Thursday, July 10, 2014

Journey to the United States: VISA step by step

Step one: Know where to log on to
Log on to www.ustraveldocs.com and you are on the right track.

Step two: Identify the type of visa you're after
There are various type of Visa, so first thing first, are you migrating to the US?
If yes, you are applying for an Immigrant Visa, If no, then its the Nonimmigrant Visa you should be applying. Don't get 'em confused!



I applied for a nonimmigrant visa last month and I am pleased to share my experience.
most commonly, B1 visa for those on a business trip; B2 visa for travellers, F1 visa for students furthering their students in the States.

Step 3: Create a Profile
on the VISA APPLICATION page, click on the green box on the right side "Create Account" to create your own profile.

Step 4: Complete your DS-160 Form
Go to the Home page, and click on DS-160 Information under the big title of Nonimmigrant Visa Information. The link to the online DS-160 form is at the bottom of the page.
Read the guideline thoroughly before you proceed.
* You will need a softcopy of your recent photo at the end of this step. your photo should have a white background.
* by now, you will have your online visa (not the actual visa!)

Step 5: Fee Payment
Check if your country is a member country of Visa Waiver Program.
Malaysia is not in the list.
The fee you need to pay depend on the current consular exchange rate, and application fee for the most common nonimmigrant visa type is $160 (including traveller, student, exchange etc).

How to pay
Log into your profile and click "Fee payment".
Select Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT)
Your Unique Virtual Account Number will pop out. THEN,

A. Pay online: Complete Giro Transfer (IBG-MEPS) in MYR only.
Beneficiary Name/ Recipient : BAMB MY Re Stanley US Visacol SFA
Beneficiary Bank/Bank Code: Bank of America Malaysia Berhad/ 100002076
Account Number: Your own 14 digit "Unique Virtual Account Number"
Amount: (before you type in the ammount, check Check and CHECK!).
              OR
B. Pay at Standard Charted Bank

Step 6: Complete your Profile
Complete your personal details, Family details and answer some question about your trip while waiting for your bank to process your payment.
The only tip to this? Be honest.

Step 7: Schedule your Interview Appointment
Think thoroughly before scheduling your appointment. Check your schedule! Avoid rescheduling again and again to avoid having to pay another Visa Fee.

Step 8: The Last Step: Interview
The interview time you scheduled before hand, is the time you should present at the gate of the Embassy. Not the time of the actual interview.

ALL THE BEST!
**read the next blog post to know about Visa Interview 

2 comments:

justin albert said...

Very interesting looking post and I must appraise your efforts to write this post.

US Immigration Visa

Anonymous said...

Thank you, helps a lot!