US visitor visas for tourists

A US visitor visa is the B-1/B-2 visa that lets you ask to enter the United States for a holiday or a business trip. Visa Waiver citizens usually travel on an ESTA instead, and Canadians need no visa at all. Everyone else applies at a US embassy or consulate: an online DS-160 form, a $185 fee and, for nearly everyone, an interview. The officer at the border still decides whether you enter, and for how long.

On 30 October 2026 travel.state.gov, the State Department's visa site, refused our connection, as did the main CBP, Homeland Security and USCIS sites. The figures below come from the Code of Federal Regulations, the Federal Register and Public Law 119-21. The rest is from the State Department's wait-time report to Congress and US embassy pages, all read that day. Confirm every fee and rule on travel.state.gov and on your own embassy's site before you pay anything.

Who needs a US visitor visa rather than an ESTA?

Most travellers who are not citizens of a Visa Waiver Program country, Canada or Bermuda need a US visitor visa. The government's usa.gov page says that if your country is not listed, you need a visitor visa. Its halves are B-1 for business and B-2 for tourism and medical treatment.

Citizens of a Visa Waiver country can travel on the Electronic System for Travel Authorization instead. 8 CFR 217.2(b)(1) makes that authorisation the condition of travelling without a visa. Our guide ESTA explained covers that route; the ESTA costs $40.62 from 16 October 2026. Nobody on the Visa Waiver route can extend a stay, under 8 CFR 214.1(c)(3)(i), while a B-2 visitor can apply to.

A Visa Waiver passport does not always settle it. The regulation says a traveller once removed from the United States as deportable must get a visa, and the ESTA guide lists the travel-history cases. Homeland Security keeps the list of waiver countries on a website we could not read; the last list printed in the regulation, in December 2024, had 42. A CBP notice of 10 December 2025 records the removal of Romania from the program.

Canadian citizens generally need no visa to visit, under 8 CFR 212.1(a)(1). The exceptions are the E, K, S and V visa categories. A Canadian arriving still needs a valid passport, with listed exceptions such as NEXUS, FAST and SENTRI cards and some children's documents at land and sea crossings. Citizens of Bermuda follow the same rule and need a passport. Most Canadian visitors need no I-94 arrival record either, under 8 CFR 235.1(h)(1)(i).

Mexican citizens have a separate regime, a visa or a border crossing card, not covered here.

Which nationalities are barred from a B-2 under Proclamation 10998?

Proclamation 10998 suspends entry for nationals of 38 named countries, in full or for B-1, B-2 and some other visas, from 1 January 2026. It also covers Palestinian Authority documents. The State Department, its embassies and usa.gov describe it as 39 countries, while the proclamation published on 19 December 2025 names 38 plus those documents.

• Full suspension (19): Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Burma, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Laos, Libya, Mali, Niger, Republic of the Congo, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Yemen.
• Partial suspension (19), covering B-1, B-2, F, M and J visas and immigrants: Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Burundi, Cote d'Ivoire, Cuba, Dominica, Gabon, The Gambia, Malawi, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Togo, Tonga, Turkmenistan, Venezuela, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

The suspension applies only to nationals outside the United States without a valid visa on the effective date. The exceptions include permanent residents, dual nationals travelling on the passport of a country not on the list, and athletes and teams travelling for the World Cup, the Olympics or another major sporting event. The US embassy in the UK says people covered may still apply and attend an interview, but may be found ineligible.

The proclamation sets a review every 180 days. On 30 October 2026 we found no later change to it in the Federal Register, and it names none of the Visa Waiver countries.

What can you do in the United States on a B-2 tourist visa?

A B-2 visa covers travel for pleasure, which the State Department's regulation defines as tourism, amusement, visits with friends or relatives, rest and medical treatment (22 CFR 41.31(b)(2)(i)). The B-1 half covers business such as conferences and consultations. Business does not include local employment or labour for hire, in the regulation's words.

Medical treatment needs evidence that a US doctor or facility has agreed to treat you. Pleasure excludes travel mainly to obtain US citizenship for a child. The regulation presumes that an applicant the officer believes will give birth in the United States is travelling for that purpose.

