Glossary of visa terms

The time from the day of a reading to the next open interview appointment, as the Department estimates it. It is not the time to get a visa.

• The “Next available appointment” column in the table below predicts when you can expect to receive an appointment at that location.
• We calculate months in 30-day increments and half months in 15-day increments.

The Department's words. Global Visa Wait Times, archive copy of 9 July 2026.

How long applicants waited for an interview in the month before the reading. The Department gives it for B1/B2 visas only.

• The “Average wait time” columns in the table below show how long people typically waited for interviews (measured from fee payment to visa interview date) in the previous month.
• Average wait times are provided for B1/B2 visas only in cases where the next available appointment is more than three months away.

The Department's words. Global Visa Wait Times, archive copy of 9 July 2026.

The Department prints "< 0.5 Month" for a wait of less than half a month. Half a month is 15 days, so the wait is less than 15 days. This site writes "under 0.5 month".

• We calculate months in 30-day increments and half months in 15-day increments.

The Department's words. Global Visa Wait Times, archive copy of 9 July 2026.

The table gave no wait time for this post and this visa group. In the table of 1 July 2026, the Department printed NA in these cells.

The Department gives no definition of this term. The explanation is this site's own.

One copy of the Department's wait-time table, with the day of the copy. Each wait time on this site has the day of its reading.

The Department gives no definition of this term. The explanation is this site's own.

A copy of a web page that the Internet Archive saved on one day. The Department's site refuses automatic requests, so this site reads the wait times from archive copies.

The Department gives no definition of this term. The explanation is this site's own.

A decision that an eligible applicant does not need an interview in person. The wait-time table does not include these cases.

• Embassies and consulates may waive the in-person interview requirement for eligible applicants.
• Wait times for these appointments are not reflected in the table below.

The Department's words. Global Visa Wait Times, archive copy of 9 July 2026.

An embassy or a consulate of the United States in another country. This site shows the posts that the Department lists in its tables.

• Post: U.S. Embassy, Consulate or other diplomatic mission abroad. Not all U.S. Embassies, Consulates and Missions are visa-issuing posts.

The Department's words. Glossary, archive copy of 11 July 2026.

The group that a visa belongs to. A code such as B1/B2 or F1 names the class. The class follows the purpose of the travel.

• The purpose of your intended travel and other facts will determine what type of visa is required under U.S. immigration law.

The Department's words. Directory of Visa Categories, archive copy of 1 July 2026.

A visa for a stay of limited time and for one purpose, for example a visit, a study or a job for some years.

• Nonimmigrant Visa (NIV): A U.S. visa allows the bearer, a foreign citizen, to apply to enter the United States temporarily for a specific purpose. Nonimmigrant visas are primarily classified according to the principal purpose of travel.

The Department's words. Glossary, archive copy of 11 July 2026.

A visa for a person who plans to live in the United States for all of life.

• Immigrant Visa: A visa for a person who plans to live indefinitely and permanently in the United States.

The Department's words. Glossary, archive copy of 11 July 2026.

Visitor visas. B1 is the code for a business visit. B2 is the code for a visit for tourism or for medical treatment. The wait-time table lists the two codes together.

• B-1: Business visitor
• B-2: Tourism, vacation, pleasure visitor
• B-2: Medical treatment, visitor for

The Department's words. Directory of Visa Categories, archive copy of 1 July 2026.

Visas for a student. The wait-time table lists F, M and J together.

• F, M: Student: academic, vocational

The Department's words. Directory of Visa Categories, archive copy of 1 July 2026.

A visa for an exchange visitor.

• J: Exchange visitor
• J: Professor, scholar, teacher (exchange visitor)

The Department's words. Directory of Visa Categories, archive copy of 1 July 2026.

Visas for a temporary worker or a trainee. H, L, O, P and Q visas are "petition-based": see the term Petition.

• H-1B: Specialty occupations in fields requiring highly specialized knowledge
• H-2A: Temporary agricultural worker
• H-2B: Temporary worker performing other services or labor of a temporary or seasonal nature.
• H-3: Training in a program not primarily for employment

The Department's words. Directory of Visa Categories, archive copy of 1 July 2026.

A visa for a worker that a company moves from one of its offices to another.

• L: Intra-company transferee

The Department's words. Directory of Visa Categories, archive copy of 1 July 2026.

A visa for a person with extraordinary ability.

• O: Foreign national with extraordinary ability in Sciences, Arts, Education, Business or Athletics

The Department's words. Directory of Visa Categories, archive copy of 1 July 2026.

A visa for an athlete, an artist or an entertainer who performs.

• P: Performing athlete, artist, entertainer

The Department's words. Directory of Visa Categories, archive copy of 1 July 2026.

A visa for a visitor in an international cultural exchange.

• Q: International cultural exchange visitor

The Department's words. Directory of Visa Categories, archive copy of 1 July 2026.

A visa for a person who passes through the United States on the way to another country. The wait-time table lists C, D and C1/D together as crew and transit.

• C: Transiting the United States

The Department's words. Directory of Visa Categories, archive copy of 1 July 2026.

A visa for a crew member of a ship or an aircraft.

• D: Crewmember

The Department's words. Directory of Visa Categories, archive copy of 1 July 2026.

A request that an employer or a family member sends to USCIS for an applicant. USCIS is U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Some visa classes need an approved petition before the visa application.

• Petitioner: A U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident family member or employer (or the employer's agent) who files a family-based or employment-based immigrant visa petition with USCIS.

The Department's words. Glossary, archive copy of 11 July 2026.

A monthly publication of the Department. For each category of immigrant visa and each chargeability area, it prints dates that decide who can go forward.

