Check Response

Response Values

Key	Values	Descriptions
checkComplete	`COMPLETED`, `FAILED`	Was the visa check completed successfully
checkedAt	Date	When was the check completed.
details	Object	An object containing visa details. See Below.

Details object from the response. Note that not all properties are returned in the response for each EER check request. The optional properties are returned if they are made available by the Government System.


validity	Required	Enum: `VALID`, `INVALID`, `UNKNOWN`	Is a visa currently valid.
eerStatus	Required	Enum: `APPROVED`, `DENIED`, `NOT_FOUND`, `EXPIRED`	EER Status.
processingStatus	Required	Enum: `PROCESSING`, `PROCESSED`, `AMENDMENT_REQUIRED`, `PAYMENT_REQUIRED`, `UNKNOWN`	Processing Status of an EER. Applicable during the application process - before a government processes it.
paymentStatus	Required	Enum: `PROCESSING`, `PROCESSED`, `AMENDMENT_REQUIRED`, `PAYMENT_REQUIRED`, `UNKNOWN`	Payment status of an EER
referenceNumber	Optional	String	Reference or application number.
validFrom	Optional	Date	The date from which an EER is valid.
validUntil	Optional	Date	The date on which an EER expires.
visaUrl	Optional	String	The URL of the visa, for example a link to an eVisa PDF.
expiryDate	Optional	Date	When the visa expires.
message	Optional	String
attachments	Optional	Array

Data per Country

A successful request will return the following information. Level of details varies per EER, as some information is not exposed by governments.

Property	USA ESTA	Australian ETA	Singapore eVisa	UAE eVisa / Permit	Turkey eVisa
validity	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
eerStatus	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
processingStatus	Yes	Yes			Yes
paymentStatus
referenceNumber	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
validFrom					Yes
validUntil					Yes
visaUrl
expiryDate	Yes	Yes	Yes
message				Yes
attachments

Determining Visa Validity

In most cases, the Sherpa API is able to determine whether the visa is currently valid or not. The response is often provided directly by the government, but in some cases Sherpa analyses the information about the visa to determine validity. For example, if today is past visa validity date, the visa is deemed INVALID.

Visa Not Found

A NOT_FOUND status may mean two things. Either the information was passed incorrectly or the EER is no longer registered in the Government System, deeming the EER invalid. Several governments delete any information about an existing EER after they expire or after they've been used(if they are single entry).

{
    "checkComplete": "COMPLETED",
    "checkedAt": "2020-06-08",
    "details": {
        "validity": "UNKNOWN",
        "eerStatus": "NOT_FOUND",
        "message": "UNABLE TO PROCESS YOUR REQUEST WITH GIVEN DETAILS"
    }
}

Response Example

{
    "checkComplete": "COMPLETED",
    "checkedAt": "2019-09-25",
    "details": {
        "validity": "VALID",
        "eerStatus": "APPROVED",
        "expiryDate": "2021-07-30",
        "message": "Your travel authorization has been approved and you are authorized to travel to the United States under the Visa Waiver Program. This does not guarantee admission to the United States; a Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer at a port of entry will have the final determination.If necessary, you can update the following information on an approved authorization: address while in the United States and e-mail address. To access your travel authorization, you will be required to provide your application number, Passport number, and birth date. If you need to change any other information on the form, you must apply for a new travel authorization.You have successfully submitted payment for the application listed below. A request by the cardholder to the bank or PayPal for a refund of fees will result in an automatic denial of the application. Please print this page for your personal records.",
        "referenceNumber": "R38R7B98R1AH4123"
    }
}

{
    "checkComplete": "COMPLETED",
    "checkedAt": "2020-06-08",
    "details": {
        "validity": "UNKNOWN",
        "eerStatus": "NOT_FOUND",
        "message": "UNABLE TO PROCESS YOUR REQUEST WITH GIVEN DETAILS"
    }
}

{
    "checkComplete": "COMPLETED",
    "checkedAt": "2020-06-08",
    "details": {
        "validity": "UNKNOWN",
        "eerStatus": "APPROVED",
        "processingStatus": "PROCESSED",
        "expiryDate": "2021-07-30",
        "referenceNumber": "R18R7B98R1AH4111"
    }
}

{
    "checkComplete": "COMPLETED",
    "checkedAt": "2019-10-03",
    "details": {
        "validity": "INVALID",
        "eerStatus": "UNKNOWN",
        "message": "'ENTRY PERMIT IS NOT VALID'"
    }
}

Response Timing

Sherpa's cloud infrastructure connects to government systems in a variety of ways. Below table shows how long it takes on average to retrieve a visa or visa status from a particular government.

EER	Response Time
USA ESTA	600ms
Australian eTA	5200s
Singapore eVisa	4100ms
Canadian eTA	900ms
UAE eVisa	3800ms