US visa interview rules set to get tougher from 2 September; here's how it may impact your visa application
The non-immigrant visa categories consist of tourist and business visas (B-1/B-2), student visas (F and M), work visas (H-1B), and exchange visas (J). Diplomatic visas come under categories A and G.
The new guidelines stated the majority of non-immigrant visa applicants, comprising those under the age of 14 and over the age of 79 will be required to undergo compulsory consular interviews. However, exceptions apply to certain categories, including A-1, A-2, C-3 (excluding attendants of officials), G-1 to G-4, NATO-1 to NATO-6, TECRO E-1, and individuals holding diplomatic or official visas.
A notable exception applies to individuals renewing a full-validity B-1, B-2, B1/B2 visa, or a Mexican Border Crossing Card/Foil, provided the renewal is done within 12 months of the previous visa's expiration. To qualify, the applicant must have been at least 18 years old at the time the original visa was issued and must apply from their country of nationality or residence.
However, they must also have no prior visa refusals (unless overturned or waived) and no apparent or potential ineligibility. Even in such cases, consular officers retain broad discretion to require an interview on a case-by-case basis.
Even when interview waivers are available, consular officers still have the discretion to require an interview on a case-by-case basis for any reason. This policy overrides the Interview Waiver update issued on 18 February, 2025.
According to USCIS, 'consular officers may still require in-person interviews on a case-by-case basis for any reason. Applicants should check embassy and consulate websites for more detailed information about visa application requirements and procedures, and to learn more about the embassy or consulate's operating status and services.'
'My reading of this is that they are basically getting rid of Dropbox (interview waivers) for most categories. This will lead to longer waits for appointments and is significantly less efficient for renewals of visas. Also requiring interviews for children is patently absurd,' Brown stated on X.
Earlier this month, the United States introduced a new $250 Visa Integrity Fee, scheduled to take effect in 2026. This fee, which functions as a security deposit, is pegged to inflation and may be refunded if visa holders fulfil compliance conditions.
The fee is part of Trump's wide-ranging immigration reform included in the recently signed One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed into law on 4 July.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
‘You Stormed Al-Aqsa, Now Face Fire': Hamas-Linked Group Bombs Israeli Forces In Gaza
Gaza-based militant group Saraya al-Quds, the armed wing of Islamic Jihad, released a video claiming responsibility for rocket attacks on Israeli forces in Gaza's Nir Am settlement. The group said the assault, involving Quds-3 rockets, was in direct retaliation for Israeli Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir's controversial visit to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound during the Jewish holiday of Tisha B'Av. Watch
India Today
an hour ago
- India Today
Gunbattle erupts as Army corners terrorists in J&K's Kishtwar
In the early hours of Sunday, Indian Army troops came under fire while conducting an intelligence-based operation in the Dul area of Kishtwar, the Army's WhiteKnightCorps to sources, two to three Pakistani terrorists are believed to be hiding in the area, and a fierce gunfight is currently the update on X, the White Knight Corps said that alert Indian Army troops launched an intelligence-based operation in the Dul area of Kishtwar in the early hours of August 10, and came in contact with terrorists and the operation is currently underway. advertisement The encounter in Kishtwar comes as security forces remain engaged in Operation Akhal, one of the Valley's longest-running anti-terror offensives. Two soldiers — Lance Naik Pritpal Singh and Sepoy Harminder Singh — were killed in an overnight exchange of fire on Friday. Two more personnel were injured, taking the total number of wounded to 10 since the operation Akhal was launched on August 1 after specific intelligence inputs indicated the presence of terrorists in a forested area in Akhal, South Kashmir. Over five terrorists have been killed so far in the Kishtwar encounter adds to a string of recent clashes in Jammu and Kashmir, highlighting intensified counter-terror measures aimed at eliminating remaining militant strongholds. Security agencies say the operations will continue until all threats are forces have stepped up anti-terror operations in Jammu and Kashmir in the wake of the April 22 Pahalgam terrorist attacks, in which Pakistan-based terrorists killed 26 civilians, most of them Akhal was launched after troops neutralised the Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists responsible for the massacre during Operation Mahadev near Srinagar's Dachigam area. A day later, on July 29, the Army carried out Operation Shiv Shakti, eliminating two more the April 22 attack, security forces have killed nearly 20 high-profile terrorists in a series of targeted operations.- EndsMust Watch
India Today
2 hours ago
- India Today
Played chess, delivered checkmate: Army chief on outsmarting Pak in Op Sindoor
Operation Sindoor was unlike any conventional mission, with the Army uncertain of the enemy's next move, making it akin to a game of chess. Yet, India delivered a decisive checkmate, securing victory, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Upendra Dwivedi said, also acknowledging the risks involved in such an approach."In Operation Sindoor, we played chess... We did not know what the enemy's next move was going to be, and what we were going to do. This is called greyzone. Greyzone means that we are not going for conventional operations. What we are doing is just short of a conventional operation... We were making the chess moves, and he (enemy) was also making the chess moves," the Army chief at an event at the IIT Madras, he added, "Somewhere we were giving them the checkmate and somewhere we were going in for the kill at the risk of losing our own but that's life is all about". The anti-terror operation, launched on May 7 in retaliation for the Pahalgam terrorist attack in which Pakistan-based militants killed 26 civilians in Jammu and Kashmir, was driven by political resolve and strategic clarity at the government level, the Army chief added. He commended the decision to grant the Army a 'free hand' during high-level meetings with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Defence Minister."On (April) 23rd, we all sat down. This is the first time that RM (Defence Minister Rajnath Singh) said, 'enough is enough'. All three chiefs were very clear that something had to be done. The free hand was given, 'you decide what is to be done.' That is the kind of confidence, political direction and political clarity we saw for the first time," Dwivedi said at the called out Pakistan's narrative management, portraying itself as the victor in the conflict, referring to the government's decision to elevate its Army chief, Asim Munir, to the rank of five-star general and field marshal."Narrative management system is something which we realise in a big way because victory is in mind. It's always in mind. If you ask a Pakistani whether you lost or won, he'd say, 'Army chief has become Field Marshal. We must have won only, that's why he has a become a Field Marshal'," the Army Chief naming the mission 'Operation Sindoor,' General Dwivedi said it was something that galvanised the nation."It is important that how a small name Op Sindoor connects the whole nation... That is something which galvanised the whole nation... That is the reason the whole nation was saying why have you stopped? That question was being asked and it has been amply answered," he Sindoor, the targeted military campaign launched by India, involved precision strikes against terrorist infrastructure and camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The Indian armed forces, operating with a free hand from the government, used a combination of air and missile strikes to hit nine specific India maintained that the strikes were focused, measured, and non-escalatory, Pakistan responded with retaliatory drone and missile attacks, which were effectively neutralised by India's air defence mission is widely considered a victory for India, both militarily and psychologically. According to analysts, the operation demonstrated India's capacity for high-precision, coordinated military action, which successfully dismantled terrorist infrastructure and restored deterrence against state-sponsored cross-border terrorism.- EndsTune InMust Watch IN THIS STORY#Operation Sindoor#Pakistan#India-Pakistan
