Months › January 2020
January 2020 · all posts · fiscal year 2020
U.S. visa issuances in January 2020 222 posts in the month's tables · nonimmigrant issuances +3% on Dec 2019
The reports below contain preliminary data which are subject to change. Beginning with FY 2020, individual monthly issuance reports should not be aggregated, as this will not provide an accurate issuance total for the fiscal year to date. Instead, refer to our annual Report of the Visa Office for final full Fiscal Year statistics.
U.S. posts issued 670,211 nonimmigrant visas in January 2020, about the same as the 650,760 of the previous month and -2% against the same month a year earlier (685,917).
43,136 immigrant visas were issued in the month, against 39,557 a year earlier.
The largest posts were Mexico City (52,503), Mumbai (25,113) and Sao Paulo (24,632); 222 posts appear in the month's tables.
B1/B2 at 58.8%, BBBCC at 15.8% and H1B at 3.8% made up the largest shares of the month's nonimmigrant issuances.
670,211 nonimmigrant visas -2% vs Jan 2019
43,136 immigrant visas +9% vs a year earlier
+3% vs Dec 2019 650,760 then
58.8% share of B1/B2
Worldwide nonimmigrant issuances, 24 months to Jan 2020 0 444,225 888,450 Visitors Students and exchange visitors Temporary workers Diplomatic, official and international organisation Transit and crew Other nonimmigrant classes Feb 2018 May 2018 Aug 2018 Nov 2018 Feb 2019 May 2019 Aug 2019 Nov 2019 Feb 2018: 617,797 (Visitors 484,183, Students and exchange visitors 24,459, Temporary workers 70,236, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 12,231, Transit and crew 24,965, Other nonimmigrant classes 1,723) Mar 2018: 819,645 (Visitors 643,876, Students and exchange visitors 44,798, Temporary workers 85,250, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 15,922, Transit and crew 27,280, Other nonimmigrant classes 2,519) Apr 2018: 859,147 (Visitors 643,408, Students and exchange visitors 70,905, Temporary workers 101,082, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 16,029, Transit and crew 24,786, Other nonimmigrant classes 2,937) May 2018: 888,450 (Visitors 650,161, Students and exchange visitors 112,513, Temporary workers 80,051, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 17,199, Transit and crew 25,225, Other nonimmigrant classes 3,301) Jun 2018: 882,279 (Visitors 624,514, Students and exchange visitors 128,895, Temporary workers 85,006, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 16,073, Transit and crew 24,665, Other nonimmigrant classes 3,126) Jul 2018: 884,357 (Visitors 613,653, Students and exchange visitors 141,304, Temporary workers 84,726, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 15,617, Transit and crew 26,095, Other nonimmigrant classes 2,962) Aug 2018: 824,176 (Visitors 618,184, Students and exchange visitors 75,488, Temporary workers 83,785, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 15,715, Transit and crew 27,830, Other nonimmigrant classes 3,174) Sep 2018: 620,175 (Visitors 488,328, Students and exchange visitors 26,025, Temporary workers 60,630, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 18,270, Transit and crew 24,130, Other nonimmigrant classes 2,792) Oct 2018: 699,265 (Visitors 564,123, Students and exchange visitors 26,875, Temporary workers 61,230, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 14,216, Transit and crew 29,744, Other nonimmigrant classes 3,077) Nov 2018: 634,246 (Visitors 489,433, Students and exchange visitors 38,840, Temporary workers 67,576, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 11,279, Transit and crew 24,329, Other nonimmigrant classes 2,789) Dec 2018: 605,652 (Visitors 444,233, Students and exchange visitors 52,715, Temporary workers 74,956, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 8,946, Transit and crew 22,110, Other nonimmigrant classes 2,692) Jan 2019: 685,917 (Visitors 528,521, Students and exchange visitors 36,895, Temporary workers 80,587, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 