Fast handling time seen with new US visa application hub

By Joyce Ann L. Rocamora, Philippine News Agency

VISA PROCESSING. Inside the new US Embassy Visa Application Center of the US Embassy at Parqal Building in Parañaque City. Applicants processing their US visas would only take less than 10 minutes to finish the first two steps in their application once the VAC opens on Saturday (Sept. 28, 2024). (Photo courtesy of the US Embassy in Manila via PNA)

MANILA – Applicants processing their US visas would only take less than 10 minutes to finish the first two steps in their application once the new US Embassy Visa Application Center (VAC) opens on Saturday.

The VAC at the Parqal Building in Parañaque City will handle the collection of photo, fingerprints and documents of a visa applicant before the interview at the US Embassy on Roxas Boulevard.

With its opening, applicants who will book from Sept. 28 onward would have to secure two appointment slots — one for the VAC and another for the interview.

“This is one way that will make our consular operations a little bit more efficient and because of more efficiency we’ll be able to further meet ever-growing consular demands here in the Philippines,” US Embassy Consular Section Visa Chief Rob Romanowski said in an interview on Thursday.

The US Embassy in Manila has processed more than 300,000 non-immigrant visas in 2023, breaching the pre-pandemic figure of 206,000.

Romanowski said the embassy expects this number to further grow this year.

Applicants who will book their appointment on Sept. 28 onwards may access the embassy’s new appointment system ustraveldocs.com/ph.

Applicants who have scheduled a visa interview before Sept. 28 would not be affected and should proceed directly to their appointment at the embassy.

The approval rate for non-immigrant visas at the US Embassy is about 80 percent and much higher for immigrant visas.

As in the past, Romanowski advised applicants planning to visit the US: “Be honest, be prepared”.

“Those are the common features of a visa interview. For people that are just going for temporary travel, you need to show that your travel to the United States is legitimate and that you have the intent to return to your home country,” he said.

Ahead of the VAC opening, the embassy reminded applicants that electronic devices are not allowed inside the facility, including phones, vapes, tablets and laptops.