HOW TO APPLY FOR USA TOURIST VISA FROM INDIA – A STEP BY STEP GUIDE

If you are planning to travel to the USA for tourism, you will need a tourist visa. Here is a step by step guide for you if you wish to apply for the USA Tourist Visa from India.

Before applying for visa, you must know about the visa requirements including the documents required to submit with your visa application. The document requirement depends upon the profile of visa applicant. Therefore, it is important to collect and arrange the documents according to your profile. Let us now have a look at the required documents according to different profiles.

COMMON DOCUMENTS

Irrespective of the profile of the applicant, here is a list of the common documents that are required to be submitted mandatorily while applying for tourist visa of the USA.

Passport – Passport is an essential travel document for travelling abroad and every applicant must possess a passport that is valid up to at least three months from travel date. The passport must also have at least two blank pages. We would like to recommend that if your passport is going to expire within six months, you must renew it before applying for visa.

Visa Application Form – To obtain USA non-immigrant visa, you must fill out the DS 160 application form on the USA Immigration website. As it I an online application, the applicant is not required to sign the application.

Note – Keep in mind! Avoid mistakes in the application form because your visa success depends on this form and any small or silly mistakes may result into rejection. Counselor Officer issues visa on the basis of the information that is provided by the applicant in the main application form.  Feel free to contact us to know more about information about the visa application form.

Family Information – The applicant is required to fill details about the all the family members in application form even his/her family members are not travelling with him/her. The information required includes –

·       DOB

·       Relation to applicant

·       Address

Financial Documents – During the USA visa interview, the visa officer may ask the applicant for his/her financial documents. Therefore, to avoid any confusion and hustle at that time, here is a list of the financial documents that you should arrange.

1.  Bank Statement

The USA Visa Consulate may ask for a bank statement to show money which the applicant is going to use while travelling. Therefore, the applicant must have the bank statement of last three months to show to the USA consulate general.

2.  Income Tax Return

If the applicant is working, he/she can also show the Income Tax Return of previous three years, if asked at the visa office. In case the applicant is working and is not having an ITR, he/she can also show Form 16 in exchange.

Note – Farmers can submit their Income Certificate from Tehsil of their district instead of ITR.

3.  Pan Card/Tax Number

Applicant must submit tax number document along with the visa application. In India, the tax number is given on the Pan Card, therefore, Indian citizens have to submit their Pan Card.

4.  CA Report/ Property Evaluation

Applicant can show a property evaluation report to show assets and financial ties in the home country in order to convince the visa Consulate that he/she will return back to the home country.

Travel Itinerary

To apply for USA tourist visa, the applicant must submit a travel itinerary to the Visa Consulate. Here is the list of documents for the travel itinerary.

·       Hotel Booking

·       Day to day travel plan

·      Pre-booked or dummy flight booking

Photographs and Biometric – The Visa Application Centre (VFS) will collect the applicant’s photograph and fingerprint before the day of interview.

These are some common documents that are required to be submitted while applying for USA Tourist Visa. However, there are some other documents that need to be deposited while applying for a Tourist Visa. These documents are as per their profession of the applicant. Lets us now have a look on it.

SPECIFIC DOCUMENTS

Apart from the above-mentioned common documents, various specific documents are also required depending upon the profile of the applicant.

If the Applicant is Self Employed – If the applicant is doing business or is otherwise self-employed, then these are the documents tha may be asked by the visa officer at the time of interview.

1)  For Proprietor – If the applicant is a proprietor, the following documents are needed –

·        Business Registration: The applicant must have a valid registration certificate from the government or authorization. In India, you can show a GST registration certificate or MSME registration certificate.

·        Tax invoice or sale/purchase bill.

·        The applicant can also submit rent agreement copy or shop ownership certificate.

·        Current account: The visa officer can also ask for current account details of the applicant.

2)   For Partnership – If the applicant is doing business in partnership, then visa officer may ask for some extra documents during the visa interview. These documents include –

·        Partnership Deed

·        Current Account

·        Company Tax Number: Company’s Tax Number or a PAN Card in the name of the company.

·        Balance Sheet: The balance sheet is also a recommended document for getting visa as it shows the annual income of the applicant from the business.

3)   For Farmers – If the applicant is in the business of farming and is planning to apply for USA Tourist Visa, he must also carry these documents –

·       Income certificate (If not having an ITR).

