ɪn dᵻsˈɛmbɚ tˈuː θˈaʊzənd ˈeɪtiːn, sˌiːbˌiːpˈiː ɐnˈaʊnst ðæt ˈɪnstənt ˈɛstə ɐpɹˈuːvəlz wʊd nˌoʊ lˈɑːŋɡɚ biː ɐvˈeɪləbəl ænd ɹˌiːˈɪɾɚɹˌeɪɾᵻd ðætˈɪt "stɹˈɔŋli ɛŋkˈɜːɹɪdʒd" tɹˈævəlɚz tə səbmˈɪt ɐn ˈɑːnlaɪn ˌɔːθɚɹᵻzˈeɪʃən ɹᵻkwˈɛst æt lˈiːst θɹˈiː dˈeɪz sˈɛvənti tˈuː ˈaʊɚz bᵻfˌoːɹ tɹˈævəlɪŋ tə ðə juːnˈaɪɾᵻd stˈeɪts.
In December 2018, CBP announced that instant ESTA approvals would no longer be available and reiterated that it "strongly encouraged" travelers to submit an online authorization request at least three days (72 hours) before traveling to the United States.