Immigrant Visa Processing at the National Visa Center (NVC)

The National Visa Center (NVC) in Portsmouth, NH is the U.S. Department of State’s permanent Immigrant Visa processing facility. The NVC processes all approved immigrant visa petitions after they are received from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and retains them until the cases are ready for adjudication by a Consular Officer abroad. Petitions may remain at NVC for several months or for many years depending on the visa category and country of birth of the visa applicant.

The NVC is responsible for the collection of visa application fees and visa application documentation. When an applicant’s priority date is getting close for a visa number to become available, the NVC will contact the applicant and petitioner with instructions for submitting the appropriate processing fees. After the appropriate processing fees are paid, the NVC will again contact the applicant and petitioner to request that the necessary immigrant visa documentation be submitted to the NVC.

Note: NO IMMIGRANT VISA FORMS SHOULD BE FORWARDED TO THE NVC until the applicant has received official notification from that office that the petition is eligible for processing. Forms received before the NVC officially notifies the applicant that his/her immigrant visa case is ready for processing will be discarded.

The NVC must be kept informed of the contact person’s valid mailing address.

NVC Document/Appointment Processing

For immigrant visa cases assigned to Vienna, Austria, the NVC provides document collection and review, and schedules the immigrant visa cases for interview. The NVC will collect the fees, affidavit of support, civil documents, and police certificates, as required.

Interview Scheduling

When a case is complete, it will be scheduled an appointment for an interview with a Consular Officer in Vienna, Austria. The NVC will send an appointment letter to all interested parties (applicant, petitioner, and agent/attorney of record, if applicable) notifying them of the date, time, and location of the interview; and forward the immigrant visa file to the U.S. Embassy in Vienna.

Post-specific Interview Guidelines for Vienna, Austria

• Confirmation of Interview Appointment
  Applicants must confirm their interview appointments at least two weeks in advance either by e-mail to ConsulateVienna@state.gov or by phone (+43-1) 31339/ ext. 7591, 2:30-4:30 pm.
• Interpreter
  Applicants who do not speak German or English must be accompanied by an interpreter.
• Passports
  Applicants must present a passport valid for six months beyond the intended date of entry into the United States (the same passport must also be presented for the medical examination to the panel physician), and old passports with U.S. visas.

Medical Examination

All immigrant visa applicants, regardless of age, are required to have a medical examination before an immigrant visa can be issued. Medical examinations may be done only by a specially appointed panel physician in the country in which the application for the immigrant visa is being made.