The winter vacation period and summer vacation are the peak seasons for Taiwanese to travel to the U.S. If you are expecting to rent a car and drive to the U.S., in addition to the anticipation and packing warm clothes, the most important thing is that you must remember to make sure that you have brought all of these documents and papers.
U.S. Travel Rental Car Documents and Checklist
Essential
- Effective passports
- Visa or ESTA
- International Driver's License
- Domestic Driver's License
- Return Air Ticket
- U.S. Contact Information
- Credit cards that can be used abroad
Suggested Preparation
- Travel Planner
- Proof of Financial Strength
- Travel Insurance
- Photocopies or electronic files of important documents
Below is a more detailed description of each of the documents and when they will be needed.
Required Documents for U.S. Travel
1. Effective passports
Make sure your passport has not expired. Although the U.S. allows Taiwanese passports to enter the country within six months of validity, the immigration officer can decide how long to allow you to stay in the U.S. It is best if you have six months of validity left at the end of your trip, are undamaged, and have a blank page for an entry stamp. For the latest regulations, please refer to the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) website for the most accurate information.
2. Visa or ESTA
Depending on the length of stay and the nationality of the traveler, it is necessary to apply for a different visa or Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) in order to participate in the Visa Waiver Program (VWP). In the case of an ordinary Taiwanese traveling to the U.S. for sightseeing, attending meetings, or on short-term business trips, and entering the U.S. for less than 90 days, and if the traveler has not been previously denied, it is sufficient for him/her to apply for an ESTA entry on-line.Apply for a visa or ESTA When checking the official government website, please pay attention to whether it is an official government website or not, as there are some fake websites on the Internet that may cheat travelers and obtain the application fee by fraud. A few days before departure, we recommend you to check the ESTA website to make sure the status is approved (sometimes it may be canceled before departure), and that your name, date of birth and passport number are correct, and print out a copy of the application to have on hand in case of emergency.
It is not recommended to stay for the full 90 days of your travel plan. If you are unfortunate enough to have a delayed flight, or if you have a temporary situation, you will be overstaying your visa.
3. International Driving License
In Taiwan, you can bring your ID card and local driver's license to the local supervisory office (station).Application for International Driving LicenseIf you are renting a car in the U.S., you will find the expiration date on it, so be sure to check to see if the expiration date has expired and that your name and date of birth are correct.
4. local driver's license(Important!)
This is a document that many people overlook. In addition to an international driver's license, you are also required to carry a valid domestic driver's license that is "within the validity period". Since Taiwan no longer requires a renewal of driver's licenses, many people's licenses show an expired year. If you are going to rent a car in the U.S., you should apply for an international driver's license at the same time you renew your driver's license, and carry it with you when you drive abroad.
5. Return airfare
Immigration officers sometimes ask to check return tickets to ensure that foreign travelers do not intend to remain in the U.S. illegally or overstay their welcome.
6. U.S. Contact Information
When checking in and filling out immigration information, travelers will be asked to provide a contact address for their U.S. destination. Simply write down the address of the first hotel, Airbnb, or home address of a relative or friend they are visiting after arriving in the United States.
7. Credit cards that can be used abroad
When renting a car, it is usually necessary to provide a credit card for pre-authorization, and it is also more convenient to use a credit card for self-service gasoline. Travelers can tell their card-issuing bank about the country and time of travel before leaving the country to avoid the bank judging the card as fraudulent, resulting in increased hassle of being locked out of the card when refueling or using it abroad. This may happen from time to time, so if you can't use your card, you will have to pay at a manual window at a gas station. If your situation permits, it is recommended that you bring several credit cards from different banks and different systems (VISA/Master).
Recommended Documents for U.S. Travel Rentals
8. Travel Itinerary Plan
In order to ensure the purpose of entry, sometimes the immigration officer will ask to know the travel plan of the traveler. It is recommended to prepare an approximate list of sightseeing spots, hotels/airbnb to stay, and also attach the information of the booked car rental.
9. Proof of financial resources
Although it is not required information, similarly, in order to prevent travelers from working illegally in the U.S., immigration officers sometimes require proof that the traveler has the financial ability to afford the trip, either by printing out a screenshot of the online bank account, or by bringing enough cash (no more than 10,000 U.S. Dollars) with the traveler. For more formal proof of financial ability, you can apply to the bank and bring it to the court for notarization. Generally, short-term travelers usually do not need to provide such formal documents to prove their financial ability.
10. travel insurance
It is recommended that travelers to the United States must take out travel medical insurance because medical costs in the United States are very expensive, and if you become unwell or have an accident while driving, it will be a huge financial burden if you are not insured. Although rental car insurance is available, the basic coverage usually focuses on damage to the car and driving, not necessarily covering passengers, and rental car insurance will not pay for medical treatment that is not caused by an accident, so it is very important for everyone to have their own additional travel insurance.
More about car rental insurance can be found here:Rental Car Insurance
11. Photocopies and electronic files of important documents
Necessary travel documents such as passport, international driver's license, driver's license, visa / ESTA It is recommended to bring an extra copy of the personal documents, also bring a few more photos, separate from the original, and the electronic file in the cloud, to avoid the loss of documents in case of theft, knocking on the windows of the accident on the way to avoid self-driving, there are photocopies or electronic files will be more secure and more convenient for the subsequent travel and re-application in foreign countries.
Being well-prepared and carefully inspected before departure is often a great help for a smooth and safe vacation or business trip. If you choose to rent a car from Sky Horse, you are welcome to contact us directly if anything happens during your road trip. LINE Ask us for the right solution, because Sky Horse is the most reliable partner you can have when traveling in the United States!
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