As US Consulates in India are not yet open due to COVID-19 for regular visa processing, the only way to get US visa stamping is to get an expedite appointment. Expedited appointments are available only for special situations like medical needs, funeral/death, ESTA Denied, Students or exchange visitors with urgent need or urgent business travel.
If you are looking for step by step guide for Emergency Appointment, read COMPLETE guide to applying Emergency Appointment in India
Two of our readers (anonymous for privacy reasons) were successful in getting emergency appointment and were kind enough to take time to share their experience for everyone benefit. Thanks a lot to them for sharing the experience with community. We really appreciate it ! You can email your experience as well to redbus2us@gmail.com
Emergency US Visa Appointment for H4 Visa – Chennai, India
Background: H4 visa holder is in India along with child, who is US Citizen.
H1B visa spouse in US. Applying for H4 visa renewal. Not eligible for Dropbox Stamping.
Filled out DS-160, Booked Appointment before Consulates were closed
I already filled DS-160, paid the US visa fees and booked my appointment. I had biometrics appointment on April 21st and April 22nd was supposed to be my visa interview. Due to COVID-19, my visa interview got cancelled.
Contacting US Consulate in Chennai using email and phone.
Starting from May month I would keep on trying to reach the US consulate by email and through phone call, but no luck. Then comes the Trump H1B travel ban issue, I knew reaching embassy in this situation will be a big failure, I was helpless.
Below are the email and phone numbers used to send my request and make calls.
- Email Address of Chennai Consulate: chennaics@state.gov
- Phone Number: 044 2811 2000
After a month, got the clarification on Executive order from Trump that there are some exceptions in travel ban for H4 visa holders and my condition will come under that exception. From next day again I started emailing (every three days I will email them) to embassy requesting for appointment, even that time no luck for me. Usually I would call on Monday and Friday. Literally, I would have called then a dozen times or more. I would get reply, saying “my request has been denied, please reach us once the embassy start there normal process”.
Tracker for EA Requests : You can check US Visa Emergency Appointment Tracker to understand average processing times based on user contributed data. You can add your case for community benefit too.
Emergency Appointment Response within 48 hours
Usually, the consulate would respond to emails within 48 hours saying that your request is denied. Below is a screenshot of the denial request from consulate for expedite appointment in India.
Emergency Appointment Request – Baby Vaccination
Finally, on July 30th again I emailed US consulate in Chennai requesting for appointment, reason I mentioned vaccination for my baby who is 10 months old (US citizen). In that email I attached my baby vaccine sheet and I got a letter from her doctor, saying “she is my patient, she missed her 6th and 9th month vaccine, her next due is next month”. Below is the sample vaccination letter that I used. This is my true reason too, not made up.
Expedite Appointment Approval Email – Interview Slots Open
On Aug 3rd I got reply from embassy saying my request has been approved and please reschedule your appointment. Below is the email I got from US Consulate in Chennai. It clearly tells that my emergency appointment validity is only until Aug 6, 2020.
After the email, I quickly logged in into my account in USTravelDocs and I saw the slots. The first interview availability was on August 10th, so I booked that appointment.
Important Note – Attaching Proofs of Medical Reason
Every time when I emailed the embassy or called them, I gave the same Medical reason. I did not know why they didn’t approve before. Now, that I look back and think, I was not submitting any proofs in the past emails. So, I suggest you submit any medical reason proof. Also, do not try to make up reason, it has to genuine as they would be verification. If you fabricate any documents, you can be barred from entering US for life.
H4 Visa Expedite Visa Appointment Process, Stamping – Delhi, India
Background : H4 holder in India along with Child. H1B spouse in US. We were requesting for visa stamping based on the vaccination requirement for our baby.
It is important you have the relevant documentation like doctor letter beforehand for providing proofs as needed.
How to get Doctor letter for US Visa Emergency Appointment
You must have check list for all vaccines for the baby. See what all are pending from that list from the day you were in India. Call you doctor and tell them you haven’t visited Indian doctor as the situation is not good. They will give you a letter or note with list of vaccines due.
Important : While requesting emergency approval mention clearly that Vaccines are highly recommended for Kids immunity.
Steps to Apply for Expedite Appointment from New Delhi
Below are the steps followed by me to get the Emergency appointment
- Send out an email to NivND@state.gov regarding your situation. make sure you provide valid reasons
- Vaccine due for kids ( this can be considered for expedite approval)
- Family Separation ( mention depression problems or health condition is not good for spouse due to separation). Wait for their reply, usually takes 1-2 business days.
- They will forward email to Hyderabad Consulate & support@ustraveldocs.com. Support team will create a case for your request and update their comments.
- If they consider its valid request then you get an email from support@ustraveldocs.com to raise expedite request, they provide link.
- Click on link which navigates to US Visa Travel docs website, there you can choose emergency request link. When you open the form, it looks like below, you choose the Medical Needs.
- Select Medical reasons for emergency request and provide documentation if available. In my case, I called doctor office and requested them to provide a letter or doctor note for vaccines due. I uploaded this document in expedite request and click submit.
- After 8 PM EST you will receive notification for approval or rejection from US consulate. If approved the will ask you to reschedule appointment before 6 days of approval. Approved cases will have new dates in appointment selection, and I believe only New Delhi & Chennai locations are operating.
H4 Visa Interview, Biometrics with Emergency Appointment
- Both Biometric and Visa interview will be done at same place (no need to visit VFS locations for Biometric).
- Collect all required documents & supporting documents, there is no queue and they call by name.
- Interview was very smooth they ask about spouse details, address etc. Visa officer will ask you to collect passport next day.
Did any of you apply for emergency appointment ? How was your process? Do share your experiences in comments for community benefit.
The general process for US emergency visa appointment for India is described on the ustraveldocs India expedite appointment details page.
Hello Everyone,
I do have questions regarding the correct Petition Number in DS 160 for my spouse(H4).
H1b Background:
I have applied for an H1b extension in March and got approved for a long duration.
Later on, in between the pandemic situation, my Job location and client got changed in June.
Then I applied for Amendment and it got approved with the same duration as what I have in extension I797.
But in between Extension and Amendment;
After extension approval, my spouse filled DS160 and booked an appointment but it got canceled due to the Pandemic.
Now again we booked an appointment but here we booked with the same DS160 in which we mentioned petition number of Extension approval I797.
Here is my question:
1. Do we need to update DS160 (New DS160) and make a change with Amendment Petition Number?
2. or not need to update DS160 with New petition Number because it’s just a change of location, not actual approval.
3. is there any impact of it on my spouse Interview and profile?
Please suggest me, it will be really helpful for me.
Did anyone got approved or denied mail those who applied for H4 Emergency appointment on September month 2020 in Chennai? please share your thoughts.
I have been waiting since 10th September but no response. So cancelled the appointment and trying to schedule new appointment in Mumbai/Delhi
you where able to apply for mumbai/delhi ?
Hi
I am trying to do so.
If happens will update
Some have received denial email for H4 from Mumbai/Kolkata consulate. They had raised EA recently. You can check here https://drive.google.com/file/d/1QVYsZLmAL-chS9tBrxk2d_iIT1zLjYwk/view?usp=sharing
Shruthi,
You can use the New EA Appointment Tracker to add your EA request and view current status.
Many entries from the excel sheet are missing in the tracker.So I am referring both.
Shruthi,
Agree. The tracker will only be beneficial, if everyone contribute like in Excel. Hopefully everyone uses it.
I cancelled my Delhi appointment and now filed EA in Mumbai yesterday. Any clue on how fast is Mumbai in responding?
Have you got mail approval from Mumbai consulate ???
I got a rejection next day.
Hi Arish,I have been trying to book an appointment for Mumbai consulate. It shows only the OFC appointment dates between 20-Nov-2020 and 27-Nov-2020 but there are no consular appointment schedule in the following page. Pls let me know if I need to follow any specific steps to get through this appointment schedule? May I know how long the consular appointment schedules would be available when it gets opened ?
Any one applided for EA for K1 Visa?
Any one applided for EA for K1 Visa?
I just created an UNOFFICIAL emergency appointment request tracker on Google Sheets to keep track of (all willing) users emergency requests. Please feel free to add details so that everyone can get a sense of the time period involved. Your names are optional, if you want to remain anonymous that is fine, but if your request ever gets approved or rejected an update on the tracker would be beneficial. The spreadsheet link is https://drive.google.com/file/d/1QVYsZLmAL-chS9tBrxk2d_iIT1zLjYwk/view?usp=sharing
Hi All,
I am in the US right now but need to travel to India as my dad is really unwell. Can I book an appointment from here and upgrade it to emergency appointment before I fly out to India? I am on my H1B but it is not stamped, so will need the stamp to return – also I am exempt from proclamation because I was in US and not in India when rule was issued. My husband and toddler will be in US after I travel. So, should I cite emergency business travel reason or family separation? What would give me a better chance to return. Preference for consulate is Mumbai
Hello,
I have my colleges starting in January and I don’t see any dates for Visa Appointment. I tried to look for multiple dates and my account has been frozen now for 72 hrs. Anyone going in January has got a date for Visa interview? Am from Chennai.
Rajesh,
keep looking and book anything that you find. You can then apply for emergency appointment. Write to the Consulate or US Travel Docs help email.
I am trying to book an appointment for F1 visa since 10 days but getting no appointment available. In order to raise EA, I am not getting any date at all. Not sure how people are able to book the slots in first place. Any specific time slot or specific consulate that I can try to maximize the chances of getting a slot?
Hello,
My experience for my wife.
Initally booked regular H4 appointment for March-2021 then raised for emergency appointment for Mumbai location with all supporting docs and detailing all details, request got approved in 1 hour .
Scheduled appointment for last week.
Flyed to Mumbai location, arrived 1 hour earlier. they did let my wife in and made wait inside for exact appointment time.
Interview was smooth
1. how are you.
2. Which location.
3. Marriage certificate and DOB certificates.
4. Checked passport which has earlier visit history.
5. Approved.
Overall, this forum is very helpful with verious experiences and people with various challenges getting resolved.
if any question regarding appointment scheduling or other I always encourage to call US travel docs help desk, they are very very helpful.
Geetha,
Why don’t you try to call Customer Care and check why its not getting cancelled? U can also email Chennai Consulte genuinely that u want to cancel this appointment.simple they may suggest u to what to do so.
