Visas

What is a Visa?

A citizen of a foreign country who seeks to enter the United States generally must first obtain a U.S. visa, which is placed in the traveler’s passport.

Certain international travelers may be eligible to travel to the United States without a visa under the Visa Waiver Program, which is administered by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

The Visa section of this website is about U.S. visas for foreign citizens and nationals to travel to the United States.

Visit Travel.State.gov for additional information.

Note: U.S. citizens do not need a U.S. visa for travel to the United States. When planning travel abroad a U.S. citizen may need a visa issued by the embassy or consulate of the country they wish to visit.

What Type of Visa Do You Need?

For short-term visits to the United States (for tourism, business, education, and more), you can go directly to the online application (form DS-160). For immigrant visas, which are issued to foreign nationals who intend to live and work permanently in the United States, you can visit the U.S. citizenship and Immigration Services site for the relevant forms.  If you are unsure what type of visa you need, please use the Visa Wizard below. 

View Local Information

Nonimmigrant and Immigrant Visas

Nonimmigrant Visas

Several categories of Nonimmigrant Visas are available.

NonImmigrant Visa types and process

Immigrant Visas

Several categories of Immigrant Visas are available.

Immigrant Visa types and process

Special Visa Circumstances

Special Immigrant Visa Waiver Program

Special Immigrant

A Fourth Preference applicant must be the beneficiary of an approved Petition for Amerasian, Widow(er), or Special Immigrant, Form I-360 , with the exception of Certain Employees or Former Employees of the U.S. Government Abroad (see number 3 below). Labor certification is not required for any of the Certain Special Immigrants subgroups. Special Immigrants receive 7.1 percent of the yearly worldwide limit of employment-based immigrant visas.

Visa Waiver Program

The Visa Waiver Program (VWP) allows nationals of certain designated countries to travel to the United States for tourism or business without a visa. However, there are some restrictions. Not all countries are eligible to participate in the Visa Waiver Program (VWP).