Instructions for Immigrant Visa Applicants


Appointment NVC Processing

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For certain U.S. Embassies and Consulates General, the National Visa Center (NVC) provides document collection and review, and schedules the cases for interview. The Department of State refers to these embassies and consulates as Appointment Posts.

For immigrant visa cases assigned to an Appointment Post, the NVC will collect the fees, affidavit of support, civil documents, and police certificates, as required. When a case is complete, it will be scheduled an appointment for an interview with a consular officer. For all Appointment Posts (except, the Consulate General in Guangzhou, China) the NVC will send an appointment letter to all interested parties (applicant, petitioner, and agent/attorney of record, if applicable) notifying them of the date, time, and location of the interview; and forward the petition to the appropriate embassy/consulate. The Consulate General in Guangzhou, China will send appointment letters for cases assigned to it.

Notification from the NVC

After receiving notification from the NVC to begin Applicant Document Processing, all applicants MUST:

  1. Review the Children who are about to turn 21 years of age instructions IF the applicant or a child of the applicant is about to turn 21 years of age,
  2. Complete the Application For Immigrant Visa and Alien Registration Forms DS-230 Part I and Part II .
  3. Obtain and submit the applicant’s civil documents.
  4. Obtain and submit photographs that meet the Department of State's immigration requirements.
  5. Review the U.S. Embassy/Consulate General-specific information.
  6. Mail the DS-230 and the applicant’s civil documents, and the applicant's photographs to the NVC.
  7. What happens next?

Warning: Do not take any action described above without authorization from the NVC. Taking action without the NVC's authorization could result in a delay in processing your case.  

IMPORTANT NOTICE - ABOUT POLICE CERTIFICATES: Please pay close attention to the police certificate requirements. In some cases, there may be specific Police Certificate Request forms that must be submitted in order to properly request and obtain the applicable Police Certificate(s) based on the applicant's residence history.

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