Apply for a U.S. Visa

At least five or more applicants applying for the same visa classification, purpose of travel and will travel on the same date are encouraged to apply together as a group. To request a Group Appointment, follow the steps in this Group Appointments page. Examples of groups include but are not limited to sports team, school groups, groups travelling for competitions, and service organizations.

Family members traveling together are not eligible for group appointments

How to Apply

Step 1

A designated group coordinator uses the online appointment system to click onto request a group appointment.

The Group Coordinator is the appointment profile of one of the group members. Before clicking the Group Scheduling Request button, ensure that all the rest of the group members' appointment profile have been added under the Group Coordinator as dependents, and the supporting documents below are included to the Group Appointment request as attached files:

1. Invitation letter that indicates the purpose, and the start and end date of travel.

1. List of group members in MS Word file following this format:

1. Comprehensive travel itinerary (to include travel details, daily schedule/activities, etc.)

1. For groups applying for employment-based visas (H, O, P), the Group Coordinator must also attach a clear scanned copy of the approved I-797 (Notice of Action) in PDF file.

Once the request is submitted, wait for a response from the Embassy via email.

Reminders before submitting a request:

• All group members should not have any existing appointments from the submission of the request to its fulfillment.
• Do not assign more than one (1) group coordinator per group, as this causes system glitch at the time of appointment scheduling if the group appointment request has been approved.
• The members in the submitted list is final. Substitution of member(s) is not allowed.
• A group request that is incomplete will be rejected, and the requester can no longer submit another request.

Step 2

If the Embassy approves the request, then the Group Coordinator/Requestor will receive an email alerting him/her to schedule appointments for each member of the group. The center cannot schedule appointments, but agents are able to assist if questions arise. Should the Embassy deny the request for a group appointment, the Group Coordinator will be notified of the denial by email and each group member must schedule individual appointments.

Note: The email confirming or denying the group request will come from no-reply@ustraveldocs.com. Some email applications have rules which filter unknown senders into a spam or junk mail folder. If the Group Coordinator has not received the email notification, look for the message in junk and spam email folders.

Step 3

Each group member must pay the visa application fee.

Step 4

Each group member must complete the Nonimmigrant Visa Electronic Application (DS-160) form and print the confirmation page

Step 5

Group Coordinator must schedule an appointment using the online appointment system and clicks on the button

to begin scheduling the group's appointments. He or she should have on hand three pieces of information about each group member. Please note that scheduling an appointment for a group member who already has a scheduled interview appointment is not possible. Prior to scheduling group appointments approved by the Embassy, you need to cancel the individual appointment first.

• The group member's passport with the applicants' full name, passport number, date of birth, passport expiration date and other important data located on the passport's biographical page
• The group member's visa application (MRV) fee receipt number.
• The ten (10) digit barcode number from their DS-160 confirmation page (e.g., AA00ABCD56)

Step 6

The group coordinator selects the approved group appointment request corresponding to the correct group, as in the example below:

If the group coordinator frequently schedules group appointments, it is important to select the correct group request.

Step 7

Each group member is added as a "Dependent" to the group coordinator's profile. The group coordinator must be a member of the group.

Step 8

The group goes to the U.S. Embassy onthe date and time of their visa interviews. Each member must have a printed copy of the appointment letter, DS-160 confirmation page, one photograph taken within the last six months, a current passport and all old passports, and the original visa fee payment (MRV fee) receipt. Applications without these items will not be accepted.

Note: If you have additional questions on group scheduling, please visit Tutorial for Scheduling Group Appointments for more detailed instructions.

Important Points to Remember:

1. Once the group request has been approved, the group has a limited time to complete steps one through six. Normally a request is valid for seven days, but the group coordinator should check the confirmation received via email. If the request is expired, the group coordinator must contact the call center for assistance.
2. The group coordinator should perform steps 1, 2, 3 and 5 for group members. Each applicant must complete his or her own Form DS-160.
3. If a group member has already scheduled an appointment, it is necessary for them to cancel that appointment before they can proceed with scheduling a group appointment.
4. If the applicants are applying as a group under an approved I-797 petition, such as H2A, H2B, or H3 visa applicants, in Step One the group coordinator must upload a readable copy of the approved I-797 attached to the group request

• NIV Information
• Visa Types
• Visa Fees
• Bank and Payment Options
• DS-160 Information
• Appointment Wait Times
• Photos and Fingerprints
• Visa Waiver Program
• Security Regulations