiver program. Each person must complete the form at least 72 hours before departure on the official ESTA website and pay a fee of $40 per person as of September 30, 2025.
To simplify the process, you can submit a single group application for your entire family or group. On the ESTA website homepage, click “New Application,” then “Group of Applications.” A group application can include up to 50 people.

What are the advantages of a group ESTA application?

• You pay all ESTA fees in one transaction. If there are four of you, you pay $160 once instead of making four separate $40 payments. This saves you on currency conversion fees your bank may charge when exchanging euros for dollars—ESTA only accepts dollar payments, and some banks charge a fixed fee for each dollar transaction.
• If you’re traveling with older family members who are less comfortable with online payments, a group application lets you manage their paperwork and handle payment and logistics on their behalf.

How to submit a group ESTA application

• After clicking “Group of Applications,” you’ll enter the contact details of the group organizer—the person responsible for the group. This person must be at least 18 years old.
• You’ll then reach a page to “manage the group,” which displays your group ID—a reference number you’ll use to track application status and pay fees if you choose to pay later. Save this number. You’ll receive a confirmation email when the group file opens.
• After creating your group contact, click “Add New Application” to enter details for the first group member. You’ll fill out the same form for each person as you would for an individual application. For help, read my article on how to complete an ESTA application. You can also watch the ESTA video.
• Once finished, return to the group management page to add the next person. Repeat until all group members are in your file.
• When everyone has been added, proceed to payment.

Things to know about group ESTA applications

• If someone in your group already submitted an individual ESTA application but hasn’t paid yet, you can add them to your group from the group management page. Click “Add Unpaid Application,” then enter their details, including passport number. You can then retrieve their application and add it to your group for payment. This is useful if you’re traveling with many people and don’t want to fill out all the forms yourself: ask each person to complete their ESTA application without paying, then add them to the group.
• Even though payment is made as a group, each ESTA is issued individually. One group member’s application can be denied while others are approved. Once approved, each person can travel independently to the United States during the ESTA’s 2-year validity period. In other words, even if your ESTA was approved through a group application, you can take a different flight, arrive on a different day, and travel without the group during those 2 years.