The Department of State (DOS) Bureau of Consular Affairs nonimmigrant visa system suffered an outage last week. Working over the weekend, DOS has made progress restoring the database and is now able to print visas. As such, DOS has resumed visa processing, giving priority to processing of immigrant visa cases. However, foreign nationals awaiting nonimmigrant visas (NIV) continue to experience delays. For instance, some consulates temporarily may limit or reschedule nonimmigrant visa interview appointments until the system resumes full functionality.

In addition, consular status systems are back online. NIV applicants may receive a message that their applications are in administrative processing. Although some cases may be undergoing additional security clearances, generally this indicates that the visa is in process.

Travelers also should be reminded that delays at this time of year are relatively common due to reduced staff at consulates and an uptick in travel. As such, it is advisable to refrain from making travel arrangements until a visa is secured.

Updates are posted to travel.state.gov as well as on consular Web sites.