Dnt worry Just try this everything will be alright
Sara
Hi Sara,
I am unable to cancel the appointment and send email to get assistance from US embassy (Chennai) but they reply the same thing again and again.
I feel that I got trapped in infinite loop.
Customer care also repeating the same dialogue (the concerned department will do the needful and they are not authorized to do so).
I am struggling with them for the past 10 days 🙁
Do you just want to cancel the appointment or do you want to make a second EA request?
Hi Milan
I have raised EA on 10th Sep,2020 in chennai consulate till now I didn’t get any reply.
I heard that mumbai consulate is responding quickly.
Hence I want to cancel the appointment that I booked with chennai and raise another EA request with Mumbai consulate.
Hi Geetha..
Any update?
Sara
Hi Sara,
Thanks for asking me.
After chasing them(customer care) for a very long time, day before yesterday I canceled my appointment.
Now we are about to book appointment with mumbai consulate.
I will share my update if something nice happens in upcoming days.
Hi Sara,
I have raised EA request with chennai consulate on 10th Sept,2020. Then I cancelled the appointment by rescheduling the appointment for 5 times. Now I have paid MRV fee again and booked appointment with Hyderabad consulate but unable to raise EA request.
What customer care saying is still Chennai consulate EA is active for me and they are saying that I can raise only one EA per profile.
Did you face this trouble and how you resolved it?
When did you apply for EA at Mumbai Consulate?
Ranjith,
Thanks for sharing !
Ranjit,
Hi, may i know the reason you provided for EA and also can you please let me know on what dates you applied for your EA?
I booked my regular H4 appointment on Mar 2021, later I have applied for EA on Oct 8th 2020 at Delhi consulate. Still nothing heard from them. So i happened to send an email to India-support@ustraveldocs.com, requesting the status of my EA case.
Here is what i received from them below:
“We understand that you have a query regarding the emergency appointment request raised.
In response to your question, our records indicate that you have successfully raised an emergency request. Further, please be informed that a decision on your emergency request is still pending. When a decision is made you will receive an email confirmation stating the approval or rejection of your request. However, if the consulate needs any further information pertaining to the request, applicant will be contacted.
Also, we would like to inform you that each post reviews expedite requests in the order in which they were received. Your request will remain open in the system until the embassy or consulate is able to review it. Once a decision on your expedited appointment request has been made, you will receive notification.
Submitting an expedite request does not guarantee you will be granted an appointment.
Keep in mind that the United States Embassy and Consulates in India are currently closed for regular visa operations and cannot guarantee when they will be able to resume limited visa services or consider requests for expedited appointments.
Requests that do not meet the criteria for an expedite appointment under our current operating posture may not be considered until a later phase in our resumption of routine services. If you have not yet received a reply to your expedite request it is most likely that the request will be considered at a later phase.”
I’m finding difficulty in understanding the way these consulates are working in terms of EA. For some with the same reason(family separation), the consulates are approving in hours or within 2 days and for some they are keeping on hold for weeks and months. This is excruciating.
Hi laxmi,
Firstly here we need to observe is, The email you got from CC, not from the direct consulate.. try to know where your case got stuck and why? see below..
1. Case is yet reviewed
2. Case is reviewed but the decision is still pending?
if it is then why?
CC just updates what is available in your profile they really won’t help to escalate the case..and get it solved.
here you can do is find out Email from Delhi consulate website in this way maybe it helps you..write an email to them by expressing your problem/situation that shows genuinely/clearly and what interview language did you mention in DS-160 ? check !! if it is not ENGLISH it takes time to solve the case..
typically there is only one way to escalate your case is by emailing them and wait for their reply.
As you mentioned their approve may happen from 2hours to 2days but here is how serious the case is ?
hope my points may help you in somewhere !!
Laxmi, i really faced all these i know how it kills:( don’t worry be patient. Good Luck..
Hi Sara,
Appreciate your response.
My case is reviewed but in pending decision status. I tried finding any Email from Delhi Consulate website, but no luck. I only see support-india@ustraveldoc.com and I mentioned English as my Interview language in DS160.
Can you or anyone help me in providing any Email to Delhi embassy other than above mentioned email?
Thank you.
NivND@state.gov
Lakshmi,
Check details at US Consulate Contact India
Sara,
Thanks for sharing good insights !
Thank you very much Sara & Kumar, Appreciated!
No Problem Kumar,
And even really thanks to u and website, this forum is helpful with many experiences and people with various challenges getting resolved.
Sara
Hi Kumar,
I sent the mail to NivND@state.gov requesting about my EA case. Here is the response I got from them :
Dear Applicant:
Consular sections across India are now accepting drop box applications for renewals of all nonimmigrant visa categories at Visa Application Centers across India. If this is not available as an option to you, you should wait for a decision on your request for an expedited appointment.
Your expedite request is in OPEN status. You will receive a notification when the initial review is completed.
Lakshmi,
This is typical response…
Has anyone tried applying for F1 visa emergency appointment? Are they approving it if classes start within 60 days
Rakesh,
I have seen users get this in telegram group. As per rule, they are supposed to, so go for it.
Hello Everyone,
I applied for H4 visa(Emergency appointment) on 13th Oct from New Delhi Consulate, visa got approved and the VO didnt ask for anymore follow up or handed me any slip.
My visa status as of now in under ‘Administrative Processing’ for more than 10 days. What I read is that it usually takes 5-10 days. I tried calling ustraveldocs and email them as well but they asked me to wait.
Is there a way we can check with the embassy for the same?
Is anyone faced the same situation and how long it took for you to receive the approval?
I am trying to book an appointment for F1 visa since 10 days but getting no appointment available. In order to raise EA, I am not getting any date at all. Not sure how people are able to book the slots in first place. Any specific time slot or specific consulate that I can try to maximize the chances of getting a slot? Can I get the telegram group name please?
Hi Everyone,
Applied for h1b EA on 28th of last month at delhi consulate.
Still no response from them
Please share your experiences.
Thanks
I applied on the 8th. Have you received a reply yet? What reason did you provide for EA?
Hi MK,
Nothing yet, my employer provided me with supporting documentation that states I qualify for 3/5 criteria mentioned.
Which consulate have you applied and did you receive any response yet ?
Thanks
Hi Akil – Any reply yet?
Hi Arish,
Nothing yet, It’s frustrating. Please share your experience.
Thanks
Hi,
Anyone tried to schedule an EA for H1B after the court order and got any response?
I had my counselor appointment scheduled on 5th Oct 2020, and I was told that my Visa is approved at the end of the interview. It is has been a over a week but my visa status not changed from “Administrative processing” and my passport status is “your passport is still with Embassy/Consulte”,
Did anyone come across this situation
Hey Manu,
If you don’t mind can you share your experience? Like what was the emergency, what kind of supporting documents did you submit when requesting EA and what happened at the consulate when you went for the interview?
Manu,
it can take sometimes more than a week and maybe two weeks…do not worry by seeing that status, fingers crossed. Do update how it goes.
Kumar/Keyur,
mine is H4 visa,
they haven’t even updated my account from oct 5th !!
sometimes i feel they would have dispatched my passport but they hadn’t updated on my profile..
but whenever i contact CC they inform me simply need to wait as my profile is placed under 221(g) AP.
my doubt is i wasn’t told anything about AP or 221g nor issued 221g.
i was told that below 2 sentences
your visa is approved, collect your passport in a week. I obtained Home Delivery option
now I am really confused
Manu,
My wife’s and daughter had stamping on Oct 14th but still did not get their passports. I hear the same from the CC.
Did you get your passports finally?
Hi Manu, Were you able to get the Passport yet?
Hi Manu
Did you receive ur visa/ passport as yet ?
We are in a similar situation ( with minor differences) and now counting on others experiences to maintain patience . Pls share .
Thanks
Hi all,
Do anyone got H4 Emergency appointment in Chennai US Consulate.
I had applied on September 3, 2020. Still it is in processing.
We have applied on Sep 12th but still no luck… could you pls update here once ur is approved so at least we will know how long we can wait.. Many Thanks
Hi Nandini,
Sure. I will post it once received. I think no one from Chennai Embassy got H4 Emergency appointment after August consulate opened for limited hours.
Hi Anitha
I have also applied for EA on 10 Sep,2020.
Me too didn’t get any response mail from Chennai consulate.
Pls do post once you get any response.
Thanks in advance
What was the reason? And do you have any supporting documents,
Hi Anitha,
Have you got your approval mail???
I have also applied for EA with chennai consulate on 10th September,2020.
Please do update it would be much helpful for people like me
Hi Geetha,
Still not got H4 EA approved. Applied on Sept 3.
Thanks for the update Anitha
To update you all.
Had to leave US because h1b extension was approved with consulate processing.
Applied for EA appointment at Mumbai on October 8th sighting business emergency reason. I am not able to work from India because I need VPN connection to remote in to my machine at client location. Servers are in US so bandwidth is painfully low and thats why the work can not be done from India. Got it on paper from client and they mentioned that I am needed in US urgently. Got a letter from employer explaining the situation as well and stating that delay will result in hardship and financial loss to my employer and client.
On October 9th got this reply from consulate:
“ You have received the following message regarding your Emergency/Group scheduling request:
Please note that due to the COVID-19 pandemic,our routine consular services across India remain suspended. Visa operations are very limited, and at this time, we are unable to accommodate your emergency appointment request. We will re-assess your request when local conditions allow us to safely expand our services.”
Documents submitted:
– letter from client
– letter from employer
– I-797B approval notice
– LCA
– New offer letter from employer since they had to terminate me after 240 days from i-94 expiry
I also have some questions about next steps:
– Should I apply again with the same legit reasons and supporting documents?
– Should I contact the embassy at nivnd@state.gov?
– Any other options?
Hi Keyur
Does this mean that your EA request is still open and will be reassessed? What did you do?
I doubt it. Its a nice way of rejecting the request I guess.
I email Mumbai Consulate with same documents and a lengthy explanation. Rejected again after a few days.
And then lapsed the original visa fees, paid the fees again and requested EA again. Same documents, same explanation from email request and it got approved within 12hrs.
Waiting for visa interview now.
