If you plan to go to the US, unless exempted, you need a US Visa. You may have applied for US Visa and if your visa was approved, your passport would have been taken at the US Consulate. Even though the visa officer said it is approved, you may be curious to know the status of the US Visa stamping in your passport.
The question is, how do you check the status of your US Visa online. Also, even if your passport was returned and you were issued a slip saying something like administrative processing, you still would like to check the status of your visa online. We will look at the process to check US visa status online below with full screenshots.
Step by Step Guide to Check US Visa Status Online for Stamping in Passport
Step 1 – Visit CEAC Website: You need to go to US Dept. of State’s Consular Electronic Application Center (CEAC) website. CEAC is part of the US Dept of State and is used to create DS-160, DS-260 visa applications. You would have used the same to create your US visa application. Here is the link : https://ceac.state.gov/ceac/ .
Step 2 – Click Check My Visa Application Status : Depending on the kind of US Visa, you applied, either Non-immigrant Visa or Immigrant Visa, you need to click on Check My Visa Application Status. Below are the direct links as well to check the status.
Step 3 – Enter Location, Application ID or Case Number : Once you are on that page, you need to enter below information as highlighted in above screenshot with arrows and click on Submit button.
- Location: In the dropdown select the location where you went for US Visa interview
- Application ID : Application ID is on your US Visa Appointment confirmation letter. It looks like below screenshot on the letter or DS-160 application.
- Case Number : Case Number is something that the consulate would give and it is usually on a slip is given to you, usually for Administrative processing or 221g. It is in the format 2020118 145 1001. You need to enter it correctly with spaces, otherwise, you will get an error saying “Your search did not return any data”. See below on how the Case Number looks. The Visa officer would have written it.
- Captcha Code : You need to enter the code that is show in image to avoid spam.
Step 4 – View US Visa Status : Once you enter everything correctly and there are no errors, you will get the US Visa status displayed. It can be in few statuses like Administrative Processing, Issued or other statuses, . See below screenshots for examples on what you can expect to see. If in Administrative processing, you need to wait. If it says issued, then your visa was issued and you can be sure that your Visa stamping is complete and your US visa was issued.
US Visa Status – Administrative Processing
If you get the Administrative Processing, it means that the visa is not yet issued and there are checks in progress. You see this usually also for first few days after your interview is done. If you were issued a 221g Administrative Processing , then this may take longer time to move to issued.
Update : Since March 3rd, 2020 Users are not seeing the Administrative processing status anymore, they are seeing a new status that shows as refused. It looks like below. Do not panic, it is a system wide change to the text displayed. See below screenshot for updated text for Administrative processing cases. It says clearly that “If you were informed by the consular officer that your case was refused for administrative processing, your case will remain refused while undergoing such processing. You will receive another adjudication once such processing is complete. ” See highlighted text.
US Visa Status – Issued
If you have the Issued status, it means that your visa stamping is almost and it is final stages. You should receive it soon in a week to 10 days. If you do not receive anything, then you can contact the consulate for the same.
US Visa Status – Refused
If your visa was denied or refused, then you will see the ‘Refused’ status on CEAC website. It essentially means that you could not prove to consular officer that you are eligible for issuance of visa. There could be many reasons, sometimes, they are denied under 214b, or other reasons. Your consular officer would give you a slip or indicate a reason for your denial. For some cases, the refused status would be shown online as soon as the interview is done…for some of the cases like H1B, where they usually give Administrative processing and let say eventually refuse or deny the visa, then it will show up much later…Below are screenshots of the Refused status of US visa on CEAC website one in Calgary, other in Chennai.
Update : The text for actual refused cases also changed from previous text. It has slightly different text that says, ” A U.S. consular officer has adjudicated and refused your visa application..” Check below.
Common FAQs – US Visa Status Check
If you are on the CEAC website and trying to check US Visa status and get the error “Your Search did not return any data”, it means that you did not enter the data properly. You would have removed the spaces in the Case Number. You need to enter it with spaces properly. Example : 2020118 145 1001. Notice there are two spaces in the number. Below is the error screenshot for your reference. If you fix the spaces, it will go away. 
If you get an error saying “Invalid Application ID or Case Number” like below, then you have either selected the wrong location and enter the Application ID or case number or you have entered the Application ID number wrong. It also can occur, if you entering Case number and missing some digits or adding more digits. So, if you fix the numbers entered, then the error would go away. 
Hello All,
I attended Delhi Vac for dropbox on 11 july 2022. My case status is still showing as no status but today i got an email stating passport is ready for pickup. Did anyone face this situation?
Hey, I am in the same boat. I dropped off my docs on 11th July 2022 and today on cgi, it says passport is being returned. But on application tracking it’s no status. Did you get any update?
Same boat. Sunce yesterday my status is showing No data found. Delhi dropbox.
Any update on this Tejas ?
Any update on this Mohit ?
The visa officer approved my visa on 14th June 2022 in mumbai and took my passport , but since then the website shows administrative processing. It has been a week now but no status change , please advise me how can i get my passport back
Nirva,
It is normal, give it few more days.
Hello all ,
I did Dropbox in Bangalore , Vac is Hyderabad . Me and my daughter applied for h4 stamping . Husband’s H1b got stamped few weeks ago . Ours is a simple case . When me and my daughter were at the Bangalore vac the person who took out documents was nice and told us that it’s going to take some time because there is extra backlog and also with the new rule that you can drop off the documents anywhere it’s little tough for them .
