Guide
The US visitor visa, explained
The B1/B2 is decided in a conversation lasting less than four minutes. Almost everything about preparing for it is really preparing for that.
At a glance
The essentials
- MRV fee
- ₹15,500
- Typical validity
- 10 years
- Maximum stay
- 180 days
- Our approval rate
- Not published yet
Non-refundable
Multiple entry
Per entry, at CBP discretion
Trailing quarter
Process
Six steps, in order
- 1
Complete the DS-160
The online application. Long, unforgiving, and it cannot be meaningfully edited after submission. Every answer must match your passport and supporting documents exactly.
- 2
Pay the MRV fee
₹15,500, non-refundable, valid for one year from payment. Paying it does not reserve an interview — it only makes you eligible to book one.
- 3
Book two appointments
Biometrics at a Visa Application Centre, then the interview at the consulate. They are separate, and biometrics must come first.
- 4
Prepare for the interview
This is the decision. It typically lasts under four minutes and the officer has usually formed a view within the first thirty seconds.
- 5
Attend the interview
Bring your passport, DS-160 confirmation and appointment letter. Supporting documents are rarely asked for, but not having them when they are is fatal.
- 6
Passport collection
Approved passports are returned within roughly a week. You are told the outcome at the counter, not by email.
The interview
What is actually being assessed
US law starts from a presumption that every visitor applicant intends to immigrate. The interview exists for you to overcome that presumption. This is written into the statute — section 214(b) — and understanding it reframes the whole exercise.
You are proving you will come back
Not that you can afford the trip, and not that you deserve to go. The officer is assessing your ties to India: employment, family, property, business. Everything you say should reinforce that you have a life here you intend to return to.
Answer the question asked, then stop
Officers conduct dozens of these a day and read hesitation and over-explanation as uncertainty. “Why are you going?” is best answered in one clear sentence, not a paragraph. Volunteering detail you were not asked for invites follow-up questions you have not prepared for.
Consistency with the DS-160 is critical
The officer has your form open. If you wrote that you are staying 14 days and say “about three weeks”, that is a discrepancy — and discrepancies are what the interview is designed to surface.
Questions that recur
- Why are you travelling to the United States?
- Who is paying for the trip?
- Do you have relatives in the US? (Answer honestly — they can check)
- What do you do for work, and how long have you been there?
- Have you travelled abroad before?
A 214(b) refusal is not permanent
B1 or B2
Which category you need
Most applicants are issued a combined B1/B2, which covers both. The distinction matters for what you may actually do on arrival.
B1 — business
Meetings, conferences, contract negotiation, consulting with associates. You may not take employment or be paid by a US source. Attending a conference is fine; being paid to speak at it is not.
B2 — tourism
Holidays, visiting family, medical treatment, and short recreational courses that carry no credit. Enrolling in a degree programme requires an F-1 — see the student visa page.
The line people cross accidentally
Remote work for your Indian employer while on a B1/B2 sits in a genuinely grey area. Answering email is universally accepted; running your business from a US address for three months is not, and has resulted in entry refusals at the border even for people holding valid visas.
Apply for a US visa
DS-160 preparation, appointment booking and structured interview practice included.