Visa Processing at a U.S. Consulate - Consular Assistance

When you or your relative or employee is having his or her case heard at a U.S. Consulate an interview is required to determine the applicant's admissibility.  Our office has years of experience with these cases worldwide.  We will prepare all applications and advise you on the documentation required for any kind of visa application at any United States Consulate.  Assistance will also include in-depth interview preparation, accompanying visa applicants, advice on admissiblity issues, and preparation of waivers when needed.  Please also see our page on waivers of inadmissibility.

Often, visa applicants from another part of the world who have changed their status while in the United States, may be able to apply for a new visa at a U.S. Consulate in either Mexico or Canada, thus saving the time and expense required for a return trip to their home country.  Our office will give advice on what U.S. Consulate may be best and acccompany you to the Consulate if requested.

What is a Visa?

• Citizens of foreign countries generally need visas to enter the United States. A visa is permission to apply to enter the United States. It is a document which is affixed to a page in your passport.
  
• Under U.S. law the Department of State has responsibility for issuing visas, and most visas are issued at one of the Department of State embassies and consulates abroad. Therefore, when you want to travel to the United States, you must first apply for a visa at an American embassy or consulate abroad. A consular officer decides whether you are qualified for a visa.
  
• A visa doesn't permit entry to the U.S. A visa simply indicates that your application has been reviewed by a U.S. consular officer at an American embassy or consulate, and that the officer determined you're eligible to travel to the port-of-entry for a specific purpose. The port of entry can be an international airport, a seaport or a land border crossing.
  
• At the port-of-entry a U.S. immigration officer of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) decides whether to allow you to enter and how long you can stay for any particular visit. Only the U.S. immigration officer has the authority to permit you to enter the United States.

Nonimmigrant visas are for people with permanent residence outside the U.S. but who wish to go to the U.S. on a temporary basis: for tourism, business, work, training, research, to play sports or entertain, for medical treatment, or study.

U.S. law requires that people who apply for nonimmigrant visas provide evidence that they don't intend to immigrate to the United States. It is up to consular officers at U.S. embassies and consulates to determine eligibility on an individual basis on the merits of each case.

Providing requested documents does not guarantee that you will receive a visa. There is no entitlement to a visa.

And, because each person's personal situation is different, people applying for the same visa may be asked different questions and be required to submit different documents. Under U.S. law, the authority to issue or refuse visas is vested solely in consular offices abroad. Consular officers have the authority to decide whether the evidence submitted in support of an application is sufficient to establish an applicant's eligibility for a visa. Consular officers may request additional information or documentation depending on their assessment of each person?s situation.

Recently, the U.S. has updated its visa policies to increase security for US citizens and visitors. It will likely take you longer to get a visa than it used to, and you will find that new security measures have been put into place.