Please follow the steps below before your immigrant visa interview at the U.S. Embassy in Helsinki, Finland.

Step 1: Register your appointment online

Registration is free. Click the “Register” button below to register.

If you want to cancel or reschedule your appointment, you will be able to do so after you register your appointment.

Register >>

Step 2: Schedule a medical exam in Finland

As soon as you receive your appointment date, you must schedule a medical exam in Finland. Click the “Medical Exam Instructions” button below for a list of designated doctors’ offices in Finland. Please schedule and attend a medical exam with one of these doctors before your interview.

Medical Exam Instructions >>

Step 3: Complete your pre-interview checklist

It is important that you bring all required original documents to your interview.  We've created a checklist that will tell you what to bring.  Please print the checklist below and bring it to your interview along with the listed documents.

Pre-Interview Checklist >>

Step 4: Review interview guidelines

Read our interview guidelines to learn about any special actions that you need to take before your visa interview.

Interview Guidelines >>

Medical Exam Instructions

All persons immigrating, regardless of age, must have a medical examination. All persons over the age of 15 years require a laboratory test and chest x-ray to be done at one of the panel clinics listed below on the same day with the medical examination.

You should contact the EIRA LAAKARINVASTAANOTTO (not the doctor) as soon as possible to receive instructions about obtaining the laboratory test, vaccinations and x-ray and to make an appointment for your medical examination.

Approved physicians:

Dr. Otto Lindberg
EIRAN LAAKARINVASTAANOTTO
Laivurinkatu 29
Helsinki 00150
Open Mon-Fri
Tel: 358-(0)9-1620570      

Dr. Anna Back
EIRAN LAAKARINVASTAANOTTO
Laivurinkatu 29
Helsinki 00150
Open Mon-Fri
Please call the doctor only if you have a specific question regarding your medical examination.
Tel: 358-(0)9-1620570

Laboratory test and chest X-ray will be taken at panel site on the examination day in EIRAN LAAKARIKESKUS

Items to bring to your medical examination

Bring the following items to your medical exam: 

• Your visa interview letter or your visa case number
• Your passport
• Six (6) recent color passport size photographs
• Your vaccination history
• DS-160 or DS-260 confirmation page

All examinations and laboratory tests must be performed at the panel site.  The charge for examination, not including the x-ray and laboratory test, will be approximately €550.  Please note that the cost of possible vaccinations not included.  The fee should be paid by the applicant.

It usually takes 14 days to process the medical examination. More about the EIRA hospital process at https://www.eiransairaala.fi/en/Services/Health-Certificates/Visa-Certificates

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During the medical exam

The medical examination will include a medical history review, physical examination, and chest X-ray and blood tests (for applicants 15 years of age or older). The United States also requires tuberculosis (TB) testing for all applicants two years of age and older.  Please be prepared to discuss your medical history, medications you are taking, and current treatments you are undergoing. More information on general medical requirements for U.S. immigrants is available from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

U.S. immigration law requires immigrant visa applicants to obtain certain vaccinations prior to the issuance of a visa. Current immigrant vaccination requirements are available on CDC's website. You can also read Frequently Asked Questions about our medical examination requirements on Travel.State.Gov.

After the medical exam

When your examination is completed, the doctor will provide you with exam results in a sealed envelope or send them directly to the U.S. Embassy. IF GIVEN AN ENVELOPE TO CARRY TO YOUR INTERVIEW, DO NOT OPEN THIS ENVELOPE. Instead, bring it to your visa interview. Any x-rays taken will be given to you. You DO NOT need to bring the x-rays to your visa interview unless you suffer from tuberculosis (TB). However, you must carry the x-rays with you when you travel to the United States for the first time. The medical report must be less than six months old when you enter the United States as an immigrant.

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Pre-Interview Checklist

Please use the list below to determine the items that every applicant must bring to the immigrant visa interview:

• A copy of your NVC interview letter (does not apply to Diversity Visa, fiancé(e), adoptive, or asylee/refugee applicants).
  
  
• Unexpired passport valid for six (6) months beyond your intended date of entry to the United States and a photocopy of the biographic page (where your name and photo are located).
  
  
• One color photograph of each person applying for a visa (5 cm x 5 cm, or 2 inch x 2 inch).  Please review our online photo requirements.
  