·       J form which is for the sale receipt of the crops.

·       Agriculture land registration proof

·       Purchase receipts of pesticides on the applicant’s name.

·      Purchase receipts of agriculture machinery on the applicant’s name.

4)  If involved in Dairy Farming – In case of dairy farming, following documents must be carried by the applicant –

·       Receipt of milk sale.

·       Any pet animal insurance receipts.

·      Money receiving proof (in account).

If the Applicant is doing Job – Those who are doing a job in any company need to carry the following documents while going for the interview –

1)  NOC (No Objection Certificate) – The applicant will get a no objection certificate from the company in which he/she is working. In this letter, the employer will mention that they do not have any objection if the applicant is travelling to USA for tourism.

2)  Salary Slips

3)  Salary statement

USA VISA APPLICATION FEES

The USA, multiple tourist visa application fee is $160 USD per applicant which is equivalent to approximately 12,000 INR.

Visa application fee is non-refundable.

STEP BY STEP PROCESS FOR ONLINE VISA APPLICATION

If you are looking to apply for USA Tourist Visa, then you should follow these steps –

Step 1: Create DS160 account online (Be careful while filling all the details as it may affect The USA tourist visa decision).

Step 2: Fill the DS160 Application Form.

Step 3: Recheck all the details and submit the DS160 form online.

Step 4: After submitting the form, you will receive confirmation. Take a print of the confirmation.

Step 5: Create an account on US docs.

Step 6: Pay the USA visa application fee online or via axis bank.

Step 7: Book biometric and visa interview appointment. You will have to visit VFS for biometric and Embassy for interview.

Step 8: The visa decision will be taken on the spot and the same will be intimated to you.

Step 9: Visa will be stamped within two or three days.

Step 10: You can collect your passport from VFS or it will be sent through courier to your address.

As the validity of USA visa is 10 years, you can travel multiple times within your visa validity.

DO’S AND DON’TS

Here are some points that should be kept in mind while applying for USA Tourist Visa.

Do’s

·       Apply at least six to eight weeks before travel date for best and smooth process.

·       Fill up DS160 form carefully.

Don’ts

·       Never submit false documents with the application as it may result into refusal and five years ban.

·      Don’t hide refusal if you are refused from any country.

TIPS

1.   At the time of departure, carry all the important documents because visa officer may ask you at the time of entry in the USA border.

2.   Travel visa is a short stay visa. So, at the airport, you will get entry permit for some days or some months but you will not be able to stay there for more than six months even if you have ten years multiple tourist visa.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT USA TOURIST VISA

Can I work during a tourist visa?

No, you are not allowed to work in the USA while on Tourist Visa.

Can I apply for Citizenship while in the USA on tourism?

No, as you are on a tourist visa, so you are not allowed to apply for Citizenship. Moreover, we will not recommend you to breach any immigration law.

Can I join study in the USA during tourism?

No, but you can apply for a student visitor visa to study for a short period.

What if my visa expires while I am still in the USA?

You must return to your home country before your visa expires. However, if there is a genuine reason to stay, you must apply for the visa extension.

HOW CAN BLUEBIRD TRIVO HELP YOU?

We are a team of experienced and qualified members. We are in the visa industry since 2015 and have processed thousands of successful visa applications. We are providing online and offline visa services for more 55 countries. Not just Indian citizens but people of other countries also take our services online despite of their nationalities.

If you are looking to apply for a non-immigrant visa for the USA in any of the categories, you can rely upon us and we assure the best guidance on every single step. Our team helps the applicants in filling out their visa application forms, writing covering letters, arranging documents, preparing for interviews (if required), making itinerary, and guiding them in collecting essential documents required for successfully obtaining visa.

HOW DO WE WORK?

When the applicants submit their visa application online on Bluebird Trivo portal, our team members contact the applicants through phone and email within few hours for further steps.

The applicant can also submit the required documents on our portal or send it to us via email. The applicants can also submit the documents through WhatsApp for easily initiating the application process.

We process the visa application within 24 hours of receiving all the required documents. So, if you are looking to apply for the USA Tourist Visa, you should definitely get in touch with our team and we will provide you the best services to ensure easy visa approval.

Note: Visa documents checklist depends upon the applicant’s nationality as the citizens of some countries are covered under visa waiver program, because of which, they do not require visa for traveling to the USA. Such people can easily get entry permit at the port of entry.