January 16, 2002 - Foreign nationals applying for nonimmigrant visas to enter the United States are now required to comply with additional security screening measures imposed by the State Department. Applicants for visas at American Consulates will be required to complete a new form, and the American Consulate may elect to obtain a security clearance. This form will be used as an interim security measure as a result of the September 11 terrorist attacks.

If you are a male between the ages of 16 and 45 and require a nonimmigrant visa such as B-1, H-1B or L-1, you must submit the new Form DS-157 in addition to the standard Nonimmigrant Visa Application, Form DS-156. Exempt from this requirement are all A, G, and NATO applicants, except for A-3, G-5 and NATO-7 male applicants.

To download a copy of this form, click on Form DS-157.

Form DS-157 requests general information about travel, background and education. Applicants are asked to provide information such as previously lost or stolen passports, a list of countries visited in the last 10 years, prior military service, and training or skills possessed by the employee in the areas of firearms, explosive, nuclear, biological or chemical experience. It is unclear how the form might trigger the need for further security clearance. It also remains unclear whether nationality or other profiling data will be applied as factors prompting a request for security clearance. At the discretion of an American Consular Officer, any foreign national, irrespective of age or gender, may be required to complete the new Form DS-157 and may be subject to a full security clearance. For example, the American Embassy in London also requires all male and female applicants holding Chinese, Cuban, Iranian, Iraqi, Libyan, Russian, Somali, Sudanese or Vietnamese passports to complete and submit Form DS-157.

The Department of State has not yet indicated how long security clearances, if requested, might take. Prior experience suggests that related clearances have resulted in delays ranging from two weeks to two months.

If you require a visa to enter the U.S., we recommend that the visa application be submitted to the American Consulate as early as possible during your overseas stay. If this is your initial visa application at the American Consulate, you may have to delay your date of travel to the U.S. If you are traveling abroad on a business trip, your return to the U.S. may be delayed until visa issuance. If you must return to the U.S. by a certain date, travel plans may need to be postponed depending upon the likelihood of visa issuance delay.

The American Consulate may impose an additional visa processing fee for the DS-157. Please check with the consulate where you will be applying regarding specific requirements. The following site contains links to web sites of American Consulates and Embassies worldwide: http://www.usembassy.state.gov/. In the event that you still have questions regarding fees, procedures, or other issues, you may wish to contact the Consulate directly for more information.

If you are already in the U.S. and are applying for visa revalidation by mail through the State Department, and are included in the group of applicants required to complete the new form, you will also be required to submit DS-157 beginning February 1, 2002. This could result in extending processing times beyond the current 12 week timeframe.