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This is absurd. I'm a US citizen, so I'll contact my Congressman to have his staff look into it. I don't have any special power, any US citizen can contact thei

This is absurd. I'm a US citizen, so I'll contact my Congressman to have his staff look into it. I don't have any special power, any US citizen can contact their congressman, but maybe that will kick-start something.

joshjhargreaves 6y ago
spoiler: it won't.
- D2187645 6y ago
  canned letter in 3 2 1
- Brendinooo 6y ago
  I had a friend who worked in constituent services for a US Senator, and...yeah, if you can get someone's attention in that setting, they can make stuff happen that otherwise would have fallen through the cracks. Been awhile since I heard stories, but one came to mind was someone getting the right visa for his bride in time for the wedding. Another one had to do with getting some kind of medal for a soldier. Not sure if doing things on someone else's behalf can be as effective, but it almost certainly won't hurt to ask.
  - refurb 6y ago
    Oh when it comes to immigration issues for the family of US citizens, yes, calling your Congressman can definitely move things along. But a foreigner whose visa is denied? Not sure why the Congressman would bother unless it somehow impacted the US.
    - deleted 6y ago
      [deleted]
    - dwheeler 6y ago
      They have an incentive to do it because the congressman is my representative, and I am a voter who is a complaining. I live near DC, so I guess I assume others know more about the US system than is common knowledge. My apologies. Please let me explain. Of course the congressman will not actually read the letter. That's not the point. The point is that every congressman has a mechanism for accepting requests from constituents, routing them to the correct agency, and tracking them to make sure they are resolved. You fill in a web form, prove that you are a constituent, and then the information gets routed to their staff. My daughter was did this job a few years ago, there are small armies that do it. It's just part of the US system. There's absolutely no guarantee that this will be resolved the way I want, but this is the standard US mechanism for dealing with stuck bureaucracies. Other US citizens could do the same. It might be a good idea, because with multiple complaints, then the US state department would get the clue that this is important and needs to get worked on.
      - refurb 6y ago
        No doubt you can try and hey, maybe it will work? I definitely know it works for people stuck in the immigration system, but this particular example (a visa for a temporary trip to the US) doesn’t seem like it would rank all that high on a Congressman’s priorities. My guess is they’ll look into and tell you there isn’t anything they could do. Might speed up the rejection though.
        dwheeler 6y ago
        The Congressman himself doesn't read these things. There are staffers in his office who do this. It's the usual way to try to get things unstuck. I already got a phone call back from the Congressman's office from a staffer. She explained that she needed a few additional pieces of info. I've already contacted Daniel Stenberg as well. So we will see!
jdright 6y ago
The funny thing is that if he had gone work as a temporary worker in Canada, two years would have given him permanent resident status. Then two more years he can become a citizen, then he would be free to enter USA. This would be faster and better solution overall. But anyways, I don't think it is ever worth the trouble going there.
- xuki 6y ago
  That’s not how it works. Only U.S. citizens have the right to enter the country. Canadians can be denied at port of entry.
  - Scoundreller 6y ago
    While correct, it’s not clear at what level Daniel has been “banned“. He was denied an ESTA and told to get a visa, but that hasn’t been denied (yet?). Canadians need neither, so he might be cool if he showed up at a PoE, or maybe not. And a visa/ESTA isn’t required for most Europeans arriving at a land Port of Entry, so who knows what would happen then. But they do ask more questions when you don’t have an ESTA. I guess if the USA wanted to arrest him, they would’ve been very fast at granting a visa.
- wenc 6y ago
  Hmm, becoming Canadian just to enter the USA seems like a difficult and roundabout way of going about it.... I'm reading Daniel's page and it seems to me that a number of commenters here are confusing his intent, which is "visiting", not "immigration". I've noticed that in the US, people tend to use the word "immigrate" for anyone trying to get into the country, whereas the word immigrate has a much more specific meaning. Technically, to "immigrate" means to apply for permanent residency -- i.e. to stay in a country indefinitely, and to live and work here. That is decidedly NOT what he's trying to do. (I guess it's fair since most people don't have actual experience with immigration, so the term is a little fuzzy.) Daniel is trying to "visit" the US temporarily and leave after. The long and the short of it seems to be: 1) Daniel is citizen of Sweden. 2) Under US law, citizens of Sweden qualify for the Visa-Waiver-Program (VWP), which means they do not require a visa to visit the U.S. for tourism, business or transit. 