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Foreigners renewing a US tourist, business or H-2A farmworker visa may skip the in-person interview if they apply within 12 months of the old visa’s expiration and meet other State Department requirements. Most other applicants must see a consular officer.
The rules are part of the department’s interview waiver policy, in effect since Oct. 1, 2025, and still the current guidance. It requires nearly all temporary, or nonimmigrant, visa applicants to interview, including children under 14 and adults over 79.
Which US visas can foreigners renew without an interview?
The waiver covers a short list of applicants:
- People renewing a B-1/B-2 visa for business or tourism.
- Mexican citizens renewing a Border Crossing Card.
- People renewing an H-2A visa for temporary agricultural work.
- Diplomatic and official visa applicants, such as the A, G and NATO categories, whether they are applying for the first time or renewing.
Everyone else needs an interview to renew, including students, exchange visitors and H-1B workers.
What requirements must foreigners meet to renew a US visa without an interview?
Tourist, business, Border Crossing Card and H-2A renewals qualify only if the previous visa expired less than 12 months ago and was issued for full validity, the longest period allowed for that visa type and nationality. The applicant must also have been at least 18 when it was issued.
All waiver applicants must also:
- Apply in their country of nationality or usual residence.
- Have no prior visa refusals, unless the refusal was overcome or waived.
- Show no apparent or potential grounds for ineligibility.
Consular officers can still require an interview from any applicant, for any reason. The department advises checking the website of the U.S. embassy or consulate where you plan to apply.
What other US visa changes took effect in 2026, and do they affect interview waivers?
Three other updates arrived this year. None changes who qualifies for a waiver.
Paid appointments for tourist and business visas
A pilot running through Dec. 31 lets B visa applicants pay $750 on top of the $185 application fee for an interview within 10 business days, if slots are available. It’s offered at U.S. posts in Canada, Mexico, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala and Honduras.
The fee is nonrefundable and buys only an earlier slot, not approval. Waiver-eligible applicants can’t use it, since it’s limited to applicants with an interview scheduled.
Social media checks for more visa types
Since Oct. 1, applicants for I visas, which cover foreign media representatives, and for TN and TD visas, which cover professionals and dependents under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, must set their social media profiles to public. The screening already applied to students, H-1B workers and other groups, but not to B-1/B-2 or H-2A applicants.
Immigrant visa pause lifted
A pause on immigrant visas for nationals of 75 countries, including Brazil, Colombia, Cuba and Haiti, began Jan. 21. It ended Aug. 21 under a court order in CLINIC et al. v. Rubio. It never applied to tourist or other nonimmigrant visas.