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Ask The U.S. Consul
by Lisa Vickers
U.S. VISA APPLICATIONS
Mérida, Yucatán, 30 April 2004
The U.S. Consulate in Merida would like to remind the public to
help facilitate visa applications by applying with plenty of advance
time before the coming summer. The visa application workload will
be limited by the large summer volume of travelers, and by newly
implemented security procedures. For Mexican nationals or other
non US citizens who plan to travel to the U.S., please call 01-900-849-4949
in order to make your appointment before the last minute. Please
plan ahead: generally it can take up to two weeks to get an interview
appointment, and another four weeks to receive tourist visas by
courier service if approved.
Most importantly, do not accept or purchase any information or
documents from private individuals who say they can help you get
a visa! The only official source of U.S. visa information in Mexico
is from an American embassy or consulate. The current application
form in Spanish can be found at the U.S. Embassy's website at http://
www.usembassy-mexico.gov/svisaform.html or when setting your
visa appointment by phone at the above number. There is a charge
for the telephone call, but the internet site and all application
forms are free.
In the past, temporary visas could be issued while people were waiting a month for their laser visa, but this policy is no longer possible. In emergency cases, a temporary visa can be issued instead of a full-validity laser visa, but not in addition to it. A small percentage of applicants will
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be subject to additional security procedures,
and possible extra fees, before their visas can be issued.
Must you have a lot of money in a bank account and several cars
and houses to get a U.S. visa? No. Financial solvency is only one
of many ways that applicants demonstrate that they "...have
a residence abroad with no intention of abandoning it...) as U.S.
immigration law requires to get a visa. This simply means that visa
applicants need to show sufficiently compelling family, social,
economic, cultural or other ties to their home here in Mexico that
they will return to after a temporary trip to the United States.
Exchange between Mexico and the United States is a very important
part of the culture of both countries, but we also live in times
of many new dangers in immigration around the world. That is why
the United States has two primary missions in visa applications:
secure borders and open doors.
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