U.S. State Department Suspends Routine Visa Services in Caracas, Venezuela

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At a glance

• Routine visa services at the U.S. mission in Caracas, Venezuela – including nonimmigrant visa processing – have been suspended indefinitely as tensions increase between the United States and Venezuela.

• Limited emergency services remain available for U.S. citizens.

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The situation

The State Department has suspended routine visa services at the U.S. mission in Caracas, Venezuela after ordering non-emergency U.S. government employees to depart the country.    The move comes as tensions increase between the United States and President Nicolás Maduro’s government.  Earlier this week, the United States formally recognized opposition leader Juan Guaidó as the interim leader of Venezuela.  This led President Maduro to cut diplomatic ties with the United States and order U.S. diplomatic personnel to leave the country.

What this means

Employers should expect that consular service will remain suspended at the U.S. mission in Caracas indefinitely.  Affected foreign workers may be able to obtain U.S. visas by traveling to another country and applying for a U.S. visa as a third-country national  (TCN), but should be aware that U.S. consulates accept TCN applications at their discretion.

Limited emergency services to U.S. citizens remain available at the U.S. mission for the time being. 

Fragomen is monitoring consular operations in Caracas and will provide updates as new information becomes available.

 

This alert is for information purpose only. If you have any questions, please contact the immigration professional with who you work.