Selected US non-immigrant applicants eligible for interview waivers starting Sep. 2

Some non-immigrant visa applicants for the United States of America (USA) will now be eligible for a non-immigrant visa interview waiver.

In an advisory from the U.S. Embassy on Friday, the U.S. Department of State said that all non-immigrant visa applicants will still require an in-person interview with a consular officer except for:

• Applicants at least 18 years old at the issuance of their prior B-1, B-2, B1/B2 visa or a Border Crossing Card, and are applying for renewal within 12 months before their visa expires when the prior visa was issued for full validity at the time of issuance
• Applicants for diplomatic or official-type visas
• Applicants for visa symbols A-1, A-2, NATO, TECRO, and certain C-3 and G

The new protocol will take effect on September 2.

According to the U.S. Embassy in the Philippines’ website, renewals of visa for the same category had no need for interviews if it was under the same category as the previous visa, still valid or expired for less than 12 months, and the applicant had never been refused a U.S. Visa.

The applicant must also be a citizen or resident of the Philippines and are in the country at the time of renewal, and had never been arrested worldwide.

The applicant’s visa must also have never been annotated “Clearance Received” or “Waiver Granted,” and had to be issued before the applicant was 14 years of age. — BAP, GMA Integrated News