Visiting friends and family in the US? Looking to travel for tourism or medical purposes? The US B2 visa is ideal for short term travellers visiting the US for non-business purposes.
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Business or Tourism Visitor Visa to the US The US offers different types of short visit visas for – business travelers, tourists, and future spouses. Those planning a short visit to the US – for business or tourism – might be required to get a US visitor or transit visa. The US visa to be applied for will be as per the purpose of visiting the US. |
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B-1 |
For business travelers, to – · Attend a conference, · Consult with business associates, · Negotiate a contract, or · Settle an estate. |
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B-2 |
For tourists on vacation and people coming to the US for participating in amateur contests or social events, or for taking medical treatment. |
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Transit C |
For foreign nationals travelling through the US to another destination, stopping for a short time in the US while on their onward journey. |
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Transit C-1, D, and C-1/D |
For crewmembers of international airlines or crewmembers of sea vessels traveling to the US. |
If an individual is engaged to a US citizen and planning to marry and live in the US, their fiancé(e) might be able to petition for a US K-1 visa on their behalf. The K-1 visa allows the visa holder to travel to the US to marry their fiancé(e) within 90 days of arriving. After marriage, they might apply for an adjustment of status to get US Green Card.
OSI has helped thousands of people successfully apply for visas across the World. Our in-depth knowledge of the US visa process makes us the best option for you to file your US B2 visa application.
The B-2 visa is a non-immigrant US visa. The visa gives permission to individuals to enter the US for a short period either for tourism, recreation, or for family visits.
B-visa holders can engage in the following activities when they are in the US:
The US B2 visa is the best way for short term visitors to visit the US. It is typically issued for a period of 6 months. In some cases, it is issued as a multiple entry visa for a period of up to 10 years. Key details of the B2 visa are:
Typically the visa is processed within 2-3 days and your passport can either be collected from the VAC centre or couriered to you.
The documentation required for the B2 visa includes:
If you have applied for the US tourist visa, you will be required to attend a visa interview where you will be asked questions about the purpose of your trip and your travel plans.
Preparing for the visa interview
Visa interviews are generally required of travelers between the ages of 14-79, Typically, interviews are not required of applicants 13 years of age and younger or 80 years of age and older—through consular officers can choose to interview any visa applicant, regardless of age.
You might be traveling to a destination but have to necessarily stop for a layover within the United States. This means that you will have to transit through the US. For this you will need the C1 visa or the Transit Visa for USA.
A US Transit Visa gives you permission to enter the US and stay for a layover. When your planned flight or ship leaves for your next destination, you will have to leave the US.
The US government issues C1 visas for immediate and continuous transit through the country. This means that if travel to your final destination requires a layover in the US and you will be allowed to stop in the US but will have no other privileges.
The Transit visa allows you to stay in the US only for the approved time because this is not a visa for tourism or business.
Typically, the visa is processed within 5 days. Processing times for any US visa depends on the workload of the US Embassy from where you are applying. If there are more applications, it will take a longer time. Since the C1 visa has a shorter duration, its processing time will be faster compared to other visas.
Documents Required For US C1 Transit Visa
Documents Required For US C1 Transit Visa
What Are the Restrictions of the C1 Visa?
Since the C1 visa does not allow you to stay in the US, there are several restrictions which you will have to follow with the C1 visa, you cannot:
How Long Can I Stay in the US with a C1 Visa?
Since transiting is for aa short duration, the validity of the C1 visa is short. The visa is valid for a period of a maximum of 29 days or until the date of departure from the US on your ticket, whichever is earlier.
D visa or Crewmember visa is one of the non-immigrant visas issued by the U.S government. This visa is specifically for those people who work on commercial sea vessels or international airlines that go through the U.S. For these sea vessels and airlines to run normal operations, their crew must be allowed to pass through the U.S and make short stops.
With the D visa, the crew members can go through to the U.S and stay in the country for a maximum of 29 days.
The D visa allows the crews to go through the U.S and stay for a maximum of 29 days. Holders of the D visa can leave the dock or airport for this duration but must also leave the country within 29 days. The D visa can only be used for the purpose of passing through the U.S.
The visa processing time can vary between 3 to 5 days or even up to 2 weeks. Processing times for any U.S visa depends on the workload of the U.S Embassy from where you are applying. If there are more applications, it will take a longer time.
Requirements to get the D visa
To get the D visa, the person must be working on a vessel or airline travelling to the U.S and only passing through. The following job positions qualify for a D visa:
Individuals who perform the following duties cannot apply for a D visa:
Documents required for U.S D visa
OSI offers end to end assistance to help you with your B2 visa. Talk to us to learn how our consultants can help you at each step of your visa process.
The US Tourist Visa (B-1/B-2) is a non-immigrant US Visa. Its validity period ranges from 1 month to 10 years and allows single, double or multiples entries to the US. The period of stay which is a maximum of 6 months is recorded by the Customs and Border Protection officer. This is at the entry port on the Form I-94 of the Visa holder.
The validity period specifies the time period for which the Visa can be used to arrive in the US. The period of stay specifies the duration for which an individual can remain in the US after every single entry.
The exact processing times for a US Tourist Visa vary and are an approximation that can change at any time. Processing times cannot be guaranteed. Non- refundable reservations and tickets must not be bought till the time you obtain all the Passports and Visas.
The holiday seasons have high travel volume. The processing times for Consulates such as the Houston are at least 3 weeks.
General Processing Times
Each immigrant Visa case is unique and so it is tough to estimate the exact processing times of the individual cases. Generally, there are 3 factors that influence the required processing times:
You may have to provide extra documents if you are re-arriving at the UK:
Officially, there is no limit for the money to be shown for the US Tourist Visa. Any amount that can validate the overall expenses for your US trip must be adequate. This includes to and fro air tickets, medical insurance, boarding, lodging, shopping, etc. It is keeping in mind the duration and purpose of the trip. The higher the amount, the better.
For example, it can be estimated that the cost for a 15-day tour for one person can be around 5000 to 6000 USD. So the equivalent amount of money must be present in your or your sponsor’s bank.
The mandatory documents needed for the US Tourist Visa are:
Applicants of US Tourist Visa must demonstrate that they are eligible as per the provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act. The law’s presumption is that every applicant of a Visitor/Tourist Visa is an intending migrant. Thus, the applicants of this Visa have to overcome this presumption.
Applicants have to demonstrate that they have a home in their nation of origin and they do not intend to abandon it. They must also prove that their intention is to arrive at the US for a limited and specified purpose. The purpose of their tour is to enter the US for medical treatment, tourism, or business.
Applicants must meet the following requirements:
If your B-2 visa is valid, you can still use it even if you have an expired passport. Do not remove it from your passport. You can still use the visa in your expired passport with your new passport when you want to visit the United States.
Since the D visa does not allow you to stay in the U.S, there are several restrictions which you will have to follow with the D visa, you cannot:
This is a short duration visa. The visa is valid for a period of a maximum of 29 days or until the date of departure from the U.S whichever is earlier.
