Applying for a Visa

General information on visa types and procedures can be found at one of the following four websites:

• Destination USA
• Department of State
• U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
• The United States Embassy in Canada Consular Services

For more information or to make a non-immigrant visa interview appointment, please dial 1.900.451.2778 from Canada or 1.900.443.3131 from the United States (both numbers charge a fee).

Note: Many office phones and all pay phones and cell phones are set to block calls to 900 numbers. To charge fees to your credit card, please call 1.888.840.0032 from Canada or the U.S.

It is also possible to make an appointment online by visiting the Visa Appointment Reservation System website. A fee will be charged to your credit card for use of this system.

Application fees for U.S. visas will increase as of June 4, 2010. For applicants for visitor and student visas the new fee is US$140. For temporary workers and other "petition-based" visa applications the fee will be US$150.00. All applicants (except for K visas) MUST pay the fee at any branch of the Scotia Bank before coming to the Consulate. Visa application fees cannot be paid at the U.S. Consulate General (except by fiancé and immigrant visa applicants).

Individuals applying for U.S. visas at consulates in Canada will need to first deposit the fee at a Scotia Bank branch. The deposit slip (see instructions for obtaining deposit slips below) for your visa application fee consists of 3 pages. A separate set of deposit slips is required for each applicant. Take all three pages of the deposit slip(s) to any branch of the Scotia Bank and pay the non-refundable U.S. visa application fee of US$140.00 or US$150.00. The bank teller will stamp all 3 copies of your deposit receipt and should return 2 copies to you. You must submit two validated deposit receipts with your visa application. Unfortunately, applications without these deposit receipts cannot be accepted.

The special pre-coded deposit slip can be downloaded from http://www.consular.canada.usembassy.gov/. It can also be obtained by calling 1.900.451.2778, as part of the appointment process at www.nvars.com, or in person at any U.S. consulate in Canada. Again, we cannot accept applications that do not contain two validated copies of your deposit receipt.