Please follow the steps below before your immigrant visa interview at the U.S. Embassy in London, United Kingdom.
Before your interview, you must register a delivery address for your passport’s return with the embassy’s online service. 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 this.
As soon as you receive your appointment date, you must schedule a medical exam in the United Kingdom. Click the “Medical Exam Instructions” button below for information on the embassy’s designated medical practitioner. Please schedule and attend a medical exam at this clinic before your interview.
It is important that you bring all required original documents listed in the pre-interview checklist below to your interview. Please print the checklist and bring it to your interview along with the listed documents.
Read our interview guidelines to learn about any special actions that you need to take before your visa interview.
All immigrant visa applicants, regardless of age, require a medical examination prior to the issuance of a visa. Only a physician accredited by the U.S. Embassy can perform this exam. It is your responsibility to schedule a medical exam with the clinic listed below before your visa interview at the U.S. Embassy. Medical examination results from another medical practitioner will not be accepted. View a map to this Medical Office.
VisaMedicals
Tel: 020-7486-7822 (you must provide your case number when you call)
Location:
4 Bentinck Mansions
London W1U 2ER
(near the Bond Street Station)
Items to bring to your medical examination
Each person attending the medical examination is required to furnish the following:
Any medical examination fees, including x-ray and blood test fees, must be paid directly to the examining physician in cash or by credit card (Visa or MasterCard) only. The basic fee for adults (age 15 years and older) is 290 British pounds. The fee for children age 14 years and younger is 125 British pounds. There is a charge of 95 British pounds for missed appointments and changes/cancellations with less than three working days’ notice.
During the medical exam
The medical examination will include a medical history review, physical examination, chest X-ray, gonorrhea testing, blood tests, and a urine sample (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 medical requirements for U.S. immigrants is available on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s website.
U.S. immigration law requires immigrant visa applicants to obtain certain vaccinations prior to the issuance of a visa. Current immigrant visa vaccination requirements are available on CDC.Gov (note the varicella vaccination is unavailable in the United Kingdom). You can also read Frequently Asked Questions about our medical examination requirements at Travel.State.Gov.
Please be advised that pregnant women are required to undergo an X-ray. You will have the opportunity to discuss this with the physician on the day of the appointment. A chaperone will be provided, if requested, for any applicant.
After the medical exam
When your examination is completed, the doctor will send the report 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. Regardless of the expected arrival of the report, do not cancel the scheduled interview. The medical report must be less than six months old when you enter the United States as an immigrant.
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 months beyond your intended date of entry to the United States.
Two (2) color passport-size photographs 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 or certified copy provided by the issuing authority, English translation, and a photocopy. The certificate must list both parents’ names. Short form versions of the UK birth certificate are unacceptable.
Original or certified copies of birth certificates for all children of the principal applicant (even if he or she is not accompanying).
Applicants who fall into any category listed in italics below should bring these additional documents:
For family-based visa applications:
If you are married: Your original marriage certificate, English translation, and a photocopy. A certified copy from the issuing authority is acceptable.
If you were previously married: Your original divorce or spouse’s death certificate, English translation, and a photocopy. A certified copy from the issuing authority is acceptable.
If you are 16 years of age or older: The original police certificate from your country of current residence and countries of previous residence. UK police certificates can be obtained from the Association of Chief Police Officers Criminal Records Office (ACRO). If the three items below are all true, you must bring a more recent police certificate to the interview.
For employment-based visa applications: Job offer 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.
Rescheduling or cancelling your interview
If you are unable to attend your appointment, please go to ais.usvisa-info.com/en-gb/iv to select a new appointment date after the date of your NVC scheduled interview has passed. There may be a significant wait before the next available appointment, so please attempt to attend the date already assigned. 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 decide to reschedule your 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 and accompanying persons
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 building. To avoid delaying your entry and that of those in line behind you, please bring only what is required for your interview. Large bags are not allowed in the embassy and there is no storage available on-site. You may bring a mobile phone, e-reader, or tablet computer. However, tablet keyboards are not allowed.
The following persons may accompany a visa applicant to their interview:
You must use this link to notify the Embassy ahead of time of the name of the person who will accompany the applicant; otherwise they will not be admitted. They are required to bring photo identification with them.
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 British pounds. We accept cash, international money order, bankers drafts, and credit cards (Visa, MasterCard, Diners Club, American Express, or a debit card with a Visa logo only). 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 here.
Do not make travel plans outside of the United Kingdom
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. We will return your passport via courier services within two weeks.
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 he/she needs 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.
Some cases undergo administrative processing. -Administrative processing can take a long time and the Embassy is not able to provide an estimated completion time with any reasonable certainty.
What happens after visa approval
Passport, Visa, and Sealed 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 will also give you a sealed envelope containing documents that you must give to U.S. immigration authorities when you arrive in the United States for the first time. Do not open this envelope. You must carry it with you; do not put it in your checked luggage. 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 a 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 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. Children who turn 21 years old after visa issuance must enter the United States before they turn 21 years old; otherwise they will lose 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.
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:
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.
Last Updated: 9/24/2019
Nine Elms Lane
London, SW11 7US
United Kingdom