11,828, Transit and crew 25,092, Other nonimmigrant classes 2,994) Feb 2019: 628,837 (Visitors 495,945, Students and exchange visitors 23,880, Temporary workers 69,287, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 11,728, Transit and crew 24,611, Other nonimmigrant classes 3,386) Mar 2019: 784,192 (Visitors 598,448, Students and exchange visitors 44,475, Temporary workers 93,916, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 16,372, Transit and crew 26,911, Other nonimmigrant classes 4,070) Apr 2019: 808,859 (Visitors 594,891, Students and exchange visitors 76,459, Temporary workers 93,185, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 14,751, Transit and crew 25,982, Other nonimmigrant classes 3,591) May 2019: 857,267 (Visitors 611,197, Students and exchange visitors 116,438, Temporary workers 84,354, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 16,543, Transit and crew 24,466, Other nonimmigrant classes 4,269) Jun 2019: 782,583 (Visitors 515,297, Students and exchange visitors 128,342, Temporary workers 98,653, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 14,378, Transit and crew 21,696, Other nonimmigrant classes 4,217) Jul 2019: 810,378 (Visitors 542,277, Students and exchange visitors 136,399, Temporary workers 86,846, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 16,106, Transit and crew 24,445, Other nonimmigrant classes 4,305) Aug 2019: 742,031 (Visitors 539,204, Students and exchange visitors 76,364, Temporary workers 80,776, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 15,435, Transit and crew 25,947, Other nonimmigrant classes 4,305) Sep 2019: 646,938 (Visitors 503,868, Students and exchange visitors 25,705, Temporary workers 68,955, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 18,391, Transit and crew 26,260, Other nonimmigrant classes 3,759) Oct 2019: 710,468 (Visitors 562,206, Students and exchange visitors 27,405, Temporary workers 72,570, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 15,205, Transit and crew 29,023, Other nonimmigrant classes 4,059) Nov 2019: 613,287 (Visitors 465,801, Students and exchange visitors 38,705, Temporary workers 70,801, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 10,739, Transit and crew 23,903, Other nonimmigrant classes 3,338) Dec 2019: 650,760 (Visitors 465,750, Students and exchange visitors 56,480, Temporary workers 92,691, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 8,661, Transit and crew 23,746, Other nonimmigrant classes 3,432) Jan 2020: 670,211 (Visitors 508,665, Students and exchange visitors 34,569, Temporary workers 85,978, Diplomatic, official and international organisation 10,848, Transit and crew 26,940, Other nonimmigrant classes 3,211) Nonimmigrant visas issued worldwide by month, stacked by broad class group.
Largest posts in Jan 2020 Post Country Nonimmigrant Immigrant vs prior month vs year earlier Mexico City Mexico 52,503 0 +6% +16% Mumbai India 25,113 2,231 +12% +23% Sao Paulo Brazil 24,632 0 +14% 0% Monterrey Mexico 23,902 0 +23% +8% Chennai India 22,232 0 -1% +25% Shanghai China 20,655 0 -18% -33% Bogota Colombia 19,100 525 +28% +17% Guadalajara Mexico 17,722 0 +13% +12% Manila Philippines 17,703 1,520 +21% +2% Beijing China 17,446 0 -26% -46% New Delhi India 15,378 59 +5% +4% Buenos Aires Argentina 14,684 42 -6% -16% Hyderabad India 14,628 0 +5% +24% Guangzhou China 14,497 2,906 -40% -38% Tel Aviv Israel 12,987 0 +9% -11% Tijuana Mexico 10,843 0 +27% +6% London United Kingdom 10,577 279 +28% -1% Santo Domingo Dominican Republic 10,460 3,534 +30% +48% Lima Peru 10,009 355 +10% +14% Guayaquil Ecuador 8,460 445 +17% -4% Hermosillo Mexico 7,968 0 +11% +68% Rio de Janeiro Brazil 7,691 288 +2% -31% Ciudad Juarez Mexico 7,491 5,554 +10% +9% Quito Ecuador 7,437 0 +51% -5% Toronto Canada 7,306 0 +26% +8%
Biggest movers on the previous month Posts with at least 200 nonimmigrant issuances in both months. A move in the count is a move in visas issued; it does not by itself say anything about demand or approval rates.