  
• Confirmation page from the Form DS-260 Application for an Immigrant Visa you submitted online at ceac.state.gov/iv.

• Your original birth certificate, English translation, and a photocopy.

• Medical examination results in a sealed envelope (if the physician gives you these results).

• Original or certified copies of birth certificates for all children of the principal applicant (even if he or she is not accompanying).
  
  
• Pre-paid return envelope (to be used for delivery of your passport with visa).

Applicants who fall into any category listed in italics below should bring these additional documents:

For family-based visa applications:

• The appropriate Form I-864 Affidavit of Support for each financial sponsor along with a photocopy of the sponsor’s IRS transcript or most recent U.S. federal income tax return, and any relevant W-2s. 
  
  
• Proof of your U.S. petitioner’s status and domicile in the United States (photocopy of both sides of the Lawful Permanent Resident card I-551, Certificate of Naturalization, or U.S. passport).
  
  
• Evidence of the relationship between the petitioner and visa applicant (such as photographs, letters, or emails).

If you are married:  Your original marriage certificate, English translation, and a photocopy.

If you were previously married:  Your original divorce or spouse’s death certificate, English translation, and a photocopy. 

If you are older than 16 years of age:  The original police certificate from your country of current residence and countries of previous residence. If you answer affirmatively to the following three questions, you must bring a new or more recent police certificate to the interview:

1. You are older than 16 years;
2. You obtained a police certificate; and
3. You still live in the country that issued the police certificate.

For employment-based visa applications: Letter from your U.S. employer dated less than one month ago.

If you have ever been convicted of a crime: Court and criminal records, English translation, and a photocopy.

If you have served in any country’s military: Military records, English translation, and a photocopy.

If you are adopted:  Adoption papers or custody documents, English translation, and a photocopy.

If you are the petitioner’s stepchild:  The original marriage certificate of the petitioner and your biological parent, English translation, and a photocopy along with divorce records for any previous marriages of either parent.

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Interview Guidelines

Sending documents to the U.S. Embassy

If the U.S. Embassy requested additional information during the interview, you must submit those documents at a Post office. This web page explains how to submit your documents for delivery to the U.S. Embassy.

Scheduling, rescheduling or cancelling your interview

Please note that you must confirm or reschedule your appointment assigned by NVC to finalize an appointment with the U.S. Embassy in Finland. To do so, please visit https://ustraveldocs.com/fi, create a profile, and choose the “Immigrant Visa” option. Follow the steps until you receive the message, “Your request to schedule an appointment has been received and will be reviewed. You will receive an email once your request is approved.”

For some family-based and employment preference visa categories, a visa became available within the month you have been scheduled by NVC. DV applicants should be aware that visas are numerically limited and must be issued by September 30 of the program year. There is no guarantee that a visa will still be available on the date of your rescheduled interview. Please carefully consult the Visa Bulletin before you request to reschedule your visa interview. 

Please note: You need to register your original NVC/KCC appointment online before you can reschedule it. Rescheduling is only possible on a date after your assigned appointment.

Security screening procedures

All visitors to the U.S. Embassy must follow certain security procedures. Any visitor who declines to be screened by U.S. Embassy security personnel will be unable to enter the embassy. To avoid delaying your entry and that of those in line behind you, please bring only what is required for your interview.

Accompanying persons

The following persons may accompany a visa applicant to their interview:

• Interpreter:  Applicants may bring ONE interpreter if they do not speak English or Finnish fluently.
• Special Needs Visitors:  Applicants may bring ONE person to assist if they are elderly, disabled, or a minor child.

Attorneys are not permitted to accompany clients into the waiting room or to their interview.

Immigrant visa fees

If you have not paid all required fees to either the National Visa Center or via the appointment website, please be prepared to pay these fees on the day of your interview.

All fees may be paid in U.S. dollars or Euros. We prefer credit or debit card payments but can also accept cash. Please note that if you are found ineligible to receive a visa, the application fee cannot be refunded. A complete list of fees can be found at Travel.State.Gov.

Do not make travel plans outside of Finland

If your visa is approved, we will keep your passport at the embassy while we prepare your immigration packet and print a visa for your passport. If you have to travel within Finland while your passport is still with us, please make sure you have a valid picture ID other than your passport.

