By appointment only: With very few exceptions, fingerprinting and a personal interview are required for all applicants. Information and interviews are available by telephone only, by calling 595-1000 from anywhere in Peru, using a touch-tone telephone. Atento charges 20 soles for this service. Applicants will receive confirmation of the date and time of their appointment, an application form, and additional information on the application process directly from Atento. Appointments are available on a strictly first-come, first-served basis. Due to heavy demand, the next available appointments may be 4 weeks from the date an appointment is requested.

Average Wait Time (Calendar Days*) for a Nonimmigrant Visa Interview Appointment 

Applicants must already have paid the MRV processing fee (see below) before booking an appointment. Travelers should not purchase non-refundable airline tickets or make non-exchangeable travel plans until a visa has been issued.

$100.00 MRV processing fee: Each applicant for a nonimmigrant visa, except those qualifying for A, G, or C-3 visas, must pay a non-refundable processing fee of $100.00, payable in soles. The fee may be paid at any branch of the Banco Continental. The receipt must be in the applicant’s name and printed on the standard Banco Continental receipt paper. No appointment is granted or application accepted without this fee being paid first. If an applicant is denied a visa and wishes to reapply, or if an applicant loses the receipt, the $100 processing fee must be paid again. A new receipt is required for each application; copies are not accepted.

On the day of the appointment: The applicant should arrive at the Embassy’s Consular Section in advance of the scheduled time. Applicants arriving late are not admitted and must reschedule their appointments. Only the applicant is admitted at the interview, unless he or she needs to be accompanied due to advanced age or ill health. Please note that there is no waiting area in front of the Embassy for friends or relatives who are not admitted to the interview. Parents must apply on behalf of their children under age 12. They should not bring such children to the interview. Applicants from 14 through 16 years must be accompanied by their mother or father at the personal interview. 

Fingerprinting: Since early March, 2004, applicants’ fingerprints are taken as part of the interview process. Prints of both index fingers are taken with an electronic device that does not use ink. This requirement does not add significantly to the time necessary for the interview.


What to bring:

• The appointment confirmation letter received from Atento.

• The applicant’s passport with a minimum validity of six months

• Nonimmigrant visa application (DS-156) completed, signed, and dated. If your computer meets the following requirements DS-156 form may be filled out on-line and assist in the processing of your application.  

• 5x5 cm (2x2 inch) photograph, glued or stapled to the application form. The photograph must have been taken within the last six months; the face must occupy half of the photograph; the subject must be facing the camera directly; the photo may be in color or black and white; but the background must be white or light colored.

• Supplemental Nonimmigrant visa application (DS-157) to be completed only by male applicants who are between 16 and 45 years old.

• Supplemental Contact Information and Work History for Nonimmigrant Visa Applicant (DS-158) to be completed only by applicants seeking a F, J, or M visa.

• Banco Continental receipt of $100.00 for the MRV fee.

• Any previous passport containing a previous U. S. visa or showing international travel.

Supporting documents: U.S. immigration law presumes that applicants for nonimmigrant visas are intending immigrants, unless they prove otherwise by demonstrating to the consular officer that they have a residence abroad which they have no intention of abandoning. The purpose of the visa interview is to determine this. People generally demonstrate their intention to return home after a visit to the U. S. by showing convincing evidence of economic and other ties to their home country. Applicants may present any documents they choose at their interview, but while documents can help demonstrate ties, they are not in and of themselves sufficient reason to either issue or deny a nonimmigrant visa. No specific documents are required, except in the cases listed below.

Visa types requiring additional documents:

• Official/diplomatic visa applications (A, C-3, and G): Require a Foreign Ministry, Embassy, or Mission protocol note.

• Airline or maritime crew visas (C-1/D): Require a letter from a shipping company or airline certifying that the applicant is a crew member or is travelling to or through the United States to join a vessel or aircraft or is arriving aboard a vessel of which they are an essential crew member.

• Student visas F and M: Require a valid I-20 issued by the school to be attended, signed, and dated by the applicant, along with proof (bank statements) of ability to pay the estimated fees and expenses for the first year as totaled on the I-20. The I-20 and financial evidence are placed in a sealed envelope attached to the passport for Department of Homeland Security (BCIS) inspection..

• H, L, O, P, and Q visa categories, as well as other temporary work petitions approved by INS, require the original Notice of Action, form I-797.

• Journalist visas (I): Require official accreditation as a journalist, identification from a known news organization and a letter from the employing media institution stating in detail the journalistic purpose of travel to the U.S.

• Exchange visitor visas (J): Require a valid form DS-2019 (formerly IAP-66), and may require evidence of financial support.

• Intra-company transferees (L) - Special Processing: applicants may submit the required documentation according to the instructions for personal appearance waivers indicated below.

Passport return: Successful visa applicants must arrange for the return of their passports via DHL Worldwide Express after their interview. DHL will return visaed passports to the DHL office specified by the applicant within 48 to 72 hours of receiving the passport from the Embassy. For this service there is a charge of $5.00 to return one to five passports within a single family. There is a charge of $1.50 for each additional passport. Applicants should allow several business days after the interview for the return of passports.

Average Processing Time : 24 hrs.

Personal Appearance Waiver (PAWS): Peruvian citizens or residents in any one of the following groups do not need to have an interview*. 

• APPLICANTS WHO WISH TO RENEW A VALID OR RECENTLY EXPIRED B1/B2 VISA
  The applicant must be at least 80 (eighty) years old and present the passport containing the valid or recently expired visa that the applicant wishes to have re-issued. The previous visa must have expired less than twelve months ago. Fingerprinting is not required of applicants over 80 years old.
• APPLICANTS FOR “H” TEMPORARY WORKER VISAS
  Applicants must present a Notice of Approval, Form I-797, as well as a copy of the original petition and supporting documents. Applicants will be called to schedule the required personal interview.
• APPLICANTS FOR “L” INTRA-COMPANY TRANSFEREE VISAS
  Applicants must present a Notice of Approval, Form I-797, as well as a copy of the original petition, Form I-129, and any supporting documents. Applicants will be called to schedule the required personal interview.
• APPLICANTS WHOSE PREVIOUS APPLICATION WAS REFUSED UNDER SECTION 221(G) ONLY
  Applies only if the applicant has already been interviewed and fingerprinted, and has received a letter asking for additional documents under Section 221(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. The requested documents must be included.

These applicants may apply by dropping their passports and documents at any one of the following DHL Worldwide Express offices between 8:30 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. DHL charges $5.00 per passport for application screening, data entry, delivery of documents to the Embassy and return. In the case of family groups, the charge is $5.00 (for up to 5 passports) in Lima and $8.00 in Trujillo, Arequipa and Cuzco; $1.50 per additional passport. 

DHL offices offering this service are as follows:

LIMA:

Av. Javier Prado Este 307, San Isidro

PROVINCES:

• Almagro 579 Cercado, Trujillo

• Santa Catalina 115 Cercado, Arequipa

• Av. El Sol 627, Cuzco

WARNING: IF APPLICANTS SUBMIT FALSE DOCUMENTATION IN SUPPORT OF AN APPLICATION OR THE APPLICATION OF ANOTHER PERSON, THEY MAY BE FOUND INELIGIBLE FOR ANY TYPE OF VISA AND, IF THEY HAVE A VALID VISA, IT WILL BE CANCELLED.

* THE CONSULAR SECTION RESERVES THE RIGHT TO INTERVIEW OR RE-INTERVIEW ANY APPLICANT.

Frequently asked questions about Non-immigrant Visas

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