Hi Kp ,
Thanks for sharing your experience.Are you working as a software engineer ?
Yes I am. I have a technical issue which prevents me from working from India though.
Was the second request(approved one) made through the visa portal or via email again?
It was through the visa portal.
Hi Kp,
Could you please provide more details regarding your appointment such as initial consulate where you have applied how many days it took to get approval etc.
EA request:
EA approval:
Visa Type:
This would greatly help people on same boat.
Thanks
Consulate: Mumbai
EA request: 10/07
EA response: 10/09(rejected)
Consulate: Mumbai
EA request: 10/13
EA response: 10/14 (approved)
Visa Type: H1b
Reason for EA: Urgent Business needs
Thank you for responding Kp.
I have applied for EA appointment at New delhi embassy on 28th of last month, they are saying it’s under review.
My employer provided me supporting doc stating that I qualify for 3/5 criteria.
Would you like to suggest anything from your successful experience.
Thanks
I believe that showing just that you are exempt from the ban won’t qualify you for EA appointment. There should be a solid reason for you to be present in the US in order to get it approved.
I had letters from both client and employer mentioning why I must be in the US asap otw they will face hardship. It’s unusual when you’re a developer and your work can be done remotely from anywhere.
I am a team lead and I am not able to work from India at all. Repercussions of that is my employer will lose the contract, client will miss deadline which will impact US businesses negatively. So that was my case.
Thank you KP, I had letters from both my employer and client as well.
Reasons I have mentioned were Financial hardship, data compliance issues and pending projects with their effect on health care clients.
No luck so far
Ahh I am so sorry man. It’s very frustrating! I heard back from mumbai consulate very quickly both times so maybe you can give it a shot
Hi Kp,
Nice to know that ur emergency request got approved.can you please share details on your appointment date.We applied last month in Hyderabad and did not receive any response yet.
I also applied for H1B on Oct 7th at Hyderabad, till now no response.
Hi ,
How did you book second EA.I am not sure how to make first visa fee invalidate to pay visa fee again and request second EA.Please share any suggestions
You will need to exhaust all rescheduling chances (5 I think) after that you will have to pay visa fees again and you will be able to raise another EA request.
What is email id for Mumbai consulate? I got the same reply and want to email them.
Hi KP,
Can you please share the email id for Mumbai consulate where you requested again? I am in the same boat and want to give a try.
Thank you.
RC,
Check US Consulates India Contact Info
Hi KP
I emailed the new delhi embassy and mumbai consulate to reassess my request and received a response from support@ustraveldocs that my case is pending. Did you also receive such automated response?
Hi Keyur,
How did you book second EA.I am not sure how to make first visa fee invalidate to pay visa fee again and request second EA.Please share any suggestions.
Hi Khushi,
You will need to exhaust all rescheduling chances (5 I think) after that you will have to pay visa fees again and you will be able to raise another EA request.
I finally have an update.
After the first EA got denied I emailed Delhi Embassy and Mumbai Consulate requesting EA with same set of supporting documents. Got automated reply from Delhi and Mumbai said they can’t approve my request.
After two rejections I wanted to give it one final shot so a few days later I paid the visa fees again and requested EA from Mumbai through portal and they approved the request within 12hrs. Scheduled the appointment for 27th.
Went for the appointment and the VO didn’t ask for anything other than passport and I-797. It lasted 30min but he spent most of the time looking at the screen, entering details, going in the back office for additional verification. He was seemingly confused about my case.
Questions asked:
– Is this your first time applying for h1b visa?
– Who is your petitioner?
– Have you been to US before?
– Did your h1b got denied ever?
– Are you going back to work for same employer for the same job?
– When did you come back to India?
Interview: Oct 27th
Visa issued: Oct 28th
Received passport with premium delivery: Oct 29th
There were about 30-40 people at consulate and only 3 windows were open. Most of the applicants were there for F1, some for H4 and I can tell that at least 3 of us were there for H1b.
Good luck to everyone. Feel free to reach out if you need any more details.
Congratulations.. what business urgency did you mention
Thank you for sharing ur experience.when you said ur request was denied ,what kind of email did you receive from consulate.
Could you add your first, second and third EA request details on the Google Sheet: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1QVYsZLmAL-chS9tBrxk2d_iIT1zLjYwk/view?usp=sharing
This would be helpful for many of us.
Hello all,
I wanted to share my experience with NIE H-1B approval for everyone who is in the same boat as me and looking for answers.
Situation: I was on OPT and I was traveling to India when the lockdowns happened. I wasnt able to travel back and my OPT expired. In that time, my H1-B was selected in the lottery and was approved. I couldnt get it stamped thanks to the visa ban
NIE experience: Once the exceptions were announced, I booked a regular appointment with the New Delhi embassy with a March 2021 interview date. My company and the lawyers helped me put together a letter to show proof that I qualify for the exceptions. In summary, I have an Ivy league PhD with a few years of work-ex and a high salary and I am a team leader at my company. So they used the unique skills, 15% higher salary than LCA rate, financial loss to the company and critical infrastructure need as criteria. I requested an EA on September 19th and I received an approval email on the 27th. I had my OFC yesterday (September 30th) and my visa interview at the New Delhi embassy today (October 1st). Visa was approved. Key dates:
EA request: 09/19
EA approval: 09/27
OFC: 09/30
Interview: 10/01
Interview experience: It was very smooth overall, I showed up 15 mins before my interview appointment. Temperature check before entry and then the routine security check and I walked straight up to the VO for the actual interview without any wait. I was in and out in 15 mins overall. VO asked basic questions about this being my first H1B, about the company and my role in it, my educational background and graduation dates, my salary and also asked if I had maintianed status the entire time I was on F-1. Few mintues of silence while he typed on the computer and then he scanned my fingerprints for verification, gave me a leaflet about rights of workers in the US and told me that the visa was approved and I should get my passport back in a week. Kept my passport and requested to see no other documents besides my I-797 notice.
CEAC status shows “Refused” but it is quite common to see that right after the interview since they started calling AP as Refused. It probably hasnt updated yet so I am not worrying but I’ll celebrate once I have the visa in hand. I am hoping to be back in the US in next two weeks!
Hope this helps and good luck!
Thank you so much for sharing. Seeing a positive H1b experience makes me hopeful.
Do you mind sharing your profession? Just want to know if its possible for you to work remotely or not.
Also what documents/evidences did you submit when you applied for EA?
Hey no probelm!
I work as a Senior research scientist at a Biotech company. I manage teams and their labwork so parts of my job can be done remotely but not very effectively.
I didn’t submit any documents besides two letters:
First from me detailing which of the NIE “indicators” I meet and why.
Second from my manager detailing my role and detailing the projects that I am leading and how my absence would result in a financial loss for the company.
Hi SV,
Thank you for sharing this. Should we have two different letters showing NIE and employer letter? Do you mind sharing your templates please? Would be helpful to many like me.
Thank you!
Hey so there is no real guidance on the documents that you need to have to prove that you are expempt from the ban, so I wouldnt say that you “should” have two separate letters. That is just what I did and it worked for me.
Again, I am sorry but I dont really have a template for the letters. My letter just had a bulleted list of indicators that I meet and why I think I meet them. This was the text in the letter:
“Dear Consular officer,
I am requesting an expedited H-1B visa appointment on account of urgent business needs and I have attached an invitation letter from my employer in the U.S. to demonstrate their immediate need for my professional services in the US. I believe that I qualify for an H-1B visa issuance under one of the exemptions to PP10052 published by the Department of State on August 12, 2020, specifically because I am a technical specialist whose travel is necessary to facilitate the immediate and continued economic recovery of the United States. At least 4 of the 5 indicators listed in this exemption are present:”
The letter from my manager had a lot of detail about my projects and day to day activities and why it was essential for me to be back in the offices.
Thank you. This helps too!!
SV and Kumar, thanks for all this information! Seeing an H1B application go through is heartening. A few questions:
1. To confirm, is the process that you take a regular appointment and then apply for the EA?
2. Who did you email for the EA?
3. Kumar – I thought the court order was only applicable to those companies that were a part of the lawsuit. Do you know if that has been broader? Is the process still similar i.e. get a date for way in the future and then apply for EA? If yes, wouldn’t we have to give some exception reasoning there as well.
Hi KA,
No problem. Yes, the procedure is to get a regular appointment and then request an EA. You need to submit the request through the UStraveldocs website once you’ve taken a regular appointment.
Now that the visa ban is not in place, I guess you are only requesting the exedited appointment since the embassies are closed. You can probably just use urgent business needs as the reason and get a letter from your company as evidence.
Thanks SV. Any idea on if the EA gets denied once, can I apply for it again by providing additional evidence?
Hi sv
Do you have kids?
When you got married?
Did they asked any details about previous receipt
No kids
Not married
First H1B stamp so no previous receipts
Hello SV,
I am somewhat is similar situation as you are in. My H1b is approved in this years lottery but I have to travel to India on emergency basis as My father is in ICU due to covid. My company is allowing me to travel but they are concerned about my return. This is my first time visit on H1b without stamp. So do you think family emergency and/or Letter from my company/manager will work to get an expedite Visa appointment. How much time it will take to get a response from US embassy once I submit that.? What process do I need to follow? I was earlier thinking to book an appointment for March 2021 but I got to know you response from this page. I understand your above answers but I believe my case is little different.
Hi Harshad,
Sorry to hear about your father, I hope that he gets better soon. I understand that it in an impossibly difficult situation but I would really advise you against leaving the US without first securing a visa appointment. The NIE exemptions are really discretionary and there is no guarantee that you will get one. It depends on how many expemtions you qualify for and how many emergency requests the embassy is already processing. The embassies are still closed so lifting of the H1B visa ban doesnt really help and it is not clear how the embassies are interpreting that court ruling.
Harshad,
Sorry to hear about your difficult situation. Recently, the Trump Travel ban for H1B was lifted by Court order, at least for now, Dept of State said that you can book EA. Check Trump Travel ban Lifted by Order – H1B. Plan it soon so that, if there is any appeal and something changes with travel ban, you are covered. Talk to your attorney as well once.
Anuroopa
Hi Sv,
I am going through a similar situation as Harshad’s.
My H1B got approved this year. My dad is admitted in the ICU due to Covid and I immediately need to travel to India. This will be my first visit to India without the H1B stamp.
