The best place to apply for your visa is in your home country. But that's not always possible.
Many visa holders already living and working in the United States need to renew their visa and would like to avoid the cost and time of traveling all the way back home, so they consider applying at a US consulate closer to the United States.
Others live in a country that has exorbitant wait times for a visa appointment and so start considering neighboring countries with lower wait times.
In either case, the visa applicant should be extra prepared for their interview and take the following into consideration:
- When you apply outside of your home country/country of residence, you become what visa officers refer to as a "Third Country National (TCN)." This means that the visa officer you speak to at your interview may have little experience with applicants of your nationality. You need to be extra prepared!
- In general, avoid applying at a small post. Although the post may have a lower wait time, going to a US consulate in a small, provincial city all but guarantees that the officers at that post have little experience with TCNs, which could lead them to misunderstand your application and cause delays on your travel to the US.
- Not all consulates accept TCNs. For example, starting with the pandemic, all posts in Mexico announced that they are not accepting TCNs in an effort to diminish the appointment backlog for Mexican nationals and residents. (Subject to change! You must read the consulate's website and scheduling page for TCN restrictions)
- A post in Canada may seem like a logical choice given proximity, but the appointment backlog there has been intractable, often making it difficult to get an appointment.
- At Corstange Law, we have extensive experience with TCN applications in London, and we recommend that post due to a combination of lower wait times and the fact that visa officers there are very experienced with TCN applicants.
We can help you strategize on the best post in your situation and prepare you for the visa interview: Consular processing assistance