Suggested Documents* from your employer

Suggested Documents* from your side

1. Form I-129, Copy of the petition submitted by your employer to the USCIS (Sample Form) and Form I-797, Original Approval Notice received by your employer from USCIS.

2. LCA, (Form ETA 9035) Copy of certified LCA submitted by your employer with your H1B petition

3. Letters from employer verifying how you qualified for the job, your employment history and job description.

1. Pay Statement for most recent three-six months

2. Your W2 for previous year/s

3. Tax Documents (be prepared to answer consular officer’s questions, if you have any entry in the tax return under business income. Keep in mind the you are not allowed to do business while on H1B. Consult with competent attorney before interview)

4. Your Degree & Transcripts.

5. Employment verification letters for all employment period.

6. DS-156 & DS-157, Fill these forms and keep it ready. In Step 3 you can fill online and print at www.vfs-usa.co.in

7. One Recent Photograph (Sample and Specifications)

*Listed documents only suggestion. You can carry any documents you feel required in the circumstances.  Consulate may ask you to come with additional documents after interview…Click here for List

Application Fee (MRV Fee) and VFS Service Charge

Prior to confirming a visa interview appointment online or at any US Visa Application Centre, you need to pay the following fees and obtain a Visa Fee Receipt from HDFC Bank.

When going to HDFC Bank, please carry with you a photocopy of the 1^st page of the applicant's passport.

Please note: If you are an Indian citizen resident in the US, to obtain a Visa Fee Receipt from HDFC Bank, please fax a copy of your passport’s data page to the person in India assisting you. That person will have to submit the fax to HDFC Bank in order to get a fee receipt issued.

The fees payable at HDFC Bank per passport are: -

IMPORTANT: The fee receipt gets activated 2 working days from date of issue. Do not attempt to take an appointment till then.

The above fees are not refundable. HDFC Bank’s fee receipt can be used to make an appointment within 1 year from date of issue. The receipt is deemed as utilized once the interview has taken place, and cannot be used to make a subsequent appointment.

Visa Issuance Fee:

This fee is payable by most categories of visa applicants at the visa section, after the Consular Officer has confirmed issue of visa.

Indian passport holders will no longer be required to submit an Issuance fee demand draft for $50 at the time of the visa interview. Holders of Indian Certificates of Identity or Bhutanese passports, continue not owe any reciprocity fee.

Other nationalities: please click here to determine the Issuance Fee amount payable.

Applicants applying for a visa class for which an Issuance Fee is payable must carry a DD for the Issuance Fee with them to the interview. In case a visa is refused, the applicant will have to subsequently cancel the DD to reclaim the amount.

If a visa is authorized, the Issuance Fee will have to be paid immediately at the visa section, failing which the visa will not be issued. The Issuance Fee is non-refundable once the visa has been issued.

After purchasing a Visa Fee Receipt number from HDFC Bank,  apply online at https://www.vfs-usa.co.in/ApplnForms/IsBEP.aspx  OR across the counter at any US Visa Application Centre in India.

Fees payable prior to confirming a visa interview appointment:

1. Visa Application Fee (MRV Fee): US $131 payable in INR equivalent at consular exchange rate.  Visa Application Fee at current exchange rate (Rs. 44/-) is Rs. 5,764/-.

This fee is payable in cash or by DD/HDFC Bank cheque favouring “US Embassy - Visa Fees”. DDs issued by cooperative banks are not accepted.

*As of February 1, 2008, all applicants who paid their application fees in 2007 for  $100 should bring a nonrefundable demand draft for the fee difference of $31 (Rs. 1,364/-).  The Rs. 1,364/- demand draft should be made payable to "U.S. Embassy New Delhi", "U.S. Consulate Mumbai", "U.S. Consulate Chennai", or "U.S. Consulate Kolkata".

3. The Visa Fee Receipt must be used to schedule an appointment within one year from date of issue.

Click here for holiday list of HDFC Bank and US Visa Application Centres.

Attention: Mumbai Applicants

Download and print your Appointment Letter (After Step3), the Visa Application Forms.

You have to mail these forms along with copies of the documents to be submitted to VFS prior to the interview.

You are required to drop off your application forms with one recent photograph, supporting documentation and the demand draft for Issuance fee to any of VFS Application Centres in Ahmedabad, Mumbai or Pune. Alternatively you may courier the same to: US VFS Tirupati Apartments, Bhulabhai Desai Road, Mumbai 400 026. Your documents must reach VFS a minimum of 5 working days prior to your scheduled interview date. It is recommended that you forward your documents to us immediately after scheduling an interview.

You have to carry the original supporting documents for interview.

Step 4: Visit the consulate with documents

Report to the US Embassy or Consulate where your appointment for a visa interview is scheduled. You will need to bring the printed Appointment Letter, the Visa Application Forms, one recent photograph, the original HDFC Bank Fee Receipt with its two barcode stickers, and a Demand Draft for the Issuance Fee and other documents recommended in Step 1 to the interview.