My company is allowing me to travel to India and work from home for a period of 6 months. I want to book a normal appointment for March 2021, will that be possible? Are there slots available for the same?
How can one check for the dates?
Any information would be really helpful as I need to make this decision ASAP.
Hi SV,
Thanks for posting your experience. In my case My H1-B was approved in 2019 and My VISA is still not stamped. I have an VISA appointment booked on March 2021. But have to travel in January 2021 for personal reasons and I am thinking about expediting my appointment to January 2021 using a letter from my employer. I am a mechanical engineer. I manage projects in an manufacturing plant. I cannot work from home. So do you think I can apply for expedited appointment ? I know currently no embassies have dates on January.
Thanks in advance,
Vini
Vini,
You may not even need the letter anymore. Department of State gave new guidance on the Trump travel ban, you can request for EA directly. Check Trump Travel ban Lifted by Order – H1B
I would say though that if they approve the EA request, they would ask you to pick a date in the next two weeks. I am not sure if you’ll be able to request a January date through an EA request.
Thanks for the reply, Can I ask for a expedited date for January now itself? or Do i have to apply after I go to India? I have seen no rule as such dictating when we can request for a expedited appointment. As I can tell my tentative travel date as some where in January end. Please let me know your view.
There are no rules but an emergency appointment will be given ASAP, not for some date far in future. When my request was approved, I could only see dates for the next two weeks to book the appointment. I don’t think that you can request a January emergency appointment in advance. But you can call UStraveldocs to ask, they are usually pretty helpful with this. There is also a chance that the embassies resume somewhat normal operation by January.
Hey
I applied for EA H4 visa on 6th October, Delhi consulate on the basis of Family seperation and medical needs.
Haven’t heard back from them. Anyone who got approval for H4 EA in October from Delhi?
Same here, I applied EA on 7th Oct at Delhi consulate. Absolutely nothing heard till now.
Hi nidhi ,
what you mentioned for EA in family separation reason.
please advise me
Hello Vini,
I am in same boat, I do work in manufacturing plant and cannot work from home. I have travel plans in January and booked regular visa slot for march. Were you able to request emergency appointment from US for January?
Shafi,
You can only request EA, if your travel is within 15 days from today.
Quick update:
I picked up the passport today (10/06) with the H1B visa. It took two working days.
Laxmi,
So, basically once i got an email that my EA request was approved,
Immediately we booked EA available dates that was routed to travel docs by provided link in (Aproved Email )
I have seen 5 available dates I choosen my posible date and booked .
And downloaded EA appointment page.
Now stated collected all support documents
And booked flight tickets to HYD to DEL -3rd oct 11am
(if I miss this flight I will have chance to book other flight on same date so that’s the reason we booked early time)
DEL to HYD -4th oct night 7pm
*Anyhow hotels checkin @12pm to checkout 12pm
OFC was 4th Oct 8:50am
Interview was 4th Oct 12:00pm same-day
(Different locations) which was almost half hour distance
Interview went smooth
Visa approved
1.There was no covid issues in domestic terminals if u r planning with in seven days..
I called delhi airport and collected info
2. Delhi airport to my hotel I booked delhi local police cabs were available in DEL airport ( for saftey)
3. Next day I used Ola cabs. For everywhere
Hi SV,
Thank you for information.
I have the case like I want apply for EA for H4 visa. I raised request Hyderabad consulate but it is taking too long time more than one and half month. there for now I want to raise EA to Mumbai consulate. my case comes under family separation and it is genuine and really needed. there fore I want to know what is the probability that I would get my request approved with Mumbai consulate.
please revert me if you could help me with any information on this.
I did same for my spouse at mumbai location. Within 24 hrs, they approved and gave me 1 week slot immediately for visa interview & biometric.
Please do attach documents. I attached marraige certification, my I797, my visa, her passport copy and I94. If you have more relevant docs, please do attach.
Thank you sumit for your response. I have I-797, marriage certificate,spouse passport and my passport. As I mentioned I already waited for long time so this time I don’t want to take any chance that’s why I want to confirm from which consulate I would get visa early. My case is a family separations for about an year.
There fore is Mumbai consulate is good option?
Regards
Laxmi
I think so… in my case it was quick approval. I wrote like depression, anxiety and other problems and along with these attached noc from my spouse employer as well…rest all is luck only.. try once in mumbai… best of luck
Okay thank you Sumit.
Events wrote same matter. But if it is not causing problem for your privacy then could you please share message you conveyed them. If there is a problem then it’s okay. I am just trying all the possible ways which help me to get visa soon.
I hope I am not making uncomfortable for you.
Thanks
Thats fine.
I wrote like i got married in nov 2019 and was about to do H4 but consulate got closed. It has been ~10 months and i am unable to meet my spouse and start of my family life. Because of which we both are under tremendous stress & gradually going into depression. I want to be with my spouse so that we both overcome this mental stress anxiety and come out of depression.
Hope you understand the situation & approve my request for emergency appointmnet for H4. Attached are the below documetns…. listed all documents which i attached
Thanks again sumit.
Even I got married in Nov. 2019.
And wrote the same matter which you sent.
Hope this would help me in getting visa as soon as possible.
How many days it will take to complete all the process and get passport in hand.
24th:- request raise.
25th:- approved
30-1st oct:- visa interview
5th:- passport collected by center…
Yet to go and get it although
Both biometric and interview will be on same day? And where are you from? And if we choose home delivery for passport will they send.
Please don’t mind that I am asking so many questions. I am doing it for the first time there I don’t know from whom to take guidance so.
No 30 sept bio and 1st oct interview.
Not sure about posting passport
It depends on Available dates it might have same date OFC and appointment, or it might have different days, you choose wisely while selecting the dates,
*First u need to choose OFC date then it takes you to actual appointment date and time
Ex: mine was same day
Okay thank you.
You from which place?
Hi,
This discussion has been very helpful! I’m just curious as to know if we are approved for expedite interview is the consulate who interviews us aware that our case is an expedite case at time of interview ? Thank you!
Yes, they are aware i guess based on the questions asked by them
Hi Sumit,
When youR spouse went in for interview was the consular aware that it was expedited interview? Also do they ask questions pertaining to the expedited request? Thank you!
Hi Sumit.
I am laxmi. We had a discussion regarding emergency visa process.
I wanted to know after how many days of interview you received your passport? And was it premium delivery or you collected from embassy?
I chose primium delivery so wanted to know how many days it will take to get passport in had. Please if you could help me with information if you know
Hi Laxmi,
So basically once you are done with interview successfuy with conuslr, u will informed clearly when u will be getting your passport that is either via post or pickup.
If they missed it to tell you about passport, at the end of the interview u may check with them politely.
And here is your exact ans:
So once you choosen passport option via Home Delivery
Generally it takes 2 business days..once visa ISSUED
But there will process between called interview and visa issued/refused called Admin processing then u will be issued your Visa
It may takes time from 2 business days to 7
Hope it helps you …
Sara
Hi Sumit,
I have same situation like you were in past.. i got married more than year ago but after that we haven’t applied for h4 visa due to my visa issues. When my visa issues got cleared then we booked for h4 visa appointment but it got canceled due to covid. now after reading post it helped me and i got to know that i can apply for H4 visa if my spouse. I would like to know from you that what documents i need to submit along with my regular h1 visa documents for emergency appointment on family separation reason. below is my details
current visa: h1 (extension approved but visa not stamped)
married : mid 2019
H4 appointment: canceled due to covid few months back
i am not sure i am eligible for my spouse h4 visa or not. if yes then what would be the best way to book appointment with EA reason family separation.
please help me out it will be great for me. Now my situation is like we can’t handle our situation with long distance, now i am thinking like if it is not possible then i should go back and live with family in india.
So if you can help me out on it then you know how will be my situation. now it’s very hard to live. please give me all the details for it.
if i can contact you by anyway it would be great to understand everything.
please reply me
Hi Rudra,
With crispy family separation personal case like hypertension, depression, i attached my I797, my visa, my wife passport, noc as she is employed in india and marraige certificate at mumbai consulate. As far as i know mumbai consulate is taking such cases on priority. I got approval same day.
Best of luck ??
Thank you Sumit
Hi All,
Please help me to understand and provide me suggestions, below is my scenario,
I Submitted my spouse DS160 form with my earlier approved reciept number, and booked an appointment with it. Now i do have approved amendment with new reciept number. So before going Visa which reciept number i need to use. Should i filled new ds160 with new reciept number and booked appointment or what? I am little worried now which is to use and go to visa interview.
Please suggest me and reply me ASAP.
Hi All,
Please help me to understand and provide me suggestions, below is my scenario,
I Submitted my spouse DS160 form with my earlier approved reciept number, and booked an appointment with it. Now i do have approved amendment with new reciept number. So before going Visa which reciept number i need to use. Should i filled new ds160 with new reciept number and booked appointment or what? I am little worried now which is to use and go to visa interview.
Please suggest me and reply me ASAP.
Hi Laxmi,
Even I applied to Hyd consulte on August 18th
Waited for one month but not yet received any update ( heard one MRV allows only EA Request)
So I had lapsed first fee and paid one more time on same CGI.
Second time I applied for Delhi ..
Got approved after About a week
Immediately Requested Emergency Request by following instructions (By following link)
Uploaded my husband’s support documents
And my documents like my Marriage certificate, passport copy etc
Recently appeared for visa interview
By god grace
It was approved
Passport is yet to received..
Hope it would helps you
Oh Mam, that’s so same case of mine. I to have raised request to Hyderabad on 25th of Agust waited till yesterday then now I am planning to lapse it and repay fee and proceed.
That’s I am collecting information for the same.
Where are you from and how did you manage to travel to delhi?
And how many days it took for biometric and interview?
Hi Sara,
I read your post.
Here’s my question.
Did canceled your previous appointment with HYD consulate on your own else you raised any request to cancel your appointment?
Because I can’t cancel my appointment on my own with CHENNAI consulate.
It’s showing some error.
Pls do clarify me, the waiting time is killing people like me 🙁
Thanks in advance.
Hi Geetha,
Yes I did by my own I could reschedule morethan 5-6 times one can only able to reschedule 5-6th time, I reached over limit to reschedule then by default my first MRV fee got lapsed.
