Instructions for Immigrant Visa Applicants Applying for a Visa in London

Introduction

The Immigrant Visa Unit at this Embassy is processing your application for a visa. While no assurance can be given regarding the appointment date of your visa interview, you should now prepare for that appointment and take the following three steps.

Step One

Complete the Form DS-230-Part 1 for each family member applying for a visa. The formcontains questions regarding specific biographical information required for the immigrant visa.

Step Two

Assemble all of the documents required in support of your application. When you have obtained all of the required documents and are prepared for the visa interview, you are required to complete Form DS-2001 and document checklist.

Step Three

Schedule a medical examination. Visa applicants, regardless of age, require a medical examination prior to the issuance of a visa.

Documents you are required to furnish:

Please obtain the original documents or certified copies and one photocopy, for yourself and each family member applying for an immigrant visa. All documents that pertain to you are required, even if they were previously submitted to the USCIS with your petition.

• Birth Certificate

  Obtain the original, or certified copy, of the birth record of each family member (yourself, your spouse, and all unmarried children under the age of 21, even if they are not immigrating with you. If the children are deceased, so state giving year of death). The certificate must contain the: Person's date of birth; Names of both parents; and Annotation by the appropriate authority indicating that it is an extract from the official records.

• unavailable

Your birth record may not be obtainable. Some reasons are listed below. Your birth was never officially recorded; Your birth records have been destroyed; The appropriate government authority will not issue one. Please obtain a certified statement from the appropriate government authority stating the reason your birth record is not available. With the certified statement you must obtain secondary evidence. For example: A baptismal certificate that contains the date and place of birth and both parent's names providing the baptism took place shortly after birth; An adoption decree for an adopted child; or An affidavit from a close relative, preferably the applicant's mother, stating the date and place of birth, both parent's names, and the mother's maiden name.

• under a different name

A person who has used a different name from the one shown on the birth certificate, must produce a document explaining the use of such name. The documents are commonly available as evidence: Baptismal; Deed Poll; School records showing early use of name.

• born in India or Pakistan

A person born in India or Pakistan must present the registration certificate if his birth was registered. If it was not registered, either in the locality or, if a Christian, in church, sworn affidavits may be submitted. Such an affidavit must be executed before an official authorized to take oaths (i.e. a magistrate, commissioner of oaths, justice of the peace or the like) by the mother. If she is deceased, the father may swear to the affidavit. The affidavit should include: that the applicant's date of birth was not registered; the date of the applicant's birth; the full maiden name of the mother of the applicant; the full name of the applicant's father; the place of the applicant's birth. If neither parent is alive, the next closest relative, who was old enough and of such relationship as to have personal knowledge of the birth at the time and place it occurred, may execute the affidavit.

• Adoption Certificate

  The certificate must show date and place of adoption, along with the names of the adoptive parents. This certificate must be issued by a public authority and show that a public record exists of the adoption.

• Passports

  A Passport must be valid for travel to the United States and must have at least eight months validity beyond the issuance date of the visa. Children may be included on a parent's passport, but if over the age of 16, they must have their photographs attached to the passport. A Passport must be valid for travel to the United States and must have at least eight months validity beyond the issuance date of the visa. Children may be included on a parent's passport, but if over the age of 16, they must have their photographs attached to the passport.

• Marriage Certificates

  Married applicants must obtain an original marriage certificate, or a certified copy, bearing the appropriate seal or stamp of the issuing authority.

• Termination of Prior Marriages

  Married applicants must obtain an original marriage certificate, or a certified copy, bearing the appropriate seal or stamp of the issuing authority.

• Military Records

  Persons who have served in the military forces of any country must obtain one copy of their military record. Note: On the day of the visa interview you will be required to furnish either your discharge papers or evidence of terminal leave from the forces. Note: Military records from certain countries are unavailable. For further information, please contact the Immigrant Visa Unit.

• Affidavit of Support

  Form I-864, a contractual affidavit of support, must be submitted for most family-based applicants and employment-based applicants when a relative is the petitioner or has ownership interest in the petitioner's business. Employment based visa applicants must show a recent letter from their employer confirming that the job offer upon which their application is based is still available to them. Qualified nurses must also present their Visa Screen Certificate. All other applicants must show evidence that they are not likely to become public charges while in the United States. Use of the form I-134 is an efficient way to provide this information to the Consular Officer.