3) A few years ago, the US (and other countries, including Canada) introduced an additional requirement as a security measure: electronic pre-authorization or ESTA in case of the US [1] (which incidentally is NOT a visa). This means citizens of countries (in the VWP) who could previously enter the US with nothing but a passport, now had to apply for an ESTA online (which takes anywhere between 3 seconds to 3 days to get approved). Again the ESTA is not a visa -- only a pre-auth. Citizens of these countries still do not require a visa to enter the U.S. 4) Daniel has applied for ESTAs many times, and was approved many times before, but the last time he applied, he was denied. 5) When a VWP citizen is denied an ESTA and still wishes to visit the US, they have the option of applying for a regular visitor visa the old-fashioned way, at a US consulate/embassy. This is a lengthier and more bureaucratic process -- which presumably involves more thorough vetting. 6) Daniel still hasn't received his visitor visa. (Side note: the only 2 countries whose citizens have "visa-free" access to the U.S. are Canada and Bermuda [2]. Citizens of these countries do not require ESTAs). [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_System_for_Travel_Authorization https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_System_for_Travel_A... [2] https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/tourism-visit/citizens-of-canada-and-bermuda.html https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/tourism-...
awalton 6y ago
Unless you're a billionaire who can actually get a Congressperson on the phone, you're burning cycles. They've got an army of staff that do nothing but write stock replies, print and sign documents with stamps and mail them back to constituents. That's what involvement in our government has become in America - a bunch of people shouting into an endless void, and the people in power doing more or less whatever fits their needs most at that particular moment.
- rurp 6y ago
  > They've got an army of staff that do nothing but write stock replies, print and sign documents with stamps and mail them back to constituents. While this is certainly true and billionaires have far more sway than a random citizen, I don't think it's quite as dire as you say. I've heard from multiple people who work in politics that letters like these are tracked by the staff and the tallies considered by the representative. Which all makes some sense because for every person motivated to write a letter there are likely hundreds or thousands who feel the same but didn't bother to write. I wouldn't spend a bunch of time writing a finely crafted letter, but a short personal note sent to a Congressperson is very quick process and has some chance of mattering. I've done this a handful of times and there's usually a form on their website that makes it all quite easy. Citizen letters aren't going to counteract major lobbyists, but a lot of issues that Congress handles don't really have entrenched financial interests on either side. It's in an elected reps self interest to keep their constituents happy and scoring some easy wins in response to citizen complaints is well within their wheelhouse.
  - dwheeler 6y ago
    Exactly. I'm not expecting my letter to actually be read by my congressman, that's not the point. Every US Congressman has staff who get letters like this everyday. They send them to the appropriate agency, and track them. It's the standard process in the US to deal with the bureaucracy when it gets stuck, it is somewhat like the ombudsman role in other systems. There is no guarantee, but there is a chance.
  - dwheeler 6y ago
    My Congressional Representatives' Office called me this morning. They want a little additional information about Daniel Stenberg, and then they will write a letter to the US Embassy. Obviously that's no guarantee that the problem will be resolved, but at least there are efforts to try to resolve this problem. I hope this breaks the logjam.
peter303 6y ago
Careful. You could end up on a no-fly list or worse for consorting with persona non grata. (I am paranoid)
refurb 6y ago
Why would a Congressman go to bat for a foreigner who can't get entry into the US? I mean, I guess their office could push the gov't for an actual decision, but I can't see them fighting for approval.
- shawnz 6y ago
  To attract talented professionals to their state
  - gowld 6y ago
    To attract ONE talented professional to visit SOME state?
    - shawnz 6y ago
      And others who are influenced by him (of which there are many in this case)
- dwheeler 6y ago
  I wasn't suggesting that a Congressman directly go to bat, though that would be awesome. Any US citizen can contact their Congressional Representatives' Office to request that some bureaucratic problem be resolved, and the Congressional office directly contacts the relevant organization within the executive branch. I live near Washington DC, and it's just part of the process.
dav43 6y ago
Good luck - if you get traction please post an update. I too love shouting into the void of bureaucracy.
- dwheeler 6y ago
  I've had a phone call, and email, and a follow-up email from my congressman's office to discuss this case. Again, that's no guarantee that the result will be what we want, but there is clearly traction. Again it's not like my congressman is talking to me, but I was not expecting that. For Congressional staff this is just part of the job.

joshjhargreaves 6y ago

spoiler: it won't.