• This bulletin summarizes the availability of immigrant numbers during July for: “Final Action Dates” and “Dates for Filing Applications,” indicating when immigrant visa applicants should be notified to assemble and submit required documentation to the National Visa Center.

The Department's words. Visa Bulletin for July 2026, archive copy of 14 July 2026.

The date that gives an applicant a place in the line for an immigrant visa. It is usually the day on which the petition was filed.

• Priority Date: The priority date determines a person's turn to apply for an immigrant visa. In family immigration, the priority date is the date when the petition was filed at a DHS office or submitted to a U.S. Embassy or Consulate abroad. In employment immigration, the priority date may be the date the labor certification application was received by the Department of Labor (DOL).

The Department's words. Glossary, archive copy of 11 July 2026.

The date in the Visa Bulletin that shows which applicants can be scheduled for a visa interview in the month. An applicant with a priority date before this date can be scheduled.

• Final Action Dates: The date that determines whether a preference immigrant visa applicant can be scheduled for an immigrant visa interview in any given month.
• The final action date is the priority date of the first applicant who could not be scheduled for a visa interview for a given month.

The Department's words. Glossary, archive copy of 11 July 2026.

The date in the Visa Bulletin that shows which applicants can send their documents to the National Visa Center. An applicant with a priority date before this date can send them.

• The chart below reflects dates for filing visa applications within a timeframe justifying immediate action in the application process.
• The listing of a date for any category indicates that only applicants with a priority date which is earlier than the listed date may file their application.

The Department's words. Visa Bulletin for July 2026, archive copy of 14 July 2026.

The name for a final action date or a date for filing. On this site, "cut-off date" means one of these two dates. A page names the date that it shows.

• The terms current/non-current refer to the priority date of a petition in family or employment preference based immigrant visa cases in relationship to the immigrant cut-off date.

The Department's words. Glossary, archive copy of 11 July 2026.

The Visa Bulletin prints "C" when numbers are authorized for all qualified applicants. It prints "U" when numbers are not authorized. This site writes "Current" and "Unavailable".

• "C" means current, i.e., numbers are authorized for issuance to all qualified applicants; and "U" means unauthorized, i.e., numbers are not authorized for issuance.

The Department's words. Visa Bulletin for July 2026, archive copy of 14 July 2026.

The country or the area whose limit counts an applicant. It is usually the country of birth, not the country of the passport.

• Charge/Chargeable: There are numerical limits on the number of immigrant visas that can be granted to aliens from any one foreign country. This limit is the same for all countries. The limit is based on place of birth, not citizenship.

The Department's words. Glossary, archive copy of 11 July 2026.

A cut-off date that moves to an earlier day. On this site, "retrogressed 61 days" means that the date is 61 days earlier than in the bulletin before. "Advanced" means later.

• Retrogression: Sometimes a case that is current one month will not be current the next month. This occurs when the annual numerical limit has been reached.

The Department's words. Glossary, archive copy of 11 July 2026.

A group of immigrant visas for family members or for workers. F2A is a family group. EB-2 is a group for workers. Each group has its own cut-off dates.

• Preference Immigration: A system for determining which and when people can immigrate to the U.S. within the limits of immigration set by Congress.

The Department's words. Glossary, archive copy of 11 July 2026.

The office of the Department that handles the papers of immigrant visa applicants before the interview.

• National Visa Center (NVC): A Department of State facility located in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

The Department's words. Glossary, archive copy of 11 July 2026.

A visa that a post gave to an applicant in one month. The monthly tables count issued visas. They do not count applications.

• The reports below contain preliminary data which are subject to change.

The Department's words. Monthly Nonimmigrant Visa Issuance Statistics, archive copy of 3 July 2026.

The Department's yearly report of visa numbers. Every yearly figure on this site comes from this report.

• Instead, refer to our annual Report of the Visa Office for final full Fiscal Year statistics.

The Department's words. Monthly Nonimmigrant Visa Issuance Statistics, archive copy of 3 July 2026.

A year of the U.S. government. FY2025 is the time from 1 October 2024 to 30 September 2025.

• Fiscal Year: The budget year for the U.S. government. It begins on October 1 and ends on September 30 of the following year.

The Department's words. Glossary, archive copy of 11 July 2026.

The nationality that the Department's table gives for an applicant. It can be different from the country of the post and from the country of birth.

The Department gives no definition of this term. The explanation is this site's own.

The Department's refusal rate for B visas, by nationality, for one fiscal year. The Department publishes no rate for other classes or for a post.

• A 0.00% refusal rate could represent one of two situations: 1) all B visa applications adjudicated ended the fiscal year in an issued status (including any that were refused but then overcame all refusals) or 2) that there were no B visa applications adjudicated for the specified nationality and fiscal year.

The Department's words. Adjusted Refusal Rate, B-Visas Only, by Nationality, fiscal year 2025, archive copy of 1 May 2026.

The rate in the middle when a group of rates is put in order of size. Half of the rates are lower and half are higher. Statisticians call it the median.

The Department gives no definition of this term. The explanation is this site's own.

A yearly lottery for immigrant visas. A program year is named DV-2026 for fiscal year 2026.

• Diversity Visa Program: The Department of State has an annual lottery for immigration to the United States. Up to 55,000 immigrants can enter the United States each year from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States.

The Department's words. Glossary, archive copy of 11 July 2026.

The selectees and their spouses and children. The Department counts them by the country that is charged. This site shows the Department's count for each country.

• The following is the statistical breakdown by foreign state of chargeability of prospective applicants (i.e., selectees and their spouses and children) who have been registered for the DV-2026 program:

The Department's words. DV 2026 - Selected Entrants, archive copy of 24 May 2026.