Interview Requirement for Visa Application
The Department of State is currently implementing a policy, which will require
personal interviews for almost all applicants for entry visas at U.S. consulates.
For a complete statement of the new policy, go to
http://travel.state.gov/state136100.html.
This new policy affects
only people
traveling outside the United States, and applying for an entry visa at U.S.
consulate. It does not affect people applying inside the United States for
an extension or change of non-immigrant legal status.
The Immigration
Naturalization Act has, since 1952, required personal interviews at
U.S. consulates but consular officers previously had broad discretion to waive
the personal interview. The
new policy greatly
reduces the consular officers' discretion to waive personal interviews. This
means that U.S. consulates which currently use a mail-in system or drop-box
system for accepting and processing visas, will no longer be able to do so
in most cases. Visa applicants at such consulates may experience significant
delays in getting visas, due to the increased time and resources required
for the interviews. Many U.S. consulates in Europe and in Japan, for example,
are likely to see increased visa processing times. Those consular posts which
are already doing interviews with most or all visa applicants will likely
not see significant changes in processing time due to this new policy.
Consular officers
may, at their discretion, still waive personal interviews for individuals
renewing a visa of the same type the individual already has, provided the
existing visa has not been expired for more than 12 months at the time of
the new visa application. The consular officer has the authority to interview
any applicant, however.
Look at this website
before traveling to find the latest information about the U.S. consulate where
you will apply for your visa Under "About Consular Affairs" scroll down to "Links
to U.S. embassies and Consulates Web Sites." From there you can find the link
to the U.S. consulate you plan to visit.
Last Update:
November 14, 2007
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