Nigerians seeking visa to the United States can now heave a sigh of relief as the Mission in Nigeria has extended visa fee validity to September 2023 to accommodate applicants facing difficulty in booking appointment for non-immigrant visa.
According to tbiafrica.com, thousands of applicants have been facing serious difficulty getting appointment date.
The earliest appointment date that many applicants are getting is nine months from the date of booking, a situation that unsettles them based on their reasons for visiting the US.
Visa fee is only valid for one year from the date of payment.
But the mission said on its website that it has extended validity to September 2023 to enable all applicants get appointment date.
It indicated that it was working diligently to restore routine consular services that were suspended in the last two years.
The statement reads: “The United States Embassy and Consulate in Nigeria understand that many visa applicants have paid the visa application processing fee and are still waiting to schedule a visa appointment.
“We are working diligently to restore all routine visa operations as quickly and safely as possible. In the meantime, rest assured that the US Mission will extend the validity of your payment (known as MRV fee) until September 30, 2023, to allow all applicants who were unable to schedule a visa appointment as a result of the suspension of routine consular operations an opportunity to schedule and/attend a visa appointment with the already paid fee.”
In a related development, the Mission announced the resumption of the drop box service or interview waiver in Nigeria.
The Drop Box visa renewal programme allows certain visa applicants who have previously been issued U.S. visas to renew their visas without attending an interview.
Nigeria was removed from the waiver eligibility in 2018.
However, according to a recent announcement, to qualify for the interview waiver, visa applicants must be applying to renew either a B1/B2, an F, an L, or an H visa.
They must satisfy all of the criteria for their visa class.
If applying as a group or family, all members must fulfill each criteria to use the programme.
Applicants who are 79 years and older automatically qualify for the interview waiver although they are still required to apply and print a copy of their interview waiver letter through the schedule platform.
