The Department of State has recently announced that U.S. Embassies and Consulates will begin a phased resumption of processing routine nonimmigrant and immigrant visas. Such cases will include travelers with urgent travel needs, students (F-1, M-1, and certain J-1), and some family members of U.S. citizens, consistent with Presidential Proclamation 10014. Prior to the Department of State’s announcement, routine operations at all U.S. Embassies and Consulates had been temporarily suspended as of March 20, 2020. Visa services were limited to U.S. citizens, and applicants with urgent matters, emergencies, or mission-critical visas.

The Department of State has not provided a definite timeline as to when individual U.S. Embassies and Consulates will resume specific visa services or return to processing cases at pre-Covid-19 workload levels. Furthermore, the volume of cases processed and the type of services offered at each consulate post will likely vary and depend on local conditions such as medical infrastructure, number of COVID-19 cases, emergency response capabilities, and governmental restrictions on leaving the home. As the circumstances of the global pandemic improve, additional services will be provided gradually until there is a complete resumption of routine visa services.

The Department of State’s announcement will not affect travelers under the Visa Waiver Program and the issuance of all visas will remain subject to the restrictions outlined in the COVID-19 Presidential Proclamations (P.P. 9984, 9992, 9993, 9996, and 10041) and the COVID-19 Labor Market Proclamations (P.P. 10014 and 10052).

While the Department of State’s announcement is welcomed news, uncertainty regarding the pandemic and immigration restrictions continues. Accordingly, we advise all foreign nationals and company employees to remain in the U.S. unless a visa appointment has been secured with a U.S. Embassy or Consulate and to avoid any unnecessary international travel.