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Riyadh · Saudi Arabia · December 2023
Visas issued at Riyadh in December 2023
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.
Nonimmigrant classes
| Class | Description (State Department) | Dec 2023 | Share | Nov 2023 | Dec 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| B1/B2 | Temporary visitor for business and pleasure | 3,156 | 76.2% | 3,650 | 4,401 |
| A2 | Other foreign government official or employee, or immediate family | 395 | 9.5% | 369 | 177 |
| F1 | Student in an academic or language training program | 267 | 6.4% | 95 | 411 |
| F2 | Spouse or child of F1 | 77 | 1.9% | 42 | 131 |
| H4 | Spouse or child of H-1B/B1/C, H-2A/B, or H-3 | 34 | 0.8% | 30 | 19 |
| B1 | Temporary visitor for business | 32 | 0.8% | 22 | 54 |
| H1B | Temporary worker of distinguished merit and ability performing services other than as a registered nurse | 29 | 0.7% | 19 | 22 |
| D | Crewmember (sea or air) | 26 | 0.6% | 21 | 10 |
| J1 | Exchange visitor | 22 | 0.5% | 12 | 17 |
| C1/D | Combined transit and crewmember visa | 18 | 0.4% | 24 | 21 |
| J2 | Spouse or child of exchange visitor | 18 | 0.4% | 18 | 15 |
| A1 | Ambassador, public minister, career diplomat or consular officer, or immediate family | 17 | 0.4% | 3 | 9 |
| L2 | Spouse or child of intracompany transferee | 17 | 0.4% | 2 | 3 |
| M1 | Vocational student and other nonacademic student | 14 | 0.3% | 4 | 22 |
| L1 | Intracompany transferee (executive, managerial, and specialized personnel continuing employment with international firm or corporation) | 9 | 0.2% | 4 | 4 |
| C1 | Alien in transit | 3 | 0.1% | 0 | 0 |
| A3 | Attendant, servant, or personal employee of A1 or A2, or immediate family | 2 | 0% | 6 | 6 |
| G2 | Other representative of recognized foreign member government to international organization, and immediate family | 2 | 0% | 18 | 26 |
| K1 | Fiance(e) of U.S. citizen | 2 | 0% | 9 | 1 |
| O1 | Person with extraordinary ability in sciences, arts, education, business or athletics | 2 | 0% | 1 | 1 |
| G1 | Principal resident representative of recognized foreign government to international organization, staff, or immediate family | 1 | 0% | 0 | 0 |
| G4 | International organization officer or employee, and immediate family | 1 | 0% | 6 | 2 |
Immigrant classes
| Class | Description (State Department) | Dec 2023 | Share | Nov 2023 | Dec 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| E3 | Employment third preference: skilled worker or professional holding baccalaureate degree, spouse and child (E31, E32, E34, E35) | 27 | 20.9% | 36 | 43 |
| IR1 | Spouse of U.S. citizen | 22 | 17.1% | 14 | 9 |
| DV | Diversity immigrant (DV1, DV2, DV3) | 20 | 15.5% | 15 | 27 |
| E2 | Employment second preference: professional holding advanced degree or alien of exceptional ability, spouse and child (E21-E23) | 20 | 15.5% | 38 | 6 |
| IR5 | Parent of U.S. citizen at least 21 years of age | 18 | 14% | 29 | 10 |
| CR1 | Spouse of U.S. citizen (conditional status) | 7 | 5.4% | 3 | 3 |
| E1 | Employment first preference (priority workers): person with extraordinary ability, outstanding professor or researcher, multinational executive or manager, spouse and child (E11-E15) | 6 | 4.7% | 0 | 0 |
| F3 | Family third preference: married son or daughter of U.S. citizen, spouse and child (F31, F32, F33, C31-C33, B31-B33) | 5 | 3.9% | 0 | 0 |
| IR2 | Child of U.S. citizen | 2 | 1.6% | 5 | 3 |
| F1 | Family first preference: unmarried son or daughter of U.S. citizen, and child (F11, F12, B11, B12) | 1 | 0.8% | 0 | 1 |
| FX | Family second preference, exempt from country limitations: spouse or child of lawful permanent resident (FX1, FX2, FX3, CX1-CX3, BX1-BX3) | 1 | 0.8% | 0 | 2 |
Context
| December 2023 | Riyadh | All posts |
|---|---|---|
| Nonimmigrant visas | 4,144 | 755,973 |
| Change on previous month | -5% | -7% |
| Change on same month a year earlier | -23% | +1% |
| Immigrant visas | 129 | 46,279 |
Nearest wait-time reading on or before the end of Dec 2023 (17 Dec 2023): B1/B2 next available 24 days; F, M, J 11 days; H, L, O, P, Q 2 days.
Other months at this post: Sep 2025 · Aug 2025 · Jul 2025 · Jun 2025 · May 2025 · Apr 2025 · Mar 2025 · Feb 2025 · Jan 2025 · Dec 2024 · Nov 2024 · Oct 2024 · Sep 2024 · Aug 2024 · Jul 2024 · Jun 2024 · May 2024 · Apr 2024 · Mar 2024 · Feb 2024 · Jan 2024 · Nov 2023 · Oct 2023. Back to the Riyadh page.
Questions and answers
How many visas did Riyadh issue in December 2023?
4,144 nonimmigrant visas and 129 immigrant visas, per the State Department's monthly tables for December 2023. That was the 44th largest nonimmigrant count among 217 posts that month.
How did December 2023 compare with the month before and a year earlier at Riyadh?
November 2023: 4,356 nonimmigrant visas (-5% to Dec 2023). December 2022: 5,357 (-23%).
Which classes made up the month?
B1/B2 3,156 (76.2%), A2 395 (9.5%), F1 267 (6.4%), F2 77 (1.9%), H4 34 (0.8%).
Provenance
Source: U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs, Monthly Nonimmigrant Visa Issuances by Post and Visa Class and Monthly Immigrant Visa Issuances by Post and Visa Class for December 2023, public domain. Data through 30 Sep 2025. See corrections.