The consular officer must be satisfied of three things (22 CFR 41.31(a)):

• that you intend to leave the United States at the end of the temporary stay;
• that you have permission to enter another country afterwards;
• that adequate financial arrangements have been made for the trip.

The burden of proof is on the applicant, under 22 CFR 41.11(a).

How does a B-2 application run, from the DS-160 to the interview?

A B-2 application starts with the online DS-160 form, then the fee, then an interview appointment, in the order a State Department rule of 9 June 2026 describes. Apply at the consulate that covers where you live: the regulation names the place of residence (22 CFR 41.101(a)(1)). The US embassy in the UK asks applicants to book in their country of residence or nationality.

1. Fill in the DS-160. Complete the form online and sign it electronically, under penalty of perjury. A parent or guardian may complete it for an applicant under 16. The UK embassy asks you to print the confirmation page.
2. Pay the fee. The application fee is $185, and some applicants owe more (see the fees below).
3. Book the interview. Use the booking system your embassy's own page names.
4. Attend in person. The consulate takes a biometric, such as fingerprints, from every applicant it interviews (22 CFR 41.103(b)(2)).

The UK embassy's list of what to bring is one example. It asks for the DS-160 confirmation page and a photo taken on a white background within the last six months, with no AI-generated content. The passport must be valid for at least six months beyond your stay. The embassy admits no laptops or large bags, and a phone that comes in must stay unused during the review, fingerprinting and interview.

The US embassy in Samoa returns passports in one to three business days and urges applicants not to buy tickets before the visa arrives. A visa does not guarantee entry: CBP officers at the port of entry decide, the same page adds. After a refusal, usa.gov points applicants to the State Department for the rules on applying again.

Can a first-time applicant skip the US visa interview?

A first-time applicant cannot skip the interview: every official text we read limits the waiver to renewals or special classes. US embassy notices from Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic said that from 1 October 2025 nearly all applicants "will generally require an in-person interview". Officers may still require one from anybody, case by case.

The main exception left is renewing a B-1/B-2 visa within 12 months of the previous one's expiry, under these conditions from the Costa Rica notice:

• the earlier visa was issued for full validity, and you were at least 18 years old;
• you apply in your country of nationality or usual residence;
• you have never been refused a visa, unless that refusal was overcome or waived;
• nothing suggests you are ineligible.

The regulation and the policy disagree. The eCFR text of 22 CFR 41.102, current to 28 October 2026, still prints the older waiver rule, age limits included. The two embassy notices also differ on the ages, so we leave them out. The US embassy in Samoa offers no waiver at all. Plan for an interview.

Which social media accounts does the DS-160 ask for?

The DS-160 asks for every social media username you have used on any platform in the last five years. The US embassy in Manila's notice of 1 April 2026 says the requirement has applied since 2019. Omitting them could lead to a refusal and to ineligibility for future visas, the notice warns.

The instruction to make accounts public is narrower on the pages we read. The Manila notice and the UK embassy's visa page, updated on 27 October 2026, apply it to named categories such as F, M, J, H-1B and K, but not B.

The UK embassy's page on applying for the visa, updated on 3 September 2026, says all accounts are to be listed and set to public, with no category named. We could not read the State Department's own announcement. Follow your embassy's current page before you submit the form.

What does a B-1/B-2 visa cost on 30 October 2026?

The B-1/B-2 application fee is $185 per person, in the State Department's fee schedule at 22 CFR 22.1. It rose from $160 on 17 June 2023. It already includes a $2 surcharge required by law, so nothing comes on top. The State Department's June 2026 rule does not expect the fee to change before 31 December 2026. Embassies state that it is non-refundable.

The reciprocity fee is tied by law, as far as practicable, to what the applicant's country charges Americans. Its amounts sit in tables on travel.state.gov, which we could not read.

The $750 expedited appointment is a trial the State Department runs from 1 July to 31 December 2026, for B-1/B-2 applicants only. It buys an appointment within ten business days, in limited quantities at posts listed on travel.state.gov, on top of the $185. You book a normal appointment first and then ask for an earlier one, with no guarantee of a slot. We could not read which posts take part.