Largest falls Post Dec 2019 Jan 2020 Change Shenyang 4,333 1,928 -56% Guangzhou 24,073 14,497 -40% Matamoros 8,465 5,426 -36% Kyiv 4,969 3,232 -35% Chengdu 5,744 3,895 -32% Dhaka 1,828 1,249 -32% Ho Chi Minh City 7,935 5,546 -30% Kinshasa 441 317 -28%
Visa classes in Jan 2020 Nonimmigrant Class Issued Share B1/B2 Temporary visitor for business and pleasure 394,358 58.8% BBBCC Combination B-1/B-2 and Border Crossing Card 105,827 15.8% H1B Temporary worker of distinguished merit and abil 25,477 3.8% C1/D Combined transit and crewmember visa 24,986 3.7% F1 Student in an academic or language training prog 15,739 2.3% J1 Exchange visitor 14,380 2.1% H2A Temporary worker performing agricultural service 13,083 2% H4 Spouse or child of H-1B/B1/C, H-2A/B, or H-3 12,246 1.8% L1 Intracompany transferee (executive, managerial, 6,839 1% A2 Other foreign government official or employee, o 6,691 1% L2 Spouse or child of intracompany transferee 6,454 1% H2B Temporary worker performing other services 4,902 0.7% BBBCV Combination B-1/B-2 and Border Crossing Card (Li 4,732 0.7% E2 Treaty investor, spouse or child 3,263 0.5% B1 Temporary visitor for business 2,852 0.4%
Immigrant Class Issued Share IR5 Parent of U.S. citizen at least 21 years of age 5,883 13.6% IR1 Spouse of U.S. citizen 5,663 13.1% F43 Immigrant visa class F43 (no description in the 3,144 7.3% IR2 Child of U.S. citizen 2,792 6.5% FX1 Immigrant visa class FX1 (no description in the 2,662 6.2% F41 Immigrant visa class F41 (no description in the 2,626 6.1% CR1 Spouse of U.S. citizen (conditional status) 2,099 4.9% F42 Immigrant visa class F42 (no description in the 1,827 4.2% FX2 Immigrant visa class FX2 (no description in the 1,794 4.2% DV1 Immigrant visa class DV1 (no description in the 1,474 3.4% F24 Immigrant visa class F24 (no description in the 1,406 3.3% F25 Immigrant visa class F25 (no description in the 1,059 2.5%
Jan in other years Month Nonimmigrant Immigrant Jan 2019 685,917 39,557 Jan 2020 670,211 43,136 Jan 2021 138,544 11,880 Jan 2022 414,383 33,039 Jan 2023 842,689 44,495 Jan 2024 875,162 50,517 Jan 2025 954,595 54,288
Questions and answers How many U.S. visas were issued in January 2020? 670,211 nonimmigrant visas and 43,136 immigrant visas, according to the State Department's monthly tables, which the Department describes as preliminary.
Which posts issued the most visas in January 2020? Mexico City (52,503), Mumbai (25,113), Sao Paulo (24,632), Monterrey (23,902) and Chennai (22,232).
Which posts changed most in January 2020? Among posts with at least 200 issuances in both months, the largest rises on the previous month were Johannesburg (+98%), Florence (+74%) and Bangkok (+67%) and the largest falls Shenyang (-56%), Guangzhou (-40%) and Matamoros (-36%).
Where does this data come from? The State Department's monthly nonimmigrant and immigrant visa issuance tables by post and visa class for January 2020. Data through 30 Sep 2025.
Provenance Source: U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs, Monthly Nonimmigrant and Immigrant Visa Issuances by Post and Visa Class for January 2020, public domain. Data through 30 Sep 2025. See corrections .