Announcements
It's Important to Apply Early for Your Visa
Interest in travel to America continues to grow, and we expect an extraordinary peak application period this summer. We look forward to welcoming visitors to our country for tourism, business, studies, cultural exchange, and other purposes. As you plan your trip to the United States, we encourage you to plan ahead to allow us enough time to process your visa before your trip. This summer, we recommend that travelers begin the visa application process by scheduling your visa appointment as early as possible. This will ensure that we have plenty of time to conduct your interview, review your application, and determine whether we can issue a visa. Instructions on how to apply for a non-immigrant visa are available on U.S. Embassy Kigali website.
From time to time, situations may arise where it is necessary to travel to the United States on short notice. Such situations include, but are not limited to: emergency medical treatment in the United States; business emergencies; death or illness of a family member; or the need for students to arrive to begin classes on time. If you are unable to book an appointment in time for your travel date, please contact us at consularkigali@state.gov. Failure to plan ahead does not constitute an emergency. Each applicant must provide documentation to demonstrate that he/she could not reasonably have foreseen the need to travel, and each case will be evaluated on its merits for exigent circumstances.
Access to Consular Waiting Room on Designated Visa Processing Days
Effective immediately, only visa applicants with a scheduled appointment will be admitted to the Consular Waiting Room on designated visa processing days (Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays).
The only exceptions are: (1) a child under the age of 18 accompanied by a parent; (2) Medical personnel for persons with disabilities; or (3) applicants for diplomatic/official visas.
Thank you for your cooperation, and for your interest in visiting our country.