Whatever your reason for traveling to the U.S., you must obtain a visa. Therefore, before you plan a vacation or business trip you need to take care of this issue. The first step is to pay the consular fee, sign up for an interview, fill out an online questionnaire (DS-160), and collect the necessary documents. Once you have been successfully interviewed and received a visa, you need to also know how to properly use it without consequences. As a rule, a visa to the U.S. for Ukrainians is issued for 10 years. The illustration below is an example which is now reviewed in more detail:
1) The city where the visa was issued
2) Family name
3) First Name
4) Passport number
Note: be sure to check the accuracy of your personal data. If you find an error be sure to contact the embassy immediately!
5) Entries - M - means that you have been given a multi-visa. On it, you can enter and leave many times.
6) Annotation - usually this section clarifies for what purpose you can use this visa. The embassy may also specify the permitted period of stay in the United States. If the section is empty, it means that you can use the visa at your discretion for the requested travel purpose and within the permitted period of stay.
7) Visa Type/Class- R (B1/B2) is the most common type of visa which allows you to enter the U.S. for tourism, business, visiting, studying for up to 6 months, and for medical treatment for up to 6 months. This type of visa prohibits you from working.
8) Date of birth
9) Nationality
10) Date on which the visa was issued. This should not be confused with the terms of stay in the U.S. which is determined by the Border Patrol. Your visa may be stamped with a permit for 180 days or for 2 weeks.
11) The last date on which you can enter the United States. The visa will not be valid for entry after this date.
The cost of a visa to the U.S. type B1/B2 is $160. If you apply for another type of visa, the cost of consular fee may be higher.
If you have lost your passport which has a valid visa to the U.S., be sure to contact the U.S. Embassy. The Embassy will instruct you, should you want to replace your visa.
If your visa is about to expire or your visa has ended less than a year ago, you can take advantage of the U.S. visa extension procedure without being interviewed. Children under the age of 14 and people over the age of 80 can also use this procedure.
Obtaining a visa to the U.S. is not an easy process. Before applying for a visa, you need to carefully study and understand all the requirements of the embassy and be well prepared for an interview with a visa officer. The reason for this is that it will be during the interview that the officer will make the final decision as to whether you will be granted the visa. The interview can last from 3 minutes to 15 minutes, depending on your answers and your situation. Therefore, it is important to know as much as possible about the interview questions and not get confused. You must answer all the questions properly even if it seems that the officer is trying to catch you.
