The end of the long wait? The United States wants to reduce the time to obtain an American visa

Brazilians who are going to get a US tourist visa (B1 / B2) have constantly complained about the long line for an interview appointment – in São Paulo, for example, the delay exceeded 600 days. But this may change – the American Travel Association, representing the tourism sectors of the United States, has asked the US government to make it easier for travelers to enter the country, reducing this time to 30 days.

If a Brazilian trying to get a visa for the first time complains about the long wait, American merchants (and those who work with US tourism) also berate this bureaucracy, given that the number of visitors to the country is decreasing. In addition to Brazil, Mexico and India also have long deadlines.

The president of the American Travel Association, Jeff Freeman, said this week that the visa waiting list is preventing tourists from around the world from traveling to the United States, according to an article in Folha de S. Paulo. “Travellers will not wait long to enter the United States. This prompts entire families to choose other places to visit,” he said, noting that 40% of tourists who travel to the United States need a visa for their first-time entry.

To solve this problem, the League has already asked the US government to speed up the visa process, reducing the waiting time to 30 days. In addition, he also asked for more flexibility in the immigration service for those arriving in the country. The State Department is aware of these problems and is working on them, but it is still not enough. We are working to bring visitors back after the pandemic. Freeman said.

The American Travel Association brings together hundreds of members, as do destinations (New York and Florida, for example), airlines, and cultural attractions.

It’s time to get a visa to the United States

São Paulo is the city with the longest time to be able to make an appointment for a visa interview, with 610 waiting days, but in the other four Brazilian cities, the period exceeds 400 days.

The deadline tends to change every month, and you can see the updated weather for the five cities here. It should be noted that these deadlines do not apply to those who are going to renew a visa that has expired for less than 4 years, because an interview in this case is not necessary. It is possible to renew the visa in a few weeks. Find out how to renew your US visa quickly and without an interview and 5 reasons to renew your US visa soon.

Despite the delay, an important piece of advice for anyone applying for a visa is to book the earliest possible appointment and go to the site daily to try and anticipate it: there are many people who end up canceling the date they had, as well as the consulate opening new vacancies.

See also:

– 14 key questions about the US visa and their answers from the US Consulate

Did you recently get your visa or are you in line to get it? Tell us about your experience here.