It’s been 14 calendar days since I dropped off . First 11 days it showed nothing . And on 7th the status got updated to application received . I know it creates a lot of anxitey and nervousness but there is nothing we can do about it . Easiest is to drop the email to us travel docs . I called the helpline multiple times but they have the same update as me . Best is to only wait . Patience is the key to success .
I am still waiting for our passports and visa to be stamping but I am positive and so should everyone be .
Take care guys and I will update my situation once I get my passports stamped .
Shagun,
It can take anywhere from 3 to 4 weeks, US consulates just released a note saying the same. Do not worry.
Hi Shagun,
I also had a dropbox appointment in Bangalore on 10th June and VAC is Hyderabad. When I log in to us travel docs status shows ” Visa with US embassy/consulate” but when I check https://ceac.state.gov/CEACStatTracker/Status.aspx it shows “no status “.
Hi Shagun,
In my case too, I am just seeing “no status” . is there any update in your case now?
Same situation just showing application received
Any update on change of status ?
Did you have any response to date? I am in the same situation. CEAC Case # showns issued while application ID shows refused.
I see “No Status” after the Dropbox appointment in Mumbai on 1st June. It’s been 5 days already.
Majushree,
It should change in a few days, maybe you can email the consulate on the same.
How long is it taking for visa to be stamped ?
Hi Manjushree,
Any update in your case I have dropped my Son passport for a tourism Visa and No update yet, any additional info helps!, Thanks
Dd you hear from them? Mine shows the same, I had h-1b extension dropbox on July 11 2022, it’s been 5days already. Can you share your experience please?
I appeared for my L1 interview on March 22nd.
The Visa office gave me a white slip 221g with a Case Number , kept my passport and i129s.
On March 28th the status of “Case Number” changed to “Issued”.
While the status of my “Application Id” still shows as “Refused” , its being updated constantly and last update was on April 18th.
What does this mean ? Is my Visa issued or still under administrative processing?
Any idea on how long will take to get a decision ?
Did u get the visa. I am on the same situation. Shows issued in case number but refused with application ID.
Hi..Have you submitted the required doc which they asked?
Hey! I see on comments many of us we have same question regarding the status “Your search did not return any data” my case was In Transit status and after couple of weeks I reached out to Embassy to see if they received case and after like two weeks they respond to me that they are not open yet for interviews and since then I can’t track the case I try every single day and status shows that “ Your search did not return any data“ I contacted them again to ask if they are any issues with case they didn’t respond to me until now .
How the situation ends with those who have the same problem???? . Thanks
Tengo el mismo problema, estoy desesperada 😭 yo no tengo un case number porque no fue necesario la entrevista pero pongo mis datos correctos y aparece esa leyenda desde hace semanas
I had my interview today and the officer said that my visa was approved. However the status on ceac website changed to administrative processing today. What does this mean? Is it going to take a long time to process?
I get this when looking for Non inmigrant Visa B1/B2
“Your search did not return any data.”
Believe me, i’ve checked for spaces, spelling and everything. Can anyone help me?
looking for status*
Hey Ana, did you solve this issue? I have the same.
Ana, You can try to email the Consulate or try after couple of days. Do update here, how it goes.
Same case for me I have checked everting is ok but still shows Your search did not return any data. can you help me?
I have the same problem. I’ve already checked the different possible error and still the same… your search did not return any data.
Hi Ana ! Is any updates to your case status???
Hi Ana, i have the same problem, what happend in your case?
I had the same issue. I checked everything and what I changed was the Location. Mine was issued in Mexico, Tijuana and I changed it to Mexico, Mexico City and I got an Administrative Processing status… I think I am in the final status. Hope this helps!
Me too had same issue, I’ve been waiting for almost 2 months, and it did not gave me any results the search for my status. Until now that I changed the location to Mexico City. Thank you for the tip!
Thanks Karina, this worked perfect for me. Changed from Merida, Mexico to Guadalajara and at least now I got a the Application received Status. How long did it take to get your visa after the Administrative Process?
Saludos desde Merida!
Hola! Tienes razón..aplique en Mérida y no me funcionó con cdmx entonces puse Guadalajara y si sale como aplicación recibída.. supongo seguir esperando
I’m in the same situation :c
I also have the same issue.
My visa type is f1.
Hi Any update on your f1 vusa?? I had mine on 13th july and it still shows “no status”
Dropbox document for b1/b2
Submitted on Jan 12
still seeing ‘ No Status’
Waiting 4 days
If anyone has update how soon their status changed please reply.
Thank you
When did this change and how long did it take to change?
Same question here.
Same here, Submitted on March 17
Did it change for any of you guys. Can you update status
I still get the “Your Search did not return any data” error.
Zaira. Did ur status change from “No status” ? If yes, in how many days did it change? I am facing the same problem.
In the same boat. Awaiting 4 days after Dropbox submission in Bangalore still shows ‘ No Status’
I see “No Status” after dropbox appointment
Same for me..
I am seeing no status 3 days after dropbox in delhi. i dont even see application received. How long did it take for your status to change?
Mine also says “No status”, it’s been more than 2 weeks.
Hello Aditya how long it took for the No status to change. I attended Dropbox at Delhi 4 days ago and still showing as No status
any update ? I submitted on 29th in chennai for h1b , still says “No Status”
How many days did it took for the status change?
I see “No Status” after dropbox appointment, its been 2weeks already.
Rajesh,
Email consulate for this. It could be a glitch in system too.
If it say invalid what shall i do