Administrative Processing of Nonimmigrant Visa
Travel visa
A visa is a conditional authorisation granted by a territory to a foreigner, allowing them to enter, remain within, or to leave that territory. Visas typically may include limits on the duration of the foreigner's stay, areas within the country they may enter, the dates they may enter, the number of pe…
What is administrative processing?
Administrative process is the continuous and interrelated flow of planning, organization, management and control activities, developed to achieve a common objective: take advantage of human, technical, material and any other type of resources, which the organization has to make it effective for its stakeholders and society.
How do you apply for an immigrant visa?
- Be arriving on designated carrier that is signatory to a Visa Waiver Program Agreement, if applicable;
- Have a machine-readable passport valid for 6 months beyond the period of intended stay, or essentially 9 months (90 days + 6 months). ...
- Complete an Arrival/Departure Form I-94W. ...
What is DS 260 number?
When individuals for an immigrant visa or diversity visa, they are required to fill out a DS-260 form, also known as Immigration Visa & Alien Registration Application (DS 260). Form DS-260 is an inquiry from the U.S. State Department and serves a similar purpose as G325A: Biographic Information Form, which is requested by USCIS.
What is DS 260 confirmation page?
Ds 260 form confirmation page sample. A severe form of trafficking in persons. A severe form of trafficking in persons. You can access the ds 260 from the consular electronic application center ceac website by going to immigrant visasstategov and clicking on submit visa application and civil documents or on the website of the us.
How long does administrative processing take for nonimmigrant visa?
Most administrative processing is resolved within 60 days of the visa interview. When administrative processing is required, the timing will vary based on the individual circumstances of each case. You can check the status of your visa application on ceac.state.gov.
What does administrative processing mean for immigrant visa?
1. What is administrative processing? Administrative processing, also known as Security Advisory Opinion (SAO), is the time period during which visa applications undergo additional review outside of the “normal” visa processing times. Administrative processing takes place after the visa interview.
Is administrative processing a visa denial?
No. When a visa application is sent for administrative processing, the visa eligibility has not been determined. After the case comes back from administrative review, and if no problems are identified, the application is likely to be approved.
How long does it take to get US visa after administrative processing?
Please see “Administrative Processing” for further information. If you were advised at the interview that a waiver of ineligibility is required before the visa can be issued, you can expect your application to take up to 8 months to process from the date of the interview.
What is the next step after administrative processing?
Upon completion of the case-specific administrative processing, the consular officer might conclude that an applicant is now qualified for the visa for which he or she applied. Alternatively, the officer may conclude that the applicant remains ineligible for a visa.
How long is administrative processing?
60-dayDOS has stated that their goal is to complete administrative processing within a 60-day period. In recent experience, however, some administrative processing cases may take months. The period of time taken will vary based on individual circumstances. If this happens, the HIO is unable to expedite the clearance process.
Can I get my passport back during administrative processing?
During administrative processing, the consular post retains the applicant's passport. If urgent travel is required, the applicant may request for the passport to be returned temporarily and resume the processing of the visa application at a later time.
Is Refused same as administrative processing?
A visa application under “administrative processing” will be deemed “refused” unless and until the application is overturned.
Is administrative processing random?
Administrative Processing may be applied randomly to international students and scholars from certain countries and/or from certain fields (usually STEM fields) who are applying for a visa. The U.S. Embassy/Consulate may request a security clearance of anyone, prior to issuing an initial or extension of visa.
Can I travel during administrative processing?
Although a previously issued visa may be valid during a pending administrative processing hold, Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) maintains the authority to determine admissibility. Thus, an application for entry could be denied by CBP, regardless if the previously issued visa is valid.
What happens if my administrative review is successful?
If you request an administrative review and your request is successful, but you are granted a longer period of immigration permission than you applied for, you will be required to pay an IHS for each additional half year of immigration permission. Refunds should be made to the card you used to pay the fee.
What is refused for administrative processing?
This “refused” status may change if: The applicant can demonstrate to a consular officer he or she is eligible for a visa; or. Information comes to the attention of the consular officer from other sources that resolve any outstanding issues relating to the applicant's eligibility for the visa.
Is Refused same as administrative processing?
A visa application under “administrative processing” will be deemed “refused” unless and until the application is overturned.
Can I get my passport back during administrative processing?
During administrative processing, the consular post retains the applicant's passport. If urgent travel is required, the applicant may request for the passport to be returned temporarily and resume the processing of the visa application at a later time.
Is administrative processing random?
Administrative Processing may be applied randomly to international students and scholars from certain countries and/or from certain fields (usually STEM fields) who are applying for a visa. The U.S. Embassy/Consulate may request a security clearance of anyone, prior to issuing an initial or extension of visa.
How long is administrative review?
How long will it take for an Administrative Review to be decided? The Home Office service standard for deciding an Administrative Review is 28 calendar days.
How long does it take to get a visa after being refused?
An applicant who is refused a visa following the interview due to “Necessary Administrative Processing” could be waiting anywhere from two weeks to several months to receive the visa. If your application is selected for administrative processing, you may not return to the United States until the visa is issued.
How long does it take for a state to process a case?
While many cases are resolved by the Department of State within two to three weeks, there are instances of Administrative Processing extending to several months.
