United States Department of State Announces Interview Waiver Program for P-1 and O-1 Visas

On December 23, 2021, the United States Department of State announced procedures that allow visa applicants to avoid having to do an interview under certain circumstances. The circumstances depend on the location of the applicant and the consulate still holds discretion over granting the waivers. This is a huge positive for P-1 and O-1 visa applicants around the world and our Law Firm is responding with an action plan to provide consular support to our P-1 and O-1 non-immigrant clients. 

Global Migration Discussion: Senior Attorneys Sherrod & Pryde Ndingwan discuss Interview Waivers for P-1 and O-1 Visa Applicants

The following applicants are eligible to apply for interview waivers directly from the consulate:

1. The applicant is applying for the visa in the same country of their Nationality or where they have permanent residency 

This is an important note for Russian clients and other clients where there is no consulate open. Unfortunately, right now, these clients are not eligible to apply for the interview waiver unless they have permanent residency in another country with a consulate that is open.

2. The applicant has already applied and received any United States Visa Previously 

The applicant must have already received a visa previously and the visa DOES NOT have to be in the same category that the applicant is currently seeking. For example, if a client has previously received a B-1 visa, then the client is eligible to apply for the interview waiver in the P-1 or O-1 visa category. This is because the consulate has already had a chance to inspect the client for admission to the United States and may not need to do so again. 

*EXCEPTION FOR ESTA VISA WAIVER COUNTRIES 

There is a special exception for persons that reside in ESTA VISA WAIVER COUNTRIES. Persons that reside in these countries do not have the requirement of a previously issued visa. These persons can apply for an interview waiver even if they never received a US visa before. The person must have successfully applied for and travel on the ESTA VISA WAIVER to receive consideration for this exception. 

A list of ESTA visa waiver countries is available here: 

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/tourism-visit/visa-waiver-program.html 

3. The P-1 or O-1 applicant must have no apparent ineligibility or potential ineligibility to visa issuance 

Persons that have previous or pending issues that would likely cause questioning for a visa issuance must and should do the regular interview process. We think it is very risky to not disclose issues such as criminal offenses, criminal affiliations, communicable diseases, and other common eligibility issues to the consulate and apply for an interview waiver. This program is very new and we are confident that the consulate will look deeply into the client using their own research tools BECAUSE there is no interview. Finding out inconsistencies can lead to much bigger problems.

Other Important notes regarding Visa Renewals for the Interview Waiver Program 

Clients that are applying for renewals of visas that are going to expire within 48 months are also eligible for interview waivers. Under the wording of the announcement itself, it is unclear if these applicants are privy to the same eligibility standards as above but we will try different things and report back to our clients.