i contacted the us authorities & the canadian guys,
the canadians responded by stating that they did not have a problem
from the us i got an an automated response with a whole bunch of links. one of the linkswas the link to the local us embassy's website (london in our case)
i checked out this link
http://london.usembassy.gov/cons_new/visa/niv/vwp.html
and this is what it says
Refused a Visa
While travelers who have been refused a visa under the provisions of Section 221(g) or 214(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act are not ineligible to travel visa under the Visa Waiver Program, they will be questioned by an immigration official at the U. S. port of entry regarding the refusal by the Embassy or Consulate.
The traveler should carry with him or her evidence of his or her intention to depart the United States at the end of the visit. This is generally satisfied by furnishing evidence of strong social and economic ties to the traveler's 's place of permanent residence. There is no set form that this should take as each person's circumstances differ.
If the immigration officer is not satisfied that the traveler meets the qualifications for nonimmigrant status, the traveler will be denied entry.
does this mean that if you have been refused a visa before you can still use the visa waiver.
do you guys know what is Section 221(g) or 214(b)?
i guess any other section does not matter, right?
i did a search for these sections, came across the aussie website
http://canberra.usembassy.gov/consular/visarefusal.html
it states that
What to do if refused a visa
If your application for a nonimmigrant visa has been refused, you will be informed why. The most common refusals are under Section 221(g) and Section 214(b) of the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act. Other refusal sections are specific, and such refusals will be accompanied by a detailed note.
Under Section 221(g), we are asking for additional information before making a final decision. Often the application is incomplete, or there are additional requirements such as fees, which are specific to your case, or we need a fuller explanation of your purpose or more explanation of your answers to certain questions. Frequently, part of question 34 was unanswered or unexplained or the application was unsigned. Often, we want to know more about your employment and legal residence in Australia or elsewhere and we could like to see additional evidence about your work and social commitments. Sometimes, certain petitions supporting the visa are missing or incomplete.
When refused under section 221(g), you should provide us the information and/or documents requested, together with the refusal letter and your passport. If you submit the information and/or documents within a year of the application, you will not have to pay another application fee. Once we receive the new information, we will review your application and make a final decision.
Refusals under Section 214(b), mean we understand your situation but have decided against issuing you a visa because you have not overcome a legal presumption that you are using the visitor visa to immigrate or work illegally in the United States.
Applicants can overcome this legal presumption by proving to the consular officer’s satisfaction that they will use the visa appropriately and that they have a residence abroad to which they will return after a temporary visit to the United States. In our evaluation of the applicant’s claim of residence abroad, we will consider the person’s career, financial, property, social, family and other commitments overseas. As a consequence, an applicant who does not have a permanent career or other relationship to Australia or elsewhere is more likely to be refused than a person who has obvious ties and obligations. The applicant who has only an uncertain future, indefinite plans in the U.S. and unclear finances is likely to be refused under section 214(b). Applicants who are not legal permanent or long-term residents in Australia also are more likely to be refused because they are either unsettled, between careers and residences, or because we cannot evaluate their claims to ties outside our consular district.
