Guide to applying for US tourist visa from Canada

Q. Do you need a US B2 visa?

If you are in Canada, a student or permanent resident holding a Chinese passport

and you want to travel/visit relatives/friends/medical treatment in the United States in the near future/in the future, then you need the US B2 visa introduced in this article (shown as B1/B2 on the visa paper)

Q. What is the process of applying for a US visa in Canada?

1. Prepare an electronic version of your visa photo (needed when filling out the form)

2. Fill out the DS-160 application form online (takes about 2 hours, can be interrupted during the process)

3. Pay the visa fee online and make an appointment for the interview location & time (the interview location is not related to the place of residence, the location & time can be modified multiple times)

4. Go to the US Embassy for an interview (the result will be notified on the spot, and the passport sticker and visa will be collected, which takes about 1 hour)

5. Pick up your passport (you can pick it up yourself/pick it up on behalf of others/mail it to your home, which takes 2 days to 2 weeks)

6. Before traveling to the United States, fill out the EVUS form online (just go through the process)

* For detailed instructions for each of the above steps, see below

Q. How long does it take from application to visa?

1 month faster, 2 years slower, all the time is spent on waiting for the interview

You can use this website to estimate the waiting time (don't be scared by the 705 days below, it can be shortened)

Q. How to shorten the waiting time for the interview?

‣ First, make an appointment at a location and time that is close to you, then refresh the appointment page 2 to 3 times a day (don’t do it too often, you will be banned), and persist for 1 month. There is a high probability that you can reschedule to a certain location within 6 months to 1 year (because there will always be people who cancel temporarily; you can change it multiple times for free; the probability of refreshing at night is the highest)-Note: You don’t need to cancel the previous appointment to reschedule

‣ If you have strong money ability, search for "US visa agency" on Taobao, which costs about 600-800 RMB. Merchants can use software to grab interviews with closer dates

‣ If you are going back to China in the near future, you can also make an appointment for a US visa in China, which is more efficient (of course, the difficulty of passing is relatively increased)

Q. What is the validity period and stay period of a US tourist visa?

You will be given a 10-year multiple entry and exit visa

The stay period is determined by the customs staff at the time of entry, usually half a year

Q. Is it easy to be rejected when applying for a US visa in Canada?

Canada's visa approval rate is much higher than China's, so there is no need to worry. However, if you have graduated but have not found a job, or are unemployed, you may still be rejected.

The process of applying for a US tourist visa in Canada

Step 1: Prepare a visa photo

Photo requirements: taken within 6 months, 2 x 2 inches (51 x 51 mm), white background, more details here (I don't really check the time, as long as the photo does not show teeth/hair does not block the eyes/there is no obvious change from the person on the scene, on the other hand, if you dye your hair, you have to take a new photo)

Electronic photo: Upload when filling out the DS-160 form

Physical photo: 1 photo is required, bring it on the day of the interview (there can also be a place to take photos on the scene)

Step 2: Fill out the DS-160 form

Form filling website: https://ceac.state.gov/genniv/

Form filling reference: US visa DS160 form filling sample (this article is written for domestic students, but it is also valid for everyone in Canada, don't worry about the details)

Notes:

‣ It takes about 2 hours to fill in the form, and you can interrupt it during the process (but don't forget to save it before interrupting it)

‣ Passport information/electronic photo/academic information/work information/travel plan are required to fill in the form (just fill in the approximate travel plan, and the actual itinerary can be changed at will; you can also fill in no plan)

Step 3: Pay & make an appointment for an interview

Payment/appointment for an interview website: https://ais.usvisa-info.com/en-ca/niv

General process: Register an account > Choose the passport collection method after the interview (self-collection/collection/mail) > Pay a visa fee of US$185 > Choose the location and time of the embassy for the interview

Notes:

‣ Applicants aged 14 to 79, unless there are special circumstances, are required to have an interview

‣ The US embassies that can apply for visas are located in Toronto | Ottawa | Quebec | Montreal | Vancouver | Calgary | Halifax. The specific addresses/telephone numbers are here. You can choose any one, regardless of your place of residence, and you can change it multiple times for free later

‣ By default, the interviews are scheduled for one year later, but after making the appointment, you can refresh the appointment page every day and you will most likely be able to reschedule to a date/location within six months to a year. It is OK if the final appointment location is different from the embassy selected when filling out the DS-160 form (if you are particularly cautious, you can fill out a new DS-160 after finally deciding on the interview location, and then send an email to the embassy to explain)

Step 4: Interview

Before departure, you need to prepare the following materials:

☑ Passport (must be valid for more than six months)

☑ Print the confirmation page obtained after filling out the DS-160

☑ Print the appointment information letter obtained after the appointment interview

☑ 1 2 x 2 inches (51 x 51 mm) white background photo

☑ Canadian ID, such as study visa/work visa/PR card

The following are optional, and in most cases they are not required:

‣ Bank statements for the last 6 months (the remaining amount should be enough for travel)

‣ For students, you can provide Enrollment Letter (no one will look at transcripts, etc.)

‣ For workers, you can provide Employment Letter Letter (no tax form required if you have bank statements)

Note: The embassy will never reject your visa application just because you don’t provide enough documents. If they really need a certain document, they will ask you to provide more!

On the day of the interview:

‣ The embassy does not allow electronic devices and school bags to enter (car keys are allowed). Generally, supermarkets/small stores nearby can store them for a fee (such as Koffie Coffee Shop across the street from the Vancouver Embassy, 8 Canadian dollars; there is a Convenience Locker Storage next to the Toronto Embassy for 10 Canadian dollars)

‣ Documents/materials should be placed in a transparent document bag

‣ Interview process: queue > enter the embassy > security check/document verification > record personal information & fingerprints > interview, and inform the result on the spot > take away the passport for the visa. The whole process takes about 1-1.5 hours, and the actual interview time is only 1-3 minutes

Common questions for interviews:

‣ What are you going to do in the United States, how long will you play, where are you going, what countries have you been to before... (to determine whether you are really going on a trip)

‣ If you are a student, they will ask: when did you come to Canada, where did you go to school, what major, enrollment/graduation time, who pays tuition... (to determine whether you are really a student)

‣ If you are a worker, you will be asked: where you work, position, and approximate job content... (to determine whether you are really working)

‣ Whether you have relatives in the United States, marital status, whether you are going alone (check family information to determine the possibility of you being illegally in the United States - distant relatives in the United States have nothing to do with you, and they will not notify you when they come to the United States, so don't worry about such details)

Note:

1. The answer should be as consistent as possible with the content filled in DS-160

2. The purpose of the interview is to "give everyone a chance to express themselves" & "judge your true motivation for going to the United States through dialogue/observation of facial expressions", as well as to increase employment in government departments...

In short, smile, answer whatever is asked, don't lie or talk nonsense, and you will definitely pass the interview smoothly ~

Step 5: Get your passport

You will know the result at the interview site. If you pass, your passport will be kept for visa paper

You can get your passport within 1 week at the earliest and 2 weeks at the latest

Step 6: Register with the EVUS system

Before leaving for the United States:

Go to https://www.evus.gov/ to register for EVUS for free

- The registration is valid for 2 years; if you go to the United States again after 2 years, you need to register again

- The content filled in EVUS does not need to be consistent with DS-160. For example, if you write Orlando in DS-160 and Los Angeles in EVUS, it is completely fine! EVUS can reflect the latest travel plan!

~ End ~

Thank you for reading, I wish you all a happy trip!

*⸜( •ᴗ• )⸝*