If you are a dependent of an H1B Visa holder, you need to get an H4 Visa stamped in your passport to enter the US. To get an H4 Visa, you need to attend an interview with the Consular officer at a US Embassy or US Consulate in the country of your residence. As part of the process, you need to bring relevant documents to the interview.
In this article, we will look at the required documents that an H4 visa-seeking applicant should bring to the US consulate or US Embassy. We will look at the document checklist with mandatory and optional documents based on official sources and user experiences from past H4 applicants.
H4 Visa Stamping with Biometrics, Interview High-Level Process
The process to apply for an H4 Visa with a visa interview & biometrics is similar to applying for any other US Visa Interview. Below are the very high-level steps that you need to go through:
- Step 1: Fill out the DS-160 Form Online, which is the non-immigrant visa application form.
- Step 2: Register an account to schedule the H4 Visa appointment based on the website listed at USTravelDocs.com for your country. For India, it is USVisaScheduling.com; for other countries, it will be different like portal.ustraveldocs.com.
- Step 3: Pay the US Visa Application Fee of $205 online or at a bank as part of the process.
- Step 4: Book appointments to give biometrics at an OFC center and to have an H4 visa interview at a US Consulate or US Embassy.
- Step 5: Attend OFC Appointment to give Biometrics and attend H4 Visa Interview at the Consulate or Embassy
- Step 6: The US Consular Officer either makes a decision right away or issues a 221g form for administrative processing.
- Step 7: Collect your Passport with H4 Visa Stamped on it(if approved).
The first step in the H4 Visa Stamping process is to attend an appointment to give biometrics at a VAC or OFC location.
H4 Visa Documents Checklist for OFC Appointment
The process of giving biometrics is very straightforward at the Offsite Facilitation Center(OFC) or Visa Application Center (VAC). You need to bring the documents below:
- H4 Visa Appointment Confirmation Letter with the OFC/ Biometrics Appointment details.
- Your latest original passport
- DS-160 Confirmation Page
The staff at the VAC or OFC will verify them and collect your biometrics (take your photo and collect fingerprints).
H4 Visa Interview Documents Checklist
Below is the list of the documents that you must bring to the H4 Visa interview at the US Consulate or US Embassy. We have split them into two sections as required and optional documents.
Required Documents for H4 Visa Interview
- Valid Original Passport (if you have multiple passports, carry the most recent expired one)
- H4 Visa Interview Appointment Confirmation Page from the appointment booking website.
- Copy of the DS-160 Confirmation Page
- Copy of Spouse’s H1B Visa Stamp Copy from passport (valid or expired)
- Copy of current H1B Visa Approval Notice from USCIS (I-797A Notice)
- Copy of previous H1B Visa Approval Notice from USCIS (I-797A Notice)(if applicable)
- Original Marriage Certificate
- Employment Verification Letter of your spouse from the H1B sponsoring company.
- Most recent passport photo as per US Visa Photo requirements
- Photos of Marriage
- (If children) Birth Certificates of Children
- (if H1B holder in the US) Federal Tax Returns (IRS Form 1040 and W-2 forms) of the primary H1B holder for the entire duration of the employment in the US.
- (if H1B holder in the US) Copies of the most recent months’ Payslips of the primary H1B Visa holder for the current calendar year.
Optional Documents for H4 Visa Interview
Some of the documents below are optional for H4 visa stamping and may or may not be requested or needed. But you can have them as a backup if they ask.
- Copy of LCA of the primary H1B Visa holder
- Primary H1B holders’ end client letter if working in a consulting job.
- If the primary H1B holder is currently in the US, a copy of the I-94 of him/her.
- Copy of the printed Marriage Invitation
You can read US Visa Stamping Experiences for the latest user experiences.
H4 Visa Stamping Documents Checklist from USTravelDocs website
Below is the screenshot of the list of the documents that are suggested by the US Consulate/ Embassy for H4 Visa holder’s in-person interview stamping. It is published on the official website of the UStravelDocs for India.
H4 Visa Stamping Document Checklist from the Appointment Confirmation Letter
Below are the screenshots of the required documents from the H4 appointment confirmation letter for H4 Visa Renewal stamping from the past. It has a section for H and L Applicants, which you can use for guidance. We can use this guidance as the official documents check list for H4 visa stamping.
Below is the checklist based on the appointment letter printed on the USVisaScheduling.com Website.
You must use anything that says applicable for H as it includes H4 Visa holder as well. Also, where applicable they will mention H4 as well.
Common FAQs
No, the documents checklist is same for H4 Visa interview, either you attend by yourself or along with your spouse on H1B Visa.
Yes, you can get the H4 dropbox appointment for your kids, if they meet the basic requirements of age to be under 14 years ( before 14th birthday).
Marriage Certificate is the most important document determining your spouse’s relationship and critical for H4 visa stamping.
What has been your experience attending an H4 visa interview? Share your documents checklist for community benefit in the comments section below.
You may also check other H4 visa-related articles
My dropbox appointment was on 09/29 at Ahmedabad VAC. Case was created on 10/04 with Application Received as the status.
My case last updated date changed three times so far. On 10/11, 10/20, 10/26 but with the same status Application Received.
It be almost a month but no updates. Has anyone faced similar issue or any suggestions on what should I do?