Afghan SIV Program Update

July 28, 2014

The Department of State’s authority to issue Special Immigrant Visas (SIVs) to Afghan nationals under section 602(b) of the Afghan Allies Protection Act of 2009, as amended, is limited to 3,000 visas for Afghan principal applicants in Fiscal Year 2014. We expect that these visas will all be issued by August 2014. We welcome action by Congress to extend this program. We are making arrangements to quickly resume issuances of SIVs to Afghan principal applicants if more visas are allocated.

For more information, please see:

  • SIVs for Afghans – Who Were Employed By/on Behalf of the U.S. Government
  • Afghan SIV Fact Sheet
  • FAQs for Afghan SIV Applicants
  • Los Angeles Times editorial by Secretary of State John Kerry

The deadline for applying for Chief of Mission approval is September 30, 2014.