An officer can require a visa bond of B-1/B-2 applicants who are nationals of countries the State Department lists, chiefly those with high overstay rates. The rule became permanent on 3 August 2026 (22 CFR 41.11(c)). The officer sets the bond at $10,000, $15,000 or $20,000, and there is no waiver application.

A visa issued with a bond is valid for three to 12 months. Its holder must enter and leave through commercial airports, and staying past the admitted period breaches the bond. We could not read the State Department's country list.

Is the $250 visa integrity fee charged yet?

The $250 visa integrity fee is law, but on 30 October 2026 we found no official notice that it is being collected. Public Law 119-21, signed on 4 July 2025, created it in section 100007. The fee falls due when a consulate issues a visa, at $250 or a higher amount set by rule. The law adjusts it for inflation every fiscal year from 2026, and nobody can waive or reduce it.

USCIS said on 22 July 2025 that the fee "will be implemented in a future publication". We found no later Federal Register notice that does so. The State Department's fee schedule in 22 CFR 22.1, current to 28 October 2026, does not list it. Homeland Security's notice of 1 October 2026 lists the fees it collects under the same law, and the integrity fee is not among them.

The law also allows a reimbursement after the visa expires for a holder who kept to its conditions. We could not read the State Department's fee page, so check it before you pay.

How long is the wait for a B-1/B-2 visa appointment?

The wait for a B-1/B-2 interview averaged 2.5 months worldwide, with a median of one month, in the State Department's quarterly report to Congress. The report uses wait times last updated on travel.state.gov on 18 June 2026. Its figures measure the next available appointment and are rounded to the nearest half month.

In June 2026, 81% of countries had a visitor-visa wait under two months, against 58% in 2024. The State Department's rule of 9 June 2026 adds that at certain posts the wait exceeds 12 months. Waits for each consulate are on the travel.state.gov wait-time tool, which we could not read, so we print no figure for any city. Check it before you book flights.

Does a ten-year B-2 visa mean a ten-year stay?

A ten-year B-2 visa does not mean a ten-year stay. The regulation says the period of visa validity "has no relation to the period of time" an officer at the port of entry allows (22 CFR 41.112(a)).

Validity is the window in which you may use the visa to ask for entry. The maximum for any US visa is 10 years. The validity for each nationality is set in reciprocity schedules we could not read, and an officer may issue less.

A visa in an expired passport still works alongside a valid passport of the same nationality, under 22 CFR 41.112(b)(3).

The border decides the length of the stay. The CBP officer records it on your electronic I-94 as the "Admit Until Date". By regulation a B visitor may be admitted for not more than one year (8 CFR 214.2(b)(1)). No official source we read says what officers grant in practice, so read your own date as soon as you land.

What does the I-94 record, and what happens after its date?

The I-94 is your record of admission, issued electronically at the port of entry. Look it up at i94.cbp.dhs.gov under "Get Most Recent I-94", or in CBP's mobile app. If it is wrong, contact a Deferred Inspection office within 30 days of admission, the CBP site says.

Air and sea arrivals pay nothing for the I-94. At a land border it costs $30: a $6 land-border fee plus $24 under the 2025 law. Homeland Security's notice of 1 October 2026 leaves that $30 unchanged for fiscal 2027. Travellers arriving by land can request a provisional I-94 up to seven days ahead. A trip of less than 30 days by land to Canada or Mexico does not give you a new I-94 or move your date.

To extend the stay, apply to USCIS on Form I-539 before the date on the I-94 runs out (8 CFR 214.1(c)(2)). The regulation grants extensions in steps of not more than six months. The usa.gov page advises filing at least 45 days ahead. The extension is of the stay, not of the visa. We could not read the I-539 fee.

Overstaying has lasting effects, according to the CBP I-94 site:

• The visa: it is no longer valid, under section 222(g) of the immigration law.
• 181 days to under a year over: a three-year bar on travelling to the United States.
• 365 days or more over: a ten-year bar.
• The deadline: leave by 11:59 pm Eastern Time on the last day of your admission.

Once your dates are settled, our guides to national park fees for international visitors and phone, data and eSIM in the USA cover the next decisions.