On U.S. visas

The United States make a distinction between two basic types of visas:

• non-immigrant visas; for temporary stay, be it a short visit, a study, an internship or for temporary work in the United States. Click here for application instructions and information on this type of visa.
• immigrant visas; for permanent residence in the U.S. Click here for more detailed information.

To find out if you need a visa you may wish to consult our Visa Wizard, an easy questions and answers program that will tell you if you can visit the United States without a visa. It will explain about the type of passport required and also about ESTA, the Electronic System Travel Authorization needed for visa-free travel.

• Visa Wizard Program

If you do need a visa you will have to visit the Consulate by appointment. Please take note of our instructions for entering the consular building by reading our Access and Security Notice.

Please also take some time to read our Frequently Asked Questions page. 

If after reading our website you still have questions about non-immigrant visas, visa-free travel, ESTA, etc. please contact our non-immigrant visa unit. Note that you can only contact this unit by e-mail. There is no phone service for non-immigrant visa matters.