In this article, we’ll talk about how to fill out the US visitor visa application form easily, step by step.
The United States has so much to offer tourists, from the subtropical paradise of Hawaii to the vast arctic landscapes of Alaska. No wonder the country seems to be on such a huge percentage of tourists’ bucket list.
Did you know that the US was the third most popular destination for tourists across the globe in 2017, with almost 15.8 million visiting the country despite what is being termed the “Trump Slump.” This is what statistics published by Immigration World reveal.
If you too wish to visit America, you might first need to get a visitor visa. And, for this, you need to fill the online non-immigration visa application form, Form DS-160.
The form should be filled carefully, since any mistakes or misrepresentation of information could lead to a rejection of your application.
In this article…
Form DS-160 (US Visa Application) has ten major sections to be filled as below:
In this section, you need to fill in your personal information, such as your full name, sex, marital status, date of birth, etc.
The second part of this section requires you to fill in your nationality, whether you’ve held any other nationality, among other things.
This section requires your contact information, such as your home address, mailing address, your primary, secondary and work phone numbers, and your email address.
Here, fill in the relevant details of your passport, such as the passport document type and number, passport book number, the country that issued your passport, issuance date, and expiry date.
In this section, your motive of traveling to the US, and details of your travel, such as your date of arrival, length of stay, and address of your temporary residence in the US, are required.
Here, you need to specify whether anyone else will be traveling with you. The full names and your relationship with the person(s) traveling with you should be filled in this section.
In this section, details of previous visits to the US, if any, are required, including previous dates of arrival, length of stay, and if you have been issued or denied a US visa before.
The details of your contact person or organization in America are required in this section. The full name, address, and their relationship with you are required, in case of a contact person. For an organization, the name and contact information is required.
Information regarding your immediate family, such as your father’s and mother’s full name and date of birth as well as any close relatives, excluding your parents, in the US, are required.
Here, you need to briefly explain your occupation or your education, if you are a student. You also need to provide details if you have had any additional training.
You need to disclose whether you have a communicable disease, have been a drug addict, or have a disorder that might pose a threat to others.
For more information, you can contact the US embassy in your home country.
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If you are looking to apply for a U.S. visa in 2023, you will need to meet a few requirements. Firstly, you must submit an online nonimmigrant DS-160 application form and pay the application fee of $160.
You will also need to provide a valid passport, one photograph, social media details and any other documents that may be required by the U.S. Embassy or Consulate.
The period to apply for the Diversity Immigrant Visa (DV) Program runs from October 6th 2021 to November 9th 2021, and applicants have until September 30th 2023 to check the status of their entry.
In order to apply, you will need to visit the Electronic Diversity Visa (E-DV) website and submit your entry during the specified registration period.
The documents needed for the application process include a scanned copy of your passport and any required translations from an appropriate office, authority, or issuing entity in your country.
Additionally, you may be required to bring original documents to your visa interview at the U.S. embassy or consulate.
It is important to note that U.S. citizens do not need a U.S. visa for travel, but if you are planning to travel abroad, you may need to obtain a visa issued by the embassy of the country you plan to visit.
Please check the individual Embassy or Consulate website to determine if your case is eligible for a waiver of the in-person interview and the estimated wait time for a nonimmigrant visa interview appointment at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate.
Finally, it is recommended that you begin the visa application process early. You can find out more information about U.S. visas on the Department of State website.
In 2023, the US Embassy in India announced that it would resume in-person tourist visa appointments in September. This was in line with the goal of returning to typical, pre-COVID processing capabilities by September 2023. In October and November of this year, slots for F-1 student visas for the spring semester became available, and new slots are expected to open in December.
Further, the Department of State has released detailed instructions for entering the DV Program for the 2023 fiscal year.
The registration period for the DV-2023 Program began on October 6, 2021, at 12:00 noon, Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) (GMT-4) and concluded on November 9, 2021, at 12:00 noon, Eastern Standard Time (EST) (GMT-5). All entries must be submitted electronically on the Electronic Diversity Visa (E-DV) website during the specified registration period.
Also, the senior official of the US embassy has emphasized that the number of visas issued to Indians is expected to move to second place, surpassing Mexico and China who currently are ahead of India.
Moreover, authorities in America are attempting to find new ways, including the hiring of more personnel to accelerate the visa processing time. The processing time for the issuance of United States visas is expected to mark a specific decrease by mid-2023 while the number is expected to reach about 1.2 million.
Finally, DV-2023 entrants have until September 30, 2023, to check the status of their entry through the website. Nonimmigrant visa application fee payments made on or after October 5, 2022, will be valid for one year from the date of payment.
The CDC website provides information on international travel to the United States for U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, Legal Permanent Residents (LPRs) or immigrant visa holders.
The documents required for U.S D visa include a completed DS-160 application form, your passport with at least one blank page to be able to affix visa, one photograph fulfilling the requirements set by the U.S authorities, proof of having paid transit visa fees, interview confirmation page, and its copy.
Filling out a U.S. visa form is a multi-step process that begins with determining the applicable visa category and ends with submitting the completed DS-160 form online. First, applicants must determine which type of visa they are applying for.
Then, they should gather all the required documents needed to complete the DS-160 form.
After logging in to the Consular Electronic Application Center website, applicants must answer the security question, start answering the questions on the form, upload their photo and submit the form. Once the form is submitted, applicants must print out the DS-160 barcode page.
After filling out the DS-160 form, applicants must pay their application fee and schedule a visa interview. They must also compile a document file consisting of all the required documents necessary for the visa interview.
At the interview, applicants must present their document file and answer any questions asked by the consular officer. After the interview, the applicant must wait for processing.
It is important to note that applicants must use Internet Explorer 11 or higher, Firefox, or Google Chrome 58 when completing the DS-160 form. Safari and Microsoft Edge are not supported.
Furthermore, applicants must take the additional steps of noting the Application ID displayed on the Top Right-Hand Corner of the DS-160 Screen and saving the DS-160 to their computer.
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