And then I paid one more fee on same CGI, after 24 hours I raised general appointment on March then I could see ERequest, then applied to Delhi that time, I was tired to get a response from hyd consulte. So I made it by myself, if you are getting error call CC and clarify with them
Hope it helps you
Hi Sara,
Thanks a lot for your reply.
I have tried the idea you suggested, still the appointment haven’t canceled in chennai consulate.
We still hope for the best.
Hi Sara,
When did you apply for Delhi consulate and when was it approved?
Sruthi,
i applied on September 24th, got a reply in 4-5 days..
Sruthi,
i applied on September 24th, got a reply in 4-5 days..
Thank you Sara
Thank you Sara.
Hi Laxmi,
could you please provide me Family Seperation reasons what you mentioned for EA appointment for h4 visa.
Me and my spouse got married more than year ago but due to my visa issues we didn’t applied for h4 visa .
once my h1 visa issues got clear we booked an appointment but due to covid it got canceled. But now i am getting help by reading this post that family separation can be reason for EA so i would like to do it. it’s been long now we are living separately. Please help me if you dont mind. i read all your comments and got to know you were also in same boat.
please help me on it.
Can anyone share their stamping experience at consulate itself? Do they check whether you have been out of India for last 14 days or not? Do they give you any form to fill out outside embassy to make sure you don’t have COVID or have not travelled?
Actually, I am planning to go to India in few days and I have a EA appointment for Oct 9. I dont know if they will allow me to enter embassy if I have been in US in last 14 days. I will carry negative COVID report but not sure if they will allow me to enter.
Anyone care to share their experience? Thanks
See my response above
Thanks SV for shring your experience. Did they ask you any questions outside embassy regarding your travel history? Any forms to fill out? I know you said just temperature check but just want to make sure. Thanks
Yeah the temperature check was all they did. No additional forms or any other questions about recent travel.
Needless to mention but a mask was mandatory.
Thank you for sharing your experience.Our request was submitted on September 18th and no update yet.Meanwhile you were waiting for appointment approval,did you check with customer care ?Would you mind sharing what kind of email you got when you checked with CC.
Thanks,
Divya
Divya – For some reason, it doesn’t show me a reply button for you so I am responding here. I did not contact the customer care as I was expecting the approval to take 10 days based on other people’s experiences. Besides, they don’t really know anything except that it’s with the embassy.
Here is the email I got once my request was approved:
“Thank you for your interest in a U.S. Visa. We are happy to inform you that your request for an Emergency appointment for your U.S. Visa interview has been approved.
To schedule your Emergency appointment please log into your U.S. visa services account at http://www.ustraveldocs.com, click on “Reschedule Appointment”, to schedule the new appointment, and print out your new appointment confirmation letter.
Please note that this Emergency appointment approval is only valid until Oct 10, 2020. If you do not schedule your appointment within this period you will no longer qualify for the Emergency appointment. As a reminder you will not be granted access into the U.S. Consular Section unless you have an appointment confirmation letter with a scheduled appointment for that particular day.
Thank you,
United States Consular Section
“
Hi SV,
Congrats! Does the NIE grant you an exemption from quarantine for 14 days before you travel to the US?
I will be traveling from London and I would normally have to quarantine.
Best,
Martha
I dont think so. The VO specifically told me to follow the health advisory for whichever state I fly into.
Hi, Just wanted to share my experience here so that it might help out few ppl who are trying for Dependent Visa stamping . My wife and Daughter are in India, I was trying to get them here since March. Finally I was able to book a normal appointment as on March 2021 at Mumbai location. Later I have rescheduled it Hyd location for any early date.
At this stage I thought of booking EA for them. Scheduled an appointment and submitted details like My H1 stamping, I797, I94, Passport details of dependents. After I submitted the request I got an error like “error occurred while uploading visual work force page”.
Here comes the twist, the next day when I open my account I saw a message at the top of the home page saying “Your EA request is approved”. Now I was able to see the slots for OCT 2020 which I booked as well.
Could you please mention the dates..
Sai,
I got a date in Oct 2nd week
Hi Pavan,
I am also in the same situation. Can you please give more details like what information you put for submitting EA request. This would be really helpful.
AG,
I have just mentioned my genuine situation of being away from my Baby(1 year Old) and family, which is a very pathetic situation. Though my explanation was bit descriptive with long paragraph.
Hi,
Did the consular ask you questions in regards to the expedite request? Also at time of interview were they aware that your was an expedited case ? Thank you
Pawan,
Thanks for sharing your experience !
Hi Kumar and All,
Please help me to understand and provide me suggestions, below is my scenario,
I Submitted my spouse DS160 form with my earlier approved reciept number, and booked an appointment with it. Now i do have approved amendment with new reciept number. So before going Visa which reciept number i need to use. Should i filled new ds160 with new reciept number and booked appointment or what? I am little worried now which is to use and go to visa interview.
Please suggest me and reply me ASAP.
Hi Friends,
If any of you have received EA appointment for H1B or have applied for one and waiting.
Could you please share your experiences such as (Consulate location, date applied, current status)
This Blog is extremely informative, wish I saw this a month ago
Abhi could you please share your outcome
Thanks,
Akil
Hi,
Anyone got EA application approved for H1b stamping? Can you please share your experiences and what kind of proofs did you submit?
My extension got approved for consular processing so had to come to India.
Submitting a letter from Employer and Client stating that my presence in US is required immediately otherwise they will face hardship and financial loss is good enough for the proof? I was working remotely in US due to COVID but working from India is not possible because of the VPN issues so its a legit reason.
Abhi, did you receive any update?
Thank you everyone for sharing your experience with emergency appointment. My son(born in US) is under 2 years of age and was stuck in India for more than 6 months. He has missed his visits with pediatrician and vaccines. I was able to show the below proofs to get emergency visa appointment.
Vaccination records
His primary pediatrician’s letter from US recommending that he gets his vaccines on time
India pediatrician’s letter recommending that he gets his remaining quota of vaccines
Hello,
I got EA approval for my wife from Mumbai counsulate, I thought to reschule EA appointment to Hyderabad location but I learnt that is not allowed.
I have scheduled OFC at hyderabad location.
My wife is in hyderbad, and she never been to mumbai in the past. Could any one suggest if it safe to travel to Mumbai during this COVID times. Also, can you give direction from Mumbai airport to counsulate and travel back.
Any help on this is very much appreciated.
Thanks
Sorry to hear. How did you end up getting EA in Mumbai? I guess few lucky ppl got it in their primary requested place. Hope all goes well for your family
no luck, we have to go to mumbai
Is there anyone here for whom employer booked the H4 appointment. in this case, who has to send email/book EA because employer login with their profile and booked the appointment and how can EA will be scheduled?
Hi Everyone, I applied for an emergency expedited appointment at New Delhi Consulate on September 18, 2020. I still haven’t received a response. Looks like people receive a response within 2 business days. Does anybody have a similar situation and did eventually receive an approval? How long did it take for you to get the approval?
Hi, this is vinay and My employer booked normal appointment and now I have to request to EA, can my employer request EA or should I send email for EA request link?
Hello
I have to get my H1-B stamped. My husband and kids are in USA.
Can I select both family separation and business urgency to get emergency appt for H1B stamping? Also are EA open in both Delhi and Mumbai?
In similar situation. What did you do finally?
Hi, I submitted emergency request but got error after submission that “Stay tuned. Please email us if you need to get in touch.”
Can anyone help me to share phone number for support team so that i can cofirm if request has been submitted. I am not getting any emergency request option now. 🙁
Hi, I submitted emergency request but got error after submission that “Stay tuned. Please email us if you need to get in touch.”
Can anyone help me to share phone number for support team so that i can cofirm if request has been submitted. I am not getting any emergency request option now. 🙁
Has anyone tried using 2 reasons for EA – medical emergency and urgent business letter? I have both letters, thinking which one to choose in EA request if I attach both letters.
Hello,
I want to schedule an EA under national interest exception for H4 visa at Mumbai Consulate. Can someone please tell me which option should I select while scheduling the appointment?
Any advice or suggestions.
Also, if no option is available then, is there an email address to which I can explain the situation and schedule the appointment or get a reply?
Hi when I contacted NIVND@state.gov recently for EA, I received auto generated response immediately after sending email.The response is copy paste of the info available in U.S. Embassy India website.Did anyone received actual reply from NIND team recently ?
Dan,
You should try to use USTravelDocs website and create the request. Now the volume of requests is high and they take long time for responding in email…
Hi Kumar and All,
Do you heard anyone got EA for B2 visa to support their pregnant daughter. Also, anyone tried doing the EA through the CGI portal itself? How does it work. Please provides inputs.
Thanks,
Bhavin
Bhavin,
I have not seen anyone try it…You may try it. Yes, the process is same. Put in medical reason and give it a try. Do update the community here, how it goes.
Hi,
We are going through the same situation right now. Were you able to do any progress in getting B2 visa? My wife is pregnant and we are trying to bring my in-laws, but not sure how to.
Please let us know. Thank you.
Rajesh
Hi,
I am planning to apply EA for H4 for my spouse. What reason did you select for Family separation – newly married for EA and what supporting documents have you attached? I have sent an email to NivND@state.gov but I did not get any response yet. I do find an option for submitting an Emergency Request from ustraveldocs website but I am not sure if I should wait for a response from NivND@state.gov. Please guide if anyone applied with similar reason. I went through this blog post and a couple of other ones but the above point is still a bit unclear for me.
Thanks.
Phani,
You should try the online form. The email is not reliable.
You will see the option, after you pay fee, book appointment. The above blog posts are slightly old, I will create a new post on the process.
Thanks Kumar. Is there any home quarantine rule if you arrive in Delhi airport through domestice travel?
Hi Kumar,
How did you managed your spouse H4 visa appointment?
*Phani
Hi,
Sorry for late response, I was occupied with work and Visa related activities.
Here is what we did:
– Submitted DS-160 on September 14,2020 and booked first possible date, which was March 08, 2021 at Delhi Embassy.
– We had an option to request EA after the previous step. Filled in details on Sept 15th picking “Medical reasons” and Reason as “Family separation – newly wed”. Got approval within 2 hours.