D2187645 6y ago
canned letter in 3 2 1
Brendinooo 6y ago
I had a friend who worked in constituent services for a US Senator, and...yeah, if you can get someone's attention in that setting, they can make stuff happen that otherwise would have fallen through the cracks. Been awhile since I heard stories, but one came to mind was someone getting the right visa for his bride in time for the wedding. Another one had to do with getting some kind of medal for a soldier. Not sure if doing things on someone else's behalf can be as effective, but it almost certainly won't hurt to ask.
- refurb 6y ago
  Oh when it comes to immigration issues for the family of US citizens, yes, calling your Congressman can definitely move things along. But a foreigner whose visa is denied? Not sure why the Congressman would bother unless it somehow impacted the US.
  - deleted 6y ago
    [deleted]
  - dwheeler 6y ago
    They have an incentive to do it because the congressman is my representative, and I am a voter who is a complaining. I live near DC, so I guess I assume others know more about the US system than is common knowledge. My apologies. Please let me explain. Of course the congressman will not actually read the letter. That's not the point. The point is that every congressman has a mechanism for accepting requests from constituents, routing them to the correct agency, and tracking them to make sure they are resolved. You fill in a web form, prove that you are a constituent, and then the information gets routed to their staff. My daughter was did this job a few years ago, there are small armies that do it. It's just part of the US system. There's absolutely no guarantee that this will be resolved the way I want, but this is the standard US mechanism for dealing with stuck bureaucracies. Other US citizens could do the same. It might be a good idea, because with multiple complaints, then the US state department would get the clue that this is important and needs to get worked on.
    - refurb 6y ago
      No doubt you can try and hey, maybe it will work? I definitely know it works for people stuck in the immigration system, but this particular example (a visa for a temporary trip to the US) doesn’t seem like it would rank all that high on a Congressman’s priorities. My guess is they’ll look into and tell you there isn’t anything they could do. Might speed up the rejection though.
      - dwheeler 6y ago
        The Congressman himself doesn't read these things. There are staffers in his office who do this. It's the usual way to try to get things unstuck. I already got a phone call back from the Congressman's office from a staffer. She explained that she needed a few additional pieces of info. I've already contacted Daniel Stenberg as well. So we will see!

jdright 6y ago

The funny thing is that if he had gone work as a temporary worker in Canada, two years would have given him permanent resident status. Then two more years he can become a citizen, then he would be free to enter USA. This would be faster and better solution overall. But anyways, I don't think it is ever worth the trouble going there.

xuki 6y ago
That’s not how it works. Only U.S. citizens have the right to enter the country. Canadians can be denied at port of entry.
- Scoundreller 6y ago
  While correct, it’s not clear at what level Daniel has been “banned“. He was denied an ESTA and told to get a visa, but that hasn’t been denied (yet?). Canadians need neither, so he might be cool if he showed up at a PoE, or maybe not. And a visa/ESTA isn’t required for most Europeans arriving at a land Port of Entry, so who knows what would happen then. But they do ask more questions when you don’t have an ESTA. I guess if the USA wanted to arrest him, they would’ve been very fast at granting a visa.
wenc 6y ago
Hmm, becoming Canadian just to enter the USA seems like a difficult and roundabout way of going about it.... I'm reading Daniel's page and it seems to me that a number of commenters here are confusing his intent, which is "visiting", not "immigration". I've noticed that in the US, people tend to use the word "immigrate" for anyone trying to get into the country, whereas the word immigrate has a much more specific meaning. Technically, to "immigrate" means to apply for permanent residency -- i.e. to stay in a country indefinitely, and to live and work here. That is decidedly NOT what he's trying to do. (I guess it's fair since most people don't have actual experience with immigration, so the term is a little fuzzy.) Daniel is trying to "visit" the US temporarily and leave after. The long and the short of it seems to be: 1) Daniel is citizen of Sweden. 2) Under US law, citizens of Sweden qualify for the Visa-Waiver-Program (VWP), which means they do not require a visa to visit the U.S. for tourism, business or transit. 3) A few years ago, the US (and other countries, including Canada) introduced an additional requirement as a security measure: electronic pre-authorization or ESTA in case of the US [1] (which incidentally is NOT a visa). This means citizens of countries (in the VWP) who could previously enter the US with nothing but a passport, now had to apply for an ESTA online (which takes anywhere between 3 seconds to 3 days to get approved). Again the ESTA is not a visa -- only a pre-auth. Citizens of these countries still do not require a visa to enter the U.S. 4) Daniel has applied for ESTAs many times, and was approved many times before, but the last time he applied, he was denied. 5) When a VWP citizen is denied an ESTA and still wishes to visit the US, they have the option of applying for a regular visitor visa the old-fashioned way, at a US consulate/embassy. This is a lengthier and more bureaucratic process -- which presumably involves more thorough vetting. 6) Daniel still hasn't received his visitor visa. (Side note: the only 2 countries whose citizens have "visa-free" access to the U.S. are Canada and Bermuda [2]. Citizens of these countries do not require ESTAs). [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_System_for_Travel_Authorization https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_System_for_Travel_A... [2] https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/tourism-visit/citizens-of-canada-and-bermuda.html https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/tourism-...