What happens if a consular officer cannot interview you?
If the Consular officer conducting the interview cannot immediately establish eligibility for the visa, the application may be placed in administrative processing during which the application will undergo further review.
Can a visa be refused?
An applicant will be notified by the officer at the end of the visa interview as to whether the visa will be issued or refused. If eligibility cannot be established, the Consular officer must refuse the visa and may place the application in administrative processing. Unfortunately, there is no advance notice that the Department of State will select an applicant for additional administrative processing.
Does the Department of State have advance notice?
Unfortunately, there is no advance notice that the Department of State will select an applicant for additional administrative processing. There are certain factors that may lead to an increased chance of being selected for administrative processing.
What does administrative processing mean in immigration?
What does “Administrative Processing” mean in Immigration? When applying for a visa to the United States, many applicants worry about their “administrative processing” status. Some think this means they are doomed for denial. Others are just confused as to why there is a delay. In this article, we will briefly explain what administrative processing ...
How to prevent delays in consular processing?
To prevent further delays, comply with any document requests from the consular office as soon as possible. Remember, the time it takes for you to gather your information is outside the processing time.
What to do if the processing time for your local office has passed?
If the processing time for your local office has passed, you can contact your attorney to see about inquiring on the status of your case with the consulate.
How long does it take to get a security clearance?
How long it takes to process your security clearance depends on the consular office you attended. Some offices have processing times of 60 days, and others require more time. You can contact your local consular office (start by checking their website) for their administrative processing time.
Do you need a background check for a visa?
Sometimes, the consular office will require a background check to process your visa. This is an extra step in the visa application process caused by either a database match or a trigger in your application or interview.
Is there a way to expedite administrative review?
This means it is an additional time that is added on to the normal visa processing time. There is also no way to expedite the process of administrative review.
How does a visa go through administrative processing?
During this time, the Government will run a security check and in many cases an applicant will move from administrative processing to “issued” on the same day. In some instances, though, an applicant may become “stuck” in administrative processing while the Government completes their review. During the review period, the Government will assess criminal convictions, security risks, past visa history and compliance and any other item that the Government deems relevant. In some cases, the Government may make an applicant complete an extreme vetting questionnaire.
Why is a visa application placed in administrative processing?
In most cases though, applications are placed in administrative processing because something in the application triggers a “hit” or a red flag to the Government.
How long does administrative processing last?
In some cases, Administrative Processing will only last for one day or less but in other instances the time period cannot be predicted. We have seen some instances where applicants are held in administrative processing for years.
Can a consulate ask for past travel information?
While an applicant (or the applicant’s lawyer) can follow up with a Consulate, Consulates will not provide much information given the security aspects of the case.
Can a visa be denied at a consulate?
When you apply for a visa (For example, E-2, B-1, H1-B, O-1) at a Consulate, there are several possible outcomes. The visa can be approved, denied (refused), or the application and applicant can be placed in Administrative Processing.
What is administrative processing?
Administrative processing is a catch-all term for all post-interview processing before a final visa decision is made. Any case that is otherwise approvable on its face, but has an open, unresolved issue is referred to administrative processing.
How to contact the NVC for a non-immigrant visa?
For non-immigrant visas contact the Department’s Visa Office. For immigrant visas reach out to the NVC and make sure the case hasn’t been sent back (some embassies are horrible about sending notices on this).
Why are consular officers encouraged to increase scrutiny on cases potentially impacted by lengthy administrative processing?
The unintended results of all of these delays is even more frustrating: Consular officers are encouraged to increase scrutiny on cases potentially impacted by lengthy administrative processing in order to come up with a basis for pretextual denial – similar to we see at DHS in CARRP and TRIG cases. The only exception to this is when DHS wants to carrying out additional CARRP or TRIG review, but is intentionally doing its work behind the shield of consular non-reviewability, at which point it will tell the post to hold the case.
Why is administrative processing so frustrating?
Typically this is caused by a consular post waiting for a response on some form of advisory opinion. Although, as was experienced in 2014 and 2015, processing delays may also result from system failures in the Consular Consolidated Database (CCD) and more recently due to additional administrative hurdles such as the recent flurry of executive orders regarding visa issuance.
When to update documents for immigrant visa?
For immigrant visa and petition-based cases you will also want to update these documents when it goes to the NVC and again at the consular stage. Thus you optimize the possibility that the consular officer receives the relevant information or that the relevant information is readily available to whatever agency will be doing the necessary investigations and will make a final decision for your client.
How to reduce processing time for gang name checks?
For example, if your client is from El Salvador and has a relatively common name, you can reduce processing times related to name checks for gang members by providing contextual information for your client such as the names of close friends and family members in order to differentiate from potential HITS. Similarly, if your client is from a high immigrant visa fraud country such as Vietnam, you will want to spend extra time establishing your client’s relationships in order to remove all doubt. While for Somalis, you will need to satisfy additional identity requirements by providing more information and documentation establishing consistent use of the same identity for the last 5 to 15 years, preferably using documents that do not originate in Somalia.
When is a visa bear issued?
Visas Bear is issued immediately after a foreign government official, representative to international organization, or their families are issued a visa.