– Re-booked appointment as per instructions on Sept 20th(VAC) and 21st(Interview). We only got approval to book EA within the next 10 days.
– After we booked the slots, Embassy requested my LCA, I797, Passport, Visa and Job details like position, clients, location, manager contact details; and also home address. They contacted my manager a couple of times for verification.
– Rest of the process was same as regular H4
Interview questions:
– Give me your passport.
– Give me a copy of your husband’s I797, H1B visa copy and LCA.
– Where is he staying in the US?
– When did you get married?
– Give me your marriage certificate.
– Give me the employment letter of your husband.
– When did he return to the US?
– Give me your photo.
Visa got approved.
Received the visa in post on September 26th and planning the travel soon.
Kumar, Please add this to the list of experiences for H4 visa through EA as it may help someone.
Kumar,
I am on H4 visa and separated from my husband for almost 8 months and trying to book ER now. Will the General physician reference letter from India work for ER, Is there any specific reason to mention apart from Family separation/depression and reuniting with the family reason will do?
Please help me out. Thank you so much in Advance.
Hi kumar,
i am not able to see ofc dates please guide me .. i can see only vac date..
it’s for my spouse h4 visa
Hello Phani,
I’m in a similar situation as you but my wedding is scheduled for Jan end. When I try to book appointment on cgifederal now, it shows OFC date available in all cities in Feb but interview date is not showing up in any cities. May I ask when you had booked the original visa date before you sent them the email for EA?
Hi phani,
i do have same situation, i am not able to see any dates for Ofc. i can see only vac dates. please guide us how to check and booked regular appointment first
Hi kumar
I need your in this regard.
I was applied h1b visa emergency appointment, after submission of application error message was displayed as”error occurred while uploading visual work force page” and again went to back to home page where I could not see any emergency appointment tab.
Is this appointment request was submitted or not, how can I resolve this.. please help.
Sai,
It should have been submitted, that is a common error. You can call the customer care and confirm, most of the times it will be submitted in backend.
Thanks Kumar.
Verified with Feedback option in CGI federal port.
they confirmed request is still pending for decision.
Sai,
What was the h1 emergency you applied for?
H1B health care under national interest (urgent business travel)
Hi Sai,
Did you get any response from the consulate on the appointment approval.I got same error.
Divya
Divya,
No, still waiting for response.
Divya
Did you receive any response to EA request from conulate .
Please reply.
Did you receive any response on appointment confirmation
Hi Sai,
Did you get any response from consulate for your H1 EA.
No..still waiting.
About you did you receive any response from consulate.
When you did you applied for EA request.
No I have not received any.Did u try calling them?
Not yet. But sent a mail for the status, for which they responded that they will get back after completing the prior commitments.
I was contacted customer support but same response still pending for decision
Sai, did you receive a response yet?
not yet.
contacted custpmer support, same response received as pending for decision at consulate
Hi.. Can someone help me with the info, want to know the available h1 dropbox appointment date slots for chennai consulate. if anyone in process of booking/booked appointments recently can help me on it..
I got to travel to india in next month. this one is for H1 renewal under resume ongoing employment with same employer, same position.
Thanks advance..
Utkarsh,
You apply for appointment using standard process to apply for US Visa . For booking appointment the system will give you option to submit documents, that is the only difference.
Guys , Is any one successful in getting approved EA on H1B renewal.Please share.
Applied for EA for my wife (H4) on 17th August at Hyderabad Consulate. Still haven’t received any response. Did anyone manage to get an appointment at Hyd Consulate?
Sai,
Our 1st EA was submitted to Hyd and we never received a response. But, CC can check if the request was rejected at backend. Even though we did not receive any email response, CC confirmed that our EA was denied at backned.
So, we requested our 2nd EA (by paying another fee) to Delhi and got response on same day.
Kalyan,
This is good insight !
Should we change the location in DS-160 form for applying the second EA or regular appointment location is good to go with? I have my DS-160 with Chennai location and want to apply for Delhi.
We contacted the customer care and they said request is still pending.
Hi Sai,
any update on EA? Same here. I have requested EA for H4 at HYD location on Aug 24th , still awaiting decision. contacted CC via email and phone and the response I got that request is still under review.
No update yet
Hello,
I raised an EA for h4 visa on September 1 st at Hyderabad but didn’t get any response yet, can we raise second EA by paying fee even though the 1st EA is under review.
Hi sai ,
Any update on EA? I also raised an EA for H4 at hyd
on sep 1st but didn’t get any response yet. Could you pls let me know if you get any response from the embassy.
Contacted the consulate through online feedback system. Received the below response, looks like it was reviewed but not considered for the moment and will be looked later.
“Requests that do not meet the criteria for an expedite appointment under our current operating posture may not be considered until a later phase in our resumption of routine services. If you have not yet received a reply to your expedite request it is most likely that the request will be considered at a later phase.”
when you say applied for EA-you mean mailed the consulate as a request for EA correct? My wife is on H4 and needs stamping to return. Her expired visa is within 12/24 months from expiry date and still did not get an option for dropbox while filling out the ds-160 and the visa consular appointment page which is strange. but we paid the fees anyway but cannot get a slot despite it showing its open on their calendar. should we mail them now with a request?
Sai,
Many have got it. Did you submit online on USTravelDocs or emailed them ? Follow up with email, if no response or email consulate.
I have submitted online. Can you share the consulate email address please
Hello Sai,
I got it approved on 9th day. You will get an email. I got an error when I submit EA request, so I have contacted support over phone. they told me that they can see the request in their system and it is open. I got approval email later.
Hi Chakri,
May I know the date you applied and received the response? It’s been more than 15 business days since I have applied. Contacted CC, was informed that my request is still open.
submitted request on 26th Aug and received approval on 4th Sep
Hi Chakri,
I am also thinking of applying H4 EA appointment for Spouse and Child. What and all details you have submitted. On March 16th 2020 the stamping was supposed to happen but the same day the Embassy closed. Can you share the details of what you submitted and for which location its better to get this EA. Thank you.
Are H1B EA appointments open in delhi and Mumbai as well?
Hi,
We applied for EA for H4 at Hyderabad embassy in Sept 3rd and got approved on the same date. Biometrics were given on Sept 15th and interview was scheduled on Sept 24th. Visa has been approved.
We used the medical emergency reason and family separation as an emergency for applying for H4 EA appointment.
Hi Manasa,
Can you please say what documents you have uploaded for H4 EA.
I am also waiting for it.
Hi Anitha,
I uploaded my son’s medical reports along with their passport copies. I immediately got approved for EA in 8 hours. Use some medical proofs they work better.
Hi all,
My mother is in critical condition and I need to visit India soon. I am eligible for drop box at this time. Is it possible I can get emergency appointment due to above stated reason? What papers do I need to show in that case?
Appreciate any response and help in advance
nishant,
If you are eligible for dropbox, they may not give you any emergency appointment. EA is given to get stamping to return to US, the reason you show in India is to arrive…
You need health, business reason for EA.
I have requested for Emergency appointment for H4. My husband is in US.
Requested EA – Sept 3.
Can anyone let me know, how many days they will take to process EA request.
For Delhi, we got response on same day.
For Hyderbad, we never got a response.
Thanks. I have applied EA via Chennai. Will it take more time or we need to write a mail to chennai embassy on this.
I’ve submitted an EA [Chennai consulate] on Aug 30th quoting family separation and haven’t got a response yet. Called them on Monday, and they said they’re still processing those who applied before me.
Hello, can you pls let know to what number you tried calling CC . I’ve been trying to reach them everyday but no one seems to attend. I applied EA on 26th Aug- Chennai
Any update on EA with Chennai
Hi Sam,
Hi Gayathri,
Any update on your H4 EA in Chennai Embassy.
What about mumbai consulate? Do they also do emergency appointments? Where can I email and ask them about my situation. Need H4 stamping. I am here with 2 US citizen kids and husband on H1 in US. And if I know that I won’t be able to go for another 2.5 months when is the good time to apply for an expedieted appointment. Do they give immediate appointment? For my individual case reason I need an appointment immediately after 2.5 months are done.
Btw this blog is very helpful..hats of to the moderator or blog owner.
Anitha,
Usually 48 to 72 hours.
Kumar,
I think it’s taking longer these days. I have applied for an EA and haven’t even got a response or a confirmation. I emailed to nivnd and then chennai consulate replied after a week saying the EA is pending without any time frame.
Hi Pavan, which visa did you submit EA? and when did you submit it?
Hi Pavan,
When you applied to chennai embassy.
Hi Sam/Anitha,
Long story short, I submitted an EA for my wife on or before Aug 18th (referring the latest updates to Presidential Proclamation). I was looking for a confirmation or a response from them. As I was going through redbus2us articles, thought my EA didn’t go through because of their crappy system. Emailed nivnd on Aug 31st got a response on sep 6th. Below is the response from them. I think mine’s getting delayed because of the language preference (Telugu). At least, that’s what I think or, I should’ve mentioned stronger reasons like family separation or health issues and provided a doctor’s certificate.
Dear Applicant,
Thank you for your inquiry.
We have received and noted your request for an expedite appointment at the U.S. Consulate General in Chennai.
We continue to schedule a limited number of expedite appointments each week, however due to strict limitations on availability it will take some time after the submission of an expedite request before we can approve an appointment.
Please also note that unpredictable changes in local conditions may further delay our ability to schedule an expedite appointment. Requests will remain in pending (“open”) status in the appointment system until we can accommodate the request.
Thank you for your continued patience.
Consular Information Unit
U.S. Consulate General
220, Anna Salai
Chennai 600 006
India
Any update on EA with Chennai
Hi
Is there Any response from Chennai for EA, please let me
know
Hi Gayathri,
When you have applied for EA H4 in Chennai
I applied EA on 06th Sept 2020. Even one of my friend who has applied for EA on 27th August for H4 did not get any response.
Can anyone share information on the H4 emergency appointment got scheduled without medical needs after 27th August?
I too applied on 26th August and still didn’t get any response
Can anyone provide a template letter from US company requesting emergency appointment for visa stamping?
Can you apply for EA from US? I have already scheduled regular appointment for Feb, 2021 at Hyderabad.
I need this information too. Would really appreciate help here.
Richa,
Frankly, there is no template letter. Just write couple of lines stating your situation and why you need visa. that’s it.