awalton 6y ago

Unless you're a billionaire who can actually get a Congressperson on the phone, you're burning cycles. They've got an army of staff that do nothing but write stock replies, print and sign documents with stamps and mail them back to constituents. That's what involvement in our government has become in America - a bunch of people shouting into an endless void, and the people in power doing more or less whatever fits their needs most at that particular moment.

rurp 6y ago
> They've got an army of staff that do nothing but write stock replies, print and sign documents with stamps and mail them back to constituents. While this is certainly true and billionaires have far more sway than a random citizen, I don't think it's quite as dire as you say. I've heard from multiple people who work in politics that letters like these are tracked by the staff and the tallies considered by the representative. Which all makes some sense because for every person motivated to write a letter there are likely hundreds or thousands who feel the same but didn't bother to write. I wouldn't spend a bunch of time writing a finely crafted letter, but a short personal note sent to a Congressperson is very quick process and has some chance of mattering. I've done this a handful of times and there's usually a form on their website that makes it all quite easy. Citizen letters aren't going to counteract major lobbyists, but a lot of issues that Congress handles don't really have entrenched financial interests on either side. It's in an elected reps self interest to keep their constituents happy and scoring some easy wins in response to citizen complaints is well within their wheelhouse.
- dwheeler 6y ago
  Exactly. I'm not expecting my letter to actually be read by my congressman, that's not the point. Every US Congressman has staff who get letters like this everyday. They send them to the appropriate agency, and track them. It's the standard process in the US to deal with the bureaucracy when it gets stuck, it is somewhat like the ombudsman role in other systems. There is no guarantee, but there is a chance.
- dwheeler 6y ago
  My Congressional Representatives' Office called me this morning. They want a little additional information about Daniel Stenberg, and then they will write a letter to the US Embassy. Obviously that's no guarantee that the problem will be resolved, but at least there are efforts to try to resolve this problem. I hope this breaks the logjam.

peter303 6y ago

Careful. You could end up on a no-fly list or worse for consorting with persona non grata. (I am paranoid)

refurb 6y ago

Why would a Congressman go to bat for a foreigner who can't get entry into the US? I mean, I guess their office could push the gov't for an actual decision, but I can't see them fighting for approval.

shawnz 6y ago
To attract talented professionals to their state
- gowld 6y ago
  To attract ONE talented professional to visit SOME state?
  - shawnz 6y ago
    And others who are influenced by him (of which there are many in this case)
dwheeler 6y ago
I wasn't suggesting that a Congressman directly go to bat, though that would be awesome. Any US citizen can contact their Congressional Representatives' Office to request that some bureaucratic problem be resolved, and the Congressional office directly contacts the relevant organization within the executive branch. I live near Washington DC, and it's just part of the process.

dav43 6y ago

Good luck - if you get traction please post an update. I too love shouting into the void of bureaucracy.

dwheeler 6y ago
I've had a phone call, and email, and a follow-up email from my congressman's office to discuss this case. Again, that's no guarantee that the result will be what we want, but there is clearly traction. Again it's not like my congressman is talking to me, but I was not expecting that. For Congressional staff this is just part of the job.