Travelers filling out the online form will be told whether their request is authorized, denied or pending, he said. Those who are marked "pending" must check back in 72 hours to see if they have been approved, he said.
People whose application is denied must apply to the U.S. Consulate for a visa, he said.
He said the U.S. Congress mandated the change.
The U.S. Homeland Security Department said in a statement that it will take a reasonable approach to travelers who have not obtained an approved travel authorization, but warned that travelers without authorization do risk being delayed or denied entry to the U.S.
There is no fee for the service, he said, and the travel authorization is valid for two years. He warned that operators of some unscrupulous Web sites are charging fees for this service, which is designed to be free of charge.
People can apply for travel authorization at any time, and Staeben said about 14,000 applications per day are being received.
-- (China Daily, Jan 14, 2009)
