Embassy of the United States London, UK

The Visa Interview

An appointment for a nonimmigrant visa interview may be arranged by calling the Operator Assisted Information Service.  At the time you schedule the appointment you will be required to pay the MRV application fee. 

 Processing Times

The average visa processing time for successful applicants is five business days, (the period is five to ten business days for petition based applicants - O, P, H, L, Q-1 and R) during which time the applicant's passport must remain with the Embassy. Once processed your visa and passport will be handed to the courier company, DX Secure for delivery. You can track the progress of your passport on-line by visiting once DX Secure are in receipt of it.  See "DX Secure Tracking Service".

Applicants who are advised at the visa interview that their application requires additional processing should allow approximately 90 days for their application to be processed. However, in some cases, processing can extend to six months or longer. 

Applicants who attended a visa interview on or after October 1, 2009 and who received a 221(g) "Administrative Processing" handout at the interview, can check the status of their case on-line.   Click on "Administrative Processing" on the left-hand Navigation bar for further information. 

Please Note:  The processing times quoted are approximate and cannot be guaranteed. It is important that you keep this in mind when applying for the visa. It is not be possible to expedite a case simply because an applicant has not allowed sufficient time for the application to be processed.