Dear Seeking,
Key Takeaway
The U.S. Department of State (DoS) has announced a pilot program for stateside visa stamping, aiming to enable H-1B and L-1 visa holders to renew their visa stamps in the U.S. without the need to travel back to their home country for an appointment at a U.S. embassy or consulate.
Remaining in the U.S. after getting approval for your H-1B specialty occupation visa was the prudent thing to do! We have many clients who, like you, changed their status while in the U.S. and don’t have a visa foil — often called a visa stamp — in their passport. Since COVID, we have often advised individuals to avoid international travel unless absolutely necessary. This has been due to a combination of changing factors such as unpredictable visa appointment wait times and the discretionary waiver process for in-person interviews, which has been extended at least to the end of this year.
The Pilot Program’s Goal
The State Department previously offered stateside visa stamping for many nonimmigrant visa renewals, including E, H, L, and O visas, until October 26, 2004, when the Enhanced Border Security and Visa Entry Reform Act of 2002, which was passed in the wake of the September 11 attacks, required the collection of biometric data from visa applicants. Since then, the DoS has required all visa applicants, except for certain diplomatic and other applicants, to get a visa stamp in their passport at a U.S. embassy or consulate abroad.
Testing the Department’s Technical and Operational Ability
“The goal of this pilot,” according to the DoS notice, “is to test the Department’s technical and operational ability to resume domestic visa renewals for specific nonimmigrant classifications and to assess the efficacy of this program in reducing worldwide visa wait times by shifting certain workloads from overseas posts to the United States.”
