Independent Obtaining US Visa (Personal Experience)

Already almost half a year, I travel with Andrews for sunny Mexico and do not even remember those redirements that I had to face how we got here. At first they decided for a long time, where to go on a second large trip, after I chose Mexico, it was concerned about technical issues. I bought tickets to Mexico City with a transfer to New York, got a Mexican visa, collected things and were already ready to plunge into a sea of ​​new impressions, but as it turned out, we had a lot of surprise. Instead of calmly fly to Mexico, I had to receive with Andrews US visa in Moscow.

It turned out that for a banal transplantation at the airport of New York to the plane to Mexico City, American visa is needed. So keep in mind that in the airports of states there is no transit zone, for any transplant you need a visa. Well, it is necessary, it means that it is necessary.

So, the action plan for obtaining a visa of the USA is as follows:

• Fill out the DS-160 questionnaire on the website in English (for those who are difficult and not clear: an example of filling the questionnaire), then print the application confirmation (sheet with photos and bar code); In the amount of 160 dollars (in our case, it was 5280 rubles), print payment confirmation (you can first pay the collection, then fill out a questionnaire, since it will take several hours to enroll the funds); , we receive a password letter to enter your account;
• After the payment is confirmed, recorded on the interview in the Personal Account (the number / date of the issuance / duration of the passport, the number and date of the receipt of the consular fee, the ten-digit number of confirmation number from the Questionnaire of the DS-160 questionnaire (begins on AA), print confirmation Invitations for interview.

In our case, the nearest interview date was in a week (December 3).

List of documents that need to take an interview:

• Acting passport (the cover must be removed);
• DS-160 application confirmation page;
• Printing confirmation of an invitation for an interview.

List of documents that you can take additionally:

• Old passport (if any);
• Color photo 5 * 5 (photo requirements), in case your photo is not considered from the questionnaire or if you did not load it at all (in the latter case, the photo must be taken);
• certificate from work with a position and s / n (in free form);
• Documents confirming solvency (account statements, documents confirming the property of a property and other.);
• Documents confirming the purpose of the trip (for example, if it is tourism, you need to make a plan of the trip with the indication where, why and how much is going);
• everything else that you want.

Translate documents into English do not need. Do not bring any tickets, hotels, tours and t.D., Since their presence reduces the chances of receiving a visa (it shows that you really want to get into the states, and it is bad, you need to produce more or less neutral impression, such as "Give a visa – well, do not give anything terrible"). In most cases, additional documents do not ask.

However, for myself you can make it in advance the accommodation options, for example, at such a popular airbnb website, which issues a lot of interesting options from all inexpensive rooms and apartments, to chic apartments and homes:

What is Eirbnb, how and why do they use, as well as our reviews about those places in which we lived, read in the article manual →

Procedure on the day of the interview (on our example):

• Embassy is located at Novinsky Boulevard, house 21. Nearest metro stations – «Barricade» or «Krasnopresnenskaya». From any of these stations go towards the garden ring and turn right. The US Embassy is located in the building near the house. Shalyapina.
• Come to the interview better 15-30 minutes before the appointed time. We had 8:30, and we arrived somewhere without ten eight. Approached and found far from a little turn. Fortunately, she moved very quickly. On the street there was just ten minutes. The first thing on the street our policeman collects passports for ten and refers in his booth, apparently, to record visitors, then distributes them back and misses the embassy territory.
• Before entering the building will have to lay out all the headphones, lighters, and so on and in general, it is better not to take them with you, as well as big bags. Not miss the knives, razors, spirits, and t.D., So, if you do not want to leave them on the street and hope for the honesty of compatriots, leave all at home. Only cell phones are accepted for storage and only in the off state.
• Entering the building, prepare the leaflet confirming the invitation to the interview, will check it. Still check bags.
• Pass further and pass the cell phone for storage.
• The following doors are waiting for you, in front of the entrance to which you need to remove the upper clothes and belts.
• Go through the frame, things put on the ribbon as at the airport.
• Go to the 1st Hall. Here are two windows. Serve passport, confirmation of DS-160 and confirm the invitation. You attach numbers for documents, such as A-123. Immediately above the windows and in the next room three boards hang. Waiting until your room lights up on the first of them. At this time you can sit relax, buy tea-coffee-sweet, visit the toilet.
• As soon as they saw her number, go according to the signs to the 2nd room. Here again look at the scoreboard to which window approach. Give a booking passport and confirmation of DS-160, she makes something with them, returns and sends back to the 1st room.
• Now waiting until your room lights up on the second table. As soon as he saw him, step again into the second hall, approach the appropriate window and hand over the fingerprints (first four fingers of the left hand, then four right hands and then two large, press the fingers stronger). Returning back to the 1st room and wait for the appearance of your number on the third table.
• Saw – Go to the 3rd hall, where there will be an interview. Again waiting for info to what window approach. Things can be left on stools. We waited for your number – go talk with a consular officer.

Andrei I was recorded at one time, but individually (that is, they should have answered questions in different windows). Family members can be interviewed together, in one window.

Run ahead, I will say that then the smiling consul called Andrei, because we went together and interviewed us already two.

Our conversation:
To: The purpose of the visit?
I: tourism.
To: Where to fly?
I: New York.
To: (laughs) I forgot where you fly.
I: New York.
To: with whom?
I: with a civil husband.
To: aaaa, you steam. And where (couple)?
I: in line (and show on Andrei, after which the consul calls him, takes the documents and we pass the interview already together)
To: How much flies?
I: two weeks.
To: (refers to Andrey about the place of work) What does your company do?
A: Provides advertising services.
To: (considers previous visas in the passport) when in Syria were?
A: In 2011.
To: (with a smile) aaaa, to problems.
A: Yes, managed.
K: Your visas are approved. Will be ready during the week.

Everything. Visas are obtained! The whole conversation took place in a relaxed form with a smile and took just a few minutes. Perhaps we are just lucky. The young guy interviewed us, on the appearance of 25 years.

For all about everything we left for 1 hour 15 minutes.

Yes, by the way, we did not have a Schengen visas in passports (some believe that if there are such a state visa, they are achieved).

You will leave the embassy to another door, so if you left the phone in the storage chamber, do not forget to pick it up (in the window outside next to the policeman, who took your passport at the very beginning).

You can get your passport with a ready-made visa in several ways:

• Order delivery home or to office (you do not need to pay extra, the shipping cost is included in the consular fee);
• Pick yourself in pony express (three office to choose from).

We decided to pick themselves in Pony Express on Meat Travel, 2/1 (Metro Red Gate).

December 6, Andrei’s passport was already ready and could be taken. My lagged a little (December 7th on the site was written "Your passport was received by our courier service from the consular department, and at the moment is in processing before being directed at the required address"). You can check the status, for example, here.

As a result, my passport was ready for extradition on December 9.

From the moment of applying for a visa to receiving passports with ready-made visas, we left two weeks.

What we have

Visas for three years (now, like, everyone is issued by three years, except for those who have been appointed additional (administrative) verification, the last citizens give out annual visas with a mark "Permission received").

As already wrote earlier, the Russians with a visa can be easily moved to Mexico, and in addition to other countries that are visa for us (Costa Rica, Panama). That is, all America is open! Yiha!

Official website of the US Embassy in Moscow: Go →

Website of the United States Visa Information Service in Russia: Go →

*****
Good luck to you in obtaining a visa, dear readers!

Sheboldasik and Andrews

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