How early in advance should our business travelers apply?
As a general planning guideline, if a visa is needed, a foreign traveler should apply for his or her visa as soon as possible, and no later than 60 days before the travel date. If the conference is scientific in nature, or the applicant has a scientific background, the visa application should be made no later than 90 days in advance of the travel. Visa applicants will need to schedule an interview appointment as a first step in the visa process. Select visa wait times to see how long it will take to schedule an interview appointment at each U.S. Embassy and Consulate abroad. Since wait times vary by embassy and time of year, we strongly encourage travelers to review this information, as it is updated weekly. Please note: Additional planning time beyond the guidelines above is needed for visa applicants applying at some embassies, due to the time required to schedule an interview appointment. Additionally, the interview wait times do not include time for required security clearances or