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After Your Visa Interview

A consular officer can make a decision on a visa application only after reviewing the formal application and interviewing the applicant. There is no guarantee that you will receive a visa. Do not sell your house, car or property, resign from your job or make non-refundable flight or other travel arrangements until you have received your immigrant visa. 

If more information is needed

Sometimes a consular officer is unable to make a decision on a visa application because they need to review additional documents or the case requires further administrative processing.  When additional documents are requested, the consular officer will give you a refusal letter that asks you to submit additional documents. The letter will include instructions on how to send those documents to the Embassy.

Administrative processing takes additional time after the interview. Most administrative processing is resolved within 60 days. However, the timing varies based on the circumstances of each case. Before inquiring about the status of administrative processing, please wait at least 60 days after your interview. 

What happens after visa approval

Passport, Visa, and Immigrant Packet – We will place your immigrant visa on a page in your passport. Please review your visa to make sure there are no spelling errors. We may also give you documents to carry with you (not in your checked luggage); if you do not receive this packet, it is because your information has been sent electronically. If you receive X-rays during your medical examination, carry those with you and give them to the U.S. immigration authorities.  

USCIS Immigrant Fee – All individuals who are issued immigrant visas overseas must pay an Immigrant Fee to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) prior to traveling to the United States. This fee is for processing your residency status and printing your Permanent Resident Card. The only people exempt from paying this fee are:  children entering the United States under the Hague Process, returning residents, and people traveling on a K visa.  

When You Should Travel – You must enter the United States before the expiration date on your visa, which is usually six (6) months from the date of printing. Your visa cannot be extended and all fees are nonrefundable. The principal applicant must enter before or at the same time as other family members with visas. Unless they are eligible for benefits under the Child Status Protection Act, children who are issued a visa before turning 21 years of age must enter the United States before their 21st birthday to avoid losing their immigrant status.  

Getting a Green Card – Your Form I-551 Permanent Resident Card, also known as a green card, will be automatically mailed to the address in the United States that you write in your visa application form. This is a very important document that proves you have permission to reside in the United States. Do not travel outside of the United States until you receive your Permanent Resident Card. Once your card is issued, you should not stay outside of the United States for more than one year. If you do, you will lose your status as a Lawful Permanent Resident.

Children’s Issues – Children are required to have certain vaccinations before they can enroll in school in the United States. Therefore, we recommend that you bring your child’s complete vaccination records with you to the United States. Additionally, if your child is adopted, you have full custody as a result of a divorce, or you share custody with the child’s other parent, we recommend that you bring a copy of all applicable adoption or custodial papers from the authoritative court in your home country. You will likely need these papers (translated into English) in the United States for issues such as school enrollment, medical care, and eventual citizenship.

Information for New Immigrants – Please visit the USCIS web page for helpful information on moving to the United States. You can read their publication “Welcome to the United States: A Guide for New Immigrants” online.

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Diversity Visa Applicants - Additional Information

If you are interviewing for a Diversity Visa (DV), all of the above instructions apply to you. Please schedule and attend a medical examination prior to your visa interview; enroll in the required courier service; and gather the required documents.

Below are additional instructions that apply only to DV applicants.

Bring to your interview

In addition to the documents listed on the Pre-Interview Checklist in this package, DV applicants should also bring the following items to your visa interview:

• Appointment information printed from the “Entrant Status Check” on the E-DV website.
• Documents showing that you have either a qualifying high school education OR have two (2) years of qualifying work experience in the last five (5) years immediately prior to application (for the principal applicant only; more information is available online).
• Payment in cash of the $330 Diversity Visa Application Fee.

Review your DV Lottery entry

Prior to your visa interview, we recommend that you review the data on your initial E-DV entry. On your initial E-DV application, you must have correctly entered your marital status. If you are legally married you must have listed your spouse, even if you are currently separated from him/her (unless your spouse is a U.S. citizen or Lawful Permanent Resident).

Additionally, you must have listed ALL of your living children who are unmarried and under 21 years old. This includes your natural children, your spouse’s children, or children you have formally adopted in accordance with the laws of your country.

Failure to have listed an existing spouse or children at the time of your entry in the Diversity Visa lottery will result in the denial of your visa and visas for your family. Any fees paid to the U.S. government in support of your visa application(s) are nonrefundable. If you failed to include a child who had already been born, or a spouse to whom you were married when you entered the lottery, you should not proceed with the visa application. You can review the eligibility requirements online.

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