• Police Certificates

  Police certificates are required for each visa applicant aged 16 years or older. The table below shows how many police certificates are required based on where each applicant lives and has lived previously. Present and former residents of the United States should NOT obtain any police certificates covering their residence in the U.S. The police certificate must cover the entire period of the applicant's residence in that area, and state what the appropriate police authorities records show concerning each applicant, including all arrests, the reason for the arrest(s) and the disposition of each case of which there is a record. Note: Police certificates from certain countries are unavailable or are obtained directly by this office. Many countries require fingerprints to process police certificates for immigration purposes (e.g, Australia, Canada, Nigeria). Police certificates completed without the required fingerprints are not valid. View the attached PDF file for a list of UK police forces that offer a fingerprinting service. If the applicant… And... Then the applicant needs a police certificate from... is living in their country of nationality at their current residence for more than 6 months is 16 years old or older the police authorities of that locality lived in a different country for more than 12 months was 16 years or older at that time the police authorities of that locality was arrested for any reason, regardless of how long they lived there was any age at the time the police authorities of that locality

• Police Certificates for the United Kingdom

  A visa applicant who has resided in the United Kingdom for 6 months or more since the age of 16, is required to obtain a police certificate from the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO). Further information is available from their website at http://www.acpo.police.uk/certificates.asp . This police certificate will serve to advise the U.S. Embassy, London whether or not any criminal conviction is held against him/her. The police certificate will be sent to the applicant's address provided at the time of application. Please note that the Immigrant Visa Unit considers the police certificate valid for 12 months from the date of issuance, not six months as stated on the certificate.

• Court and Prison Records

  Persons who have been convicted of a crime must obtain a certified copy of each court record and any prison record, regardless of the fact that he or she may have subsequently benefited from an amnesty, pardon or other act of clemency. Court records should include: Complete information regarding the circumstance surrounding the crime of which the applicant was convicted; and The disposition of the case, including sentence or other penalty or fine imposed.

• Court and Prison Records for the United Kingdom

  Court Records, usually called a "Memorandum of Conviction" (MOC) in Great Britain and "Certificates of Conviction" in Northern Ireland, must be obtained from the clerk of the court(s) in which you were tried.

• Photographs

  Three color photographs which meet Department of State specifications.

• Translations

  All documents not in English must be accompanied by certified English translations. The translation must include a statement signed by the translator that state that the translation is accurate, and sworn to before a Notary Public.

The Visa Application Forms

Now that you are familiar with the steps involved in applying for the visa you should download the forms and complete and return them to the Immigrant Visa Unit. To begin processing your application, you are required to complete the Form DS-230-Part 1 for each family member applying for a visa. Next, you are required to assemble all of the documents required in support of your application and return the Form DS-2001 and document checklist. Please fill out the forms completely. If a question does not apply to you, please mark it with a N/A. Do not send any documents to the Embassy with these forms. The documents must be presented to the consular officer on the day of the visa interview. The completed forms should be mailed to: The Immigrant Visa Unit, 5 Upper Grosvenor Street, London W1A 2JB.

The Medical Examination

Visa applicants, regardless of age, require a medical examination and certain vaccinations prior to the issuance of a visa. Please follow this link for further information.

Children who are about to Reach 21 Years of Age

If you have children who intend to immigrate with you to the United States, or to join you in the United States at a later date, please read this important information. In order to immigrate with you to the United States, or to follow you at a later date, your children must be:

• unmarried;
• Eligible to be listed under your visa classification; and
• Under the age of 21 at the time they enter the United States.

What Happens Next?

On receipt of the Forms DS-230-I and DS-2001 and document checklist, the Immigrant Visa Unit will complete all necesary administrative processing of your visa application. You will be required to provide additional information if you have incomplete or missing forms and will be contacted in writing if that is the case.

Approximately one month before your scheduled interview appointment with a consular officer, you will receive an appointment letter containing the date and time of your visa interview.

On the day of the visa interview, you will be required to bring all of your original documents, or certified copies, plus one photocopy to the visa interview.

When to call or write

The Embassy cannot guarantee how long it may be before you are scheduled for an appointment for a visa interview. Please notify the Embassy if the circumstances of your application have changed.

For example:

• Change of address;
• Change of Marital status;
• Death of petitioner; or
• Birth or adoption of additional children.

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