Has anyone been able to schedule expedited appointment for H1B visa to resume ongoing employment with same employer, same position? What documents we need from employer to prove the emergency? Anyone has a sample letter for it?
Also, do we have to be in India to schedule the EA or can it be done from US? I am currently in US and have to visit India to take care of family member for a short time. Trying to figure out the travel plan accordingly.
Himanshi,
I saw one user got it in one of our groups. They got a letter from employer saying the business need and they used the salary over 15% of LCA wage. Ask your employer to explain the need for you to go back. Also, if it i extension, no need.
As the Indian consulates site mention “Applicants for H1B, H2B, L1, and certain J categories and their dependents covered by Presidential Proclamation 10052 should request an expedited appointment only if you have reason to believe you may qualify for one of the exceptions listed in the Proclamation.”
Note: Exception to consider is ‘seeking employment with same employer and same job position’
So question is what would be the option to chose for the above category to request expedited appoinment while Emergency request form filling?
Right now only option to choose within are:
1. ESTA denied
2. Student or Exchange visitor
3. Urgent Business Travel
4. Funeral/Death
5. Medical Needs
On the August 12 exceptions proclamation, they call it as National Interest exception eligibility, but no such options I see on above list of options.
Any advice or comments are appreciated.
I applied for one as medical reasons as there was no other appropriate option and still no reply from them. Feel like we should file another lawsuit as to why we need all these procedures when they could’ve straight away opened visa slots just like how they did students.
Thanks for replying. I agree on your note. So did you show medical needs or related documents?
What if they consider someones individual medical needs and tranfer the visa category to visitor or traveller?
Also did you try emailing to NivND@state.gov or any embassy related email group for H1 thing And had they ever replied?
1. I mentioned in the EA request saying I selected medical needs as there was no other appropriate option (cause I feel they should’ve made necessary updates to have such an option and it’s not our mistake that they don’t have one) and I didn’t attach anything related to medical cause my wife already qualifies for a visa appointment as per the latest updates to Presidential Proclamation.
2. I don’t think they’ve the power to downgrade or upgrade our visa category based on our needs.
3. Yes, tried emaling to that address but got an automated response and I did email support-india@ustraveldocs as well and then I got an email saying that my EA request is still pending so hoping for the best!
Thank you for comments.
Did you receive email within 1 hour from support-india@ustraveldocs after you submitted emergency request?
I submitted and received response “Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, routine consular services across India remain suspended, and visa operations are very limited. We have reviewed your request, but at this time, we are unable to accommodate your emergency appointment request. We will re-assess your request when local conditions allow us to safely expand our services.”
Ahh..I dint expect that kind of response..
Is there any other email from where we get a response of approval or denial of EA appointment or the above is it?
Abhi,
You would but it under Urgent Business Travel as that is the closest for business. They will look at the proofs.
Thanks. Applied in same and above was response. Not sure what to take from here..
Abhi,
What visa type did you apply for ? What was the precise reason ?
It is H1B, I explained to show that I am seeking to join same employment with same employer. Called out some points below.
Also highlighted that under h1 which exception I believe to qualify..
1. Current approval and to travel urgent to perform work. Letter from employer on same
2. Previous approval thing
3. My employment with employer like in brief..when I joined..what happned, how many petitions filed
Attached docs..emp support letter, lca, approvals, attorney lettr..etc..
Also from @ustraveldoc reply it doesnot seem that they fully denied as well…stating they will re-assess once local conditions are good enough to expand their service..
So was slightly confused seeing their political answer which is only having covid as reason…
I tried to explain what I can to show I am still with same emplyer because i have denial once for my extn of stay thing …
I selected business travel option..what is not exact option but approriate enough to select.
Not sure if it is something to deal with intended travel date..as i called out oct 3 to travel..considering between weeks for interview, stamping, and delivery of passport and scheduling to travel between weeks..
Also my petition is valid till this year, so anyways i need to take this chance for EA as all regular appoinments are available only starting next year from feb or march somewhere.
Hi Abhi
Did you receive EA approval yet? Did you or your employer need to use an attorney’s help for the documentation to prove exception and urgent need?
Is anyone familiar with IR1 Visas? My husband is waiting for 221G processing to begin in Mumbai and wondering if we are eligible for an Emergency Appointment.
Amber,
Usually, if you have something pending, you need to get that clear…There was one user, who applied for visa when 221g is pending recently…But, I do not think it was for IR1. Again, worth a shot, call or email them.
Hi,
My spouse is in need of parents support as she is 33 weeks pregnant now, will I be able to apply b1 visa under EA category. Please let me know. Thank you.
Go for It, Max we might be getting denial but i say go for It.
Parents support is must during Pregnancy with all Mood Swings.
Ramakrishna,
Well, you can definitely give it a try. They may or may not approve it unless you have some medical letter. The reason is they cannot validate the urgency without any letter from doctor and support need.
Hello Ramakrishna Patchuru,
Did you get EA for your case? I am in the same situation. Please update once you get to know.
Also, I am trying to book regular appointment at Mumbai Consulate but I do not see any interview date. Can someone please provide input if they have any idea about regular appointment at Mumbai and then converting to EA.
I really appreciate your quick response.
Thank you
Hi,
Can some one please help me with my situation. My wife EA got nullified because of rescheduling while EA request is in process. If I pay the Visa fee again, am i eligible to apply another EA, did anyone did it before.
Yes, you can go for new EA if you have a new receipt.
But Make sure your current Receipt should lapse in order to activate or pay for a new receipt.
How to lapse Current Receipt? — reschedule the appointment multiple times(max 6 times I think) that way it will lapse.
Thanks Ajith. Will try that process
Thanks Ajith. With system not allowing to book any regular consular appointments, how can we reschedule the appointment multiple times and lapse current fee receipt ?
Please look far dates at all locations, i saw dates open for Feb/March 2021 for regular appointments.
Kalyan,
Did you try the option an make the receipt lapse ? Share your thoughts.
Yes, I was able to exhaust all scheduling chances by rescheduling multiple times. However, during this process our account was locked 2 times, each time upto 72 hours. Yesterday, we paid fee again. Hoping to book regular appointment today using new fee receipt and then submit EA.
Yes I lapse my receipt, paid the fee again and applied for the EA.
krishna,
What approach did you try. Did you try 5 time reschedule or call them and got it lapsed ? Did the second EA get approved ?
I had my counselor appointment scheduled on 5th Oct 2020, and I was told that my Visa is approved at the end of the interview. It is has been a over a week but my visa status not changed from “Administrative processing” and my passport status is “your passport is still with Embassy/Consulte”,
Did anyone come across this situation
Krishna,
I am not sure, how it would work, if it was your mistake. Call the customer service and ask them.
Hi Kumar,
I called them multiple time. They always say the same answer like for 1 visa fee only 1 EA available and I am not eligible for 2nd EA on same payment. I asked them I am ready to Pay again but they are not saying properly whether I am eligible for EA or not with 2nd payment
You are eligible for 2 EA, i f you pay again. In order to have 2nd EA, your current Receipt should lapse.
two ways to lapse the current receipt
1) Email : support-india@ ustraveldocs.com and explain that you want to cancel the current receipt and they will open a case, this might take 3-4 business days to complete( i did not try this option ) — i am updating you the response what i got from Customer support.
2) Use all chances to reschedule the appointment so that it will lapse (you have 6 attempts and 1 EA per receipt) — i did use this and applied for EA, waiting for reply.
Thanks for the clarification Ajith.
Ajith,
Thanks for sharing ! Good insight. Some users said, you have 5 attempts to reschedule. Did you include EA scheduling as one and say it as 6 ? Please clarify.
we have 6 chances (6+1 EA) per receipt — you can call US travel Docs for more Info at +91 22-62011000 and options 1 2 2 1 5 to speak with rep.
Ajith,
Other users said, it is 5 chances for regular visa appointment re-schedule. I heard many say it as 5 for regular and 1 for EA… Did you personally try it 6 times ?
I rescheduled 5 times to lapse the receipt. my second EA got approved with Delhi. When you apply for EA go for Delhi, their approval rate too good and quick
Krishna – If original DS160 is filled for Hyderabad, how to request EA for Delhi ? Do I need to book regular appointment also for Delhi (which I book for enabling EA option) ?
It doesn’t matter which location you choose in DS 160. If you schedule regular appointment with Delhi then you can apply EA at Delhi even in your DS160 location is Hyderabad.
Below Answer I found in USCIS website
The Embassy or Consulate at which you actually apply should be able to access your form using the barcode on your DS-160 confirmation page, which you must bring to the visa interview. For example, a business traveler intends to apply for his visa at the U.S. Embassy in City X, so he selects City X as the location where he will submit his application when he completes his DS-160. He then has an urgent reason to travel to City Y on business. Because there is a U.S. Consulate in City Y, he schedules an appointment for a visa interview there, using the barcode from his completed DS-160 application for appointment scheduling. The U.S. Consulate in City Y is able to accept his DS-160 even though it lists the U.S. Embassy in City X as the location where he originally intended to submit his application.
Krishna – Thanks for lot for this info. I am able to book regular appointment at Delhi, I see EA option enabled now. Want to make sure I am following steps correctly this time.
This is for H4 stamping. I will select something in category (say, Medical Needs), give justification and proofs satisfying H4 exemption condition. Is that all ? Do I need to mention anywhere about ‘Family Separation’ ? I mean is this a term to be used for justifying the exemption condition ?
Any specific proofs/documents to support H4 exemption condition ?
yes for H4 you need to choose Medical needs and upload I-797,I-94,Visa Copy, Marriage Certificate and Wife front and back passport. If you still didn’t apply for EA use below information as description.
My name is XXXXX and I am married to XXXX who is currently working on H-1B visa in the United States. We were married here in India on the xxxx date after which my Husband traveled back to USA to continue his employment. Being separated in the early months of our marriage has been extremely difficult for us. This family separation has taken a toll on our mental state.
I would humbly request that you grant me an Emergency Appointment so that I can appear for an interview and obtain an H-4 visa. That would allow me to be reunited with my husband and I would be very grateful.
Krishna,
Thanks for sharing, I will share the template for users in article to customize it.
Krishna – Thanks for this info. Much appreciated.
