U.S. Embassy in Côte
d'Ivoire

NONIMMIGRANT VISAS

IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR STUDENTS AND OTHER NONIMMIGRANT VISA APPLICANTS

U.S. Embassy Abidjan is committed to transparently and regularly sharing the status of visa operations.  We are currently offering routine non-immigrant visa services as resources and local conditions allow.  Students should schedule their appointment as soon as possible upon receiving an I-20.  Student visas for qualified applicants can be issued as early as 120 days in advance of the start of the program.  Please visit our website at https://www.ustraveldocs.com/ci   to start a visa application.

In case of emergency, visit our website and read the instructions on how to submit an expedited visa appointment: https://ustraveldocs.com/ci/ci-niv-expeditedappointment.asp.

INTERVIEW WAIVER

Nonimmigrant visa applicants who meet certain criteria may be eligible for interview waiver.  Please visit our appointment website at https://www.ustraveldocs.com/ci/   to determine your eligibility.

MRV FEE

The U.S. Department of State has increased certain nonimmigrant visa (NIV) application processing fees These fee increases are effective as of June 17, 2023.

• The application fee for visitor visas for business or tourism (B1/B2s), and other non-petition based NIVs such as student and exchange visitor visas, has increased from $160 to $185.
• The application fee for certain petition-based nonimmigrant visas for temporary workers (H, L, O, P, Q, and R categories) has increased from $190 to $205.
• The application fee for a treaty trader, treaty investor, and treaty applicant in a specialty occupation (E category) has increased from $205 to $315.

Other consular fees remain the same, including the waiver of the two-year residency required fee for certain exchange visitors. Applicants who have already paid a visa application fee that is currently valid and non-expired, but who have not yet appeared for their visa interview or are waiting for their case to be processed, will not be charged any additional fees.

Separately, all nonimmigrant visa application fee (also known as the MRV fee) payments made on or after October 1, 2022, are valid for 365 days from the date a receipt is issued for payment of the MRV fee.  Applicants must schedule an interview appointment or submit an interview waiver application during this 365-day period.  Please note applicants must only schedule their interview or submit their waiver application within the 365-day period.  There is no requirement the interview must occur during the 365-day period.  If a nonimmigrant visa appointment is cancelled/re-scheduled more than 3 times, a new MRV fee payment is required.

All receipts for payment of Machine-Readable Visa (MRV) fees issued before October 1, 2022, will expire September 30, 2023.  There will be no extensions of fee validity.  Applicants must schedule an appointment or submit an interview waiver application before September 30, 2023 to avoid paying a new fee.  Please note that the interview itself does not need to take place before September 30, 2023, but an interview appointment needs to be made in the system, even if it is scheduled months into the future.  Furthermore, applicants using MRV fees paid before October 1, 2022 to book an appointment are cautioned not to attempt to change their appointment dates on or after October 1, 2023.  Doing so will result in forfeiture of both the original appointment slot and the MRV fee receipt.  The applicant will be required to pay a new fee and submit a new application package.

Visa Appointment Wait Times

Advance travel planning and early visa application are important. If you reside in Côte d’Ivoire and plan to apply for a nonimmigrant visa to come to the United States as a temporary visitor, please review the current wait time in Abidjan at this site. The wait times for nonresidents is below: