Ongoing Technical Problems Likely to Delay Visa Processing Until Next Week, State Department Projects
June 17, 2015
United States
U.S. consulates remain unable to process visas due to persistent technical problems affecting the State Department’s worldwide databases. Though the agency has resolved issues that prevented consulates from issuing passports to U.S. citizens abroad, it estimates that nonimmigrant and immigrant visa issuance will be on hold until next week at least.
Once State Department systems are back online, nonimmigrant visa applicants and their employers should expect additional delays of 10 to 14 days while consulates return to full functionality and work through the backlog of applications that accumulated during the outage. Consulates could give first priority to immigrant visa applications and adoption cases, as they have after past system outages. Some nonimmigrant visa applicants may be asked to reschedule their interview appointments or resubmit application forms.
What This Means for Foreign Nationals
If you are a foreign national who needs a visa for emergency travel to the United States, please contact your designated Fragomen professional and your local U.S. consulate for assistance. If you are a visa applicant with a non-emergent need to travel while you are awaiting final U.S. visa processing, you may be able to request the return of your passport from the consulate, though in most cases you will not be able to reenter the United States unless your current visa remains valid.
© 2015 Fragomen
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