I have submitted EA request yesterday, got system error. However got email by evening that request was approved. As you said, we applied for Delhi. May be thats why it got approved on same day.
krishna,
Thanks for the info. There was confusion on the number of times, it is confirmed now and good to hear your second EA got approved
Thanks Kumar. some people have a doubt on DS 160 and VISA on different locations. I just spoke with Consulate people they told me, it’s not a problem and no need to change anything even your DS 160 in one location and your visa in other location
krishna,
That’s good. Thx
Hi,
I have sent a mail to the mail ID’s that u have mentioned above. I received a reply with case ID. They provided a link but is again redirecting to cgi federal to book an appointment. I don’t see any expedite appointment option or any visa slots available. I just see only OFC appointments. When I select a date and click continue it is saying no appointments available. No one is picking up the customer care number. im looking for an H4 visa appointment.
Swathi,
It could be the dates are not available. Try emailing them again or call them. Call USTravelDocs or email their support.
Hi Swathi,
I ran in to same situation (re:I didn’t see an emergency appointment button) , you will have to schedule regular interview ) then you will see a emergency appointment button.
I am also seeing this situation since last 2 weeks. Not seeing any Appointment slots for H4 Stamping.Can anyone tell whether they got normal appointment slots at Hyderabad location. However will book EA once I get book the normal slot
Hi Swati,
Did you manage to get the H4 appointment slot?
Hi
I have applied for CR1 visa, my file got approved but didn’t get interview call. Now me and my partner feels stress about separation. It’s been 20 months since I got married. Can I apply for emergency visa too?
Hailey,
I am not sure if CR1 is eligible. You can give it a try, you do not lose anything.
Hello,
I have filled DS160 and paid fee and booked slot (Feb 2021 @ HYD) for my wife. She is eligible for Dropbox, but the website showed me two dates, one VAC and one for consular. I am not seeing the yellow interview waiver page.
This is her first time to be eligible for drop box, can you guys pls let me know the correct procedure?
Where exactly I went wrong in the application?
Hello, currently they are not giving the dropbox option because routine visa services are suspended – maybe in the future you can apply for it once the regular services resume.
h427742,
The online system is not working for the dropbox process yet. Once the consulate takes dropbox appointments, then it would work.
Hi – We are trying to get H4 stamping slot. This blog post is really informational. We tried to get an expedite appointment but no luck so far. Want to share our progress so far and get some feedback.
We have contacted visa customer care in India about booking expedited appointment. We were told that we can proceed with expedite appointment book only if such option is visible in our ustraveldocs login page. We had that option enabled initially, so we have submitted a request with kid’s immunization as a reason. But request did not go through due to application bug and also later on we don’t see that option displayed. Customer care said if we don’t see that option enabled, it means emergency slots are not available.
Any idea if we need to send email as per the process outlined in this post above in order to get an emergency slot?
Also, as per updated guidance on ustraveldocs website
“Applicants for H1B, H2B, L1, and certain J categories and their dependents covered by Presidential Proclamation 10052 should request an expedited appointment only if you have reason to believe you may qualify for one of the exceptions listed in the Proclamation.”
…it sounds that if H4 is covered by the exemption, they are eligible for expedite appointment booking. If satisfying the exemption is sufficient, dont we need to have any medical reason to apply for expedite booking ?
Any thoughts or guidance ?
Kalyan,
There are some system bugs as they just changed their website. Yes, H4 is exempt, if eligible and can request for the same. You can email the consulate too and inform the same. Maybe if they approve, you can try to login again and see, if you can book. It is the new website issues that are causing some problems.
we can only use EMERGENCY APPOINTMENT option once per one receipt, for any reason it did not go through then you have to apply for new receipt (pay $190).
I had same issue and with lot of back and forth support calls they said i have to go with new receipt and try for appointment.
Thanks Ajith for sharing this detail. Do not know that we have an option to try emergency appointment based on another fee receipt. We will give it a try.
Hi Ajith/Moderator,
Just wanted to know if there is anyone who got drop box appointment for H1B and it was stamped successfully.
me and my husband were in USA on June 24th and we are planning to travel to India in Oct. we got a dropbox appointment for Oct 1. Our question is
1) is there any rejection right now for h1b stamping through drop box (due to presidential proclamation)
2) Has anyone on h1b who got stamping successfully able to travel to USA (with no issues at port of entry).
Thanks for your response.
Jananee,
There are few who got H1B approved, who shared on the social media groups. we have no info, they are back in US.
Ajith,
Thanks for sharing. Probably, if the first one you did not avail due to our own issue right ? What if there is a system glitch ?
I had a system Issue, and i have contacted the Customer support (+91 22-62011000) with selective option for EA, and they opened a case for the same and said wait for 24-48 hours and i did not get any response.
So i used all my chances to reschedule my appointment( there were dates open for 2021 March chennai) and then lapsed it to apply for a new one.
Now i have opened a New EA waiting for response from Chennai Consulate Hopefully on Monday or Tuesday.
Ajith,
Got it. Do update once you have any update from consulate.
I have Cancelled my 2nd EA as they recently opened Dropbox option and successfully scheduled dropbox appointment at Mumbai.
Thanks Kumar.
We will try for an H4 emergency appointment based on exemption eligibility. Will share detailed experience on this forum if it goes through well.
Hello Kalyan
I got the same bug message after submitting the EA request and now the option is not available.
Any progress?
I am also in same situation. Got an error when I submit the EA request and didn’t receive any confirmation email. Now the EA request option also gone.
Not sure on whom to contact. It is clearly an issue from their end and expecting another payment is not at all fair. They suppose to resolve the issue.
Chakri,
Your only option is to call the US Travel docs customer service.
Hi Kalyan… I’m planning on doing the same… do you make any progress on it?
Hi Deven, Pavan – After that error message, we did not get any email response. But CC checked at backend and confirmed that our EA was rejected and we can not put a 2nd EA request as only 1 EA allowed per passport number. Not sure about next steps.
Kalyan,
That would be good. Good luck !
Hi Kalyan,
I submitted one and it’s almost 2 -3 weeks now and still didn’t get a response. Yesterday they said my EA request is still pending. It’s weird that request for EA is taking so much time. I don’t know what to do other than wait?
Any thoughts?
Hi Kalyan,
What was the customer care you called for? At what time do we have to call them? I tried multiple times but no luck.
Hi Swati – We called at numbers mentioned in below link during India business hours.
https://ustraveldocs.com/in/contact-us.html#call
I and my husband have stamped L1 and L2 visa respectively. We have a new born of one month. How can we get emergency appointment for our little ones L2 visa as my husband’s company is planning to send him to US to join work.
Did any One requested for H1B emergency appointment, I am on H1B and my Drop was scheduled on MARCH 26th but it was cancelled due to Covid19 and my wife got stamped before covid.
with recent updates and exemptions for H1B, did any one requested for emergency appointment.
Ajithkumar,
I have not seen many users apply for H1B. Most of them have done for H4, F1.
Hi Even I am on the same boat. Looking for feedback from someone who has requested Emergency appointment for H1B. Please help if they were successful in getting request approved
Varma,
Recently, I saw someone got H1B approved under EA, as they were able to satisfy 2 of the 5 requirements under exception. Their employer provided supporting documents.
Hi Kumar , Thanks for the reply. My case is visa renewal.I hope I don’t need to meet any criteria’s .Since I am going to resume my work for same employer.For renewals what supporting documents we need to send ?
Bharath,
Nothing special, standard documentation and maybe copy of I-129 that indicates it is extension.
Is interview waiver(Dropbox) eligible for expedited appointments, from Bangalore?
Anonymous,
Dropbox is not yet open as it is for regular visa operations. You may need to attend in person. Check with consulate.
Please check Now they have opened DropBox Options and also Increased wavier from 12 Months to 24 Months
Has any student starting in fall 2020 applied through the expedited process? I will be starting my program in Spring 2021. The program start date on i-20 is dec 14th and class start date is Jan 11th which one should I use? Any help?
Chaudhary,
yes, there are some who got it for fall 2020 with start dates in late august and Sep. You can wait for some more time for Consulates to open, as it is in December.
Thank you Kumar!
Just back from Mumbai consulate for h1 to H4 stamping via emergency appointment. Sharing my experience for better prospects.
1. Background_Biometric done on 15th March with canceled 16th March appnt.
2. Time was 9 am. They took me in at 8.30. Looks like Mumbai consulate opened yesterday. And today they had 15 appointments in all
3. Questions asked revolved around my past because of my past track record of student and work visa. While answering I would bring my kids reason, but the officer whole politely say “I don’t need to know that”. And he stopped me almost 5 times with that same statement making me nervous.
4. But at the end after mentioning the quarantine rule of Boston, he took my passport and verified my right hand biometrics.
5. I was given a pamphlet about passport collection process.
6. I asked an officer outside but even they had no clue about same as well as when the normal processing will resume.
7. Hence when to passport collection building few blocks away. But the officer there said none from yesterday had collected their passport yet.
Keeping fingers crossed for next step and wishing everyone good luck.
Hi,
How did you schedule for the emergency appointment and what reason have you mentioned?
Screenshots are available in original post above. Select Medical reasons for emergency request and provide documentation . In applicable cases one has to get letter from doctor and upload the document to expedite request while submitting form.
Padma,
Thanks for sharing. Look forward to details article on this to share with community.
I have booked appointment for next year, I am eligible for Dropbox, but due to issues in portal I did not got that option. Now the Dropbox option is working for my friend, is there any way I can cancel my appointment and schedule Dropbox appointment, if yes how do I do it and do I need to pay again
Yes, You can book new appointment for Dropbox after you cancel your Appointment ( given you did not reschedule your appointments for 4-5 times as we have only 6 chances to reschedule appointment in a single receipt).
You no need to pay again.
Jayshree,
As soon as you cancel appointment, when you try to re-run the vizard to book appointment, you will get the questions and based on that they will qualify you for dropbox, if eligible. Other have done the same way. You can call customer service before you cancel and then proceed based on their advice too.
Hi Padma, is there any specific inputs while changing from h1 to h4, i am planning for same.
H1B is bit complicated at this moment in my case, so changing to h4 and planning to go for stamping
Hi Padma,
thank you for your post. Was the consular aware at time of interview that your case was an expedited case ? Thank you.