Question: I am planning to travel to the United States in July and noticed on social media that I may be able to renew my visa through the mail. How do I begin? My visa is valid until August 25, 2022.
Answer: As the summer holidays approach, many Trinbagonians are eager to travel to the United States to visit family and friends or enjoy their summer vacations. Our Embassy team also looks forward to traveling during the summer! If you are planning to travel to the United States within the coming months, please first check your visa’s expiration date before booking any travel. U.S. visas remain valid for entry until the expiration date printed on the visa. If you are planning to renew your visa, we recommend that you travel and submit the application after you return. As a reminder, expedited processing is not available for mail-in visa renewals.
The Consular Section continues to process mail-in applications for those who qualify for the Personal Appearance Waiver (persons under 14 years old or over 80 years old) and applicants who qualify to renew their tourist visas through our mail-in program. Remember that your eligibility for mail-in visa renewal is determined by our online scheduling system at the time of registration. Once you are determined to be eligible for mail-in visa renewal, you will be placed into a virtual queue to await instructions from the Consular Section to mail in your passport and visa renewal application. Please make sure your contact information is accurate as you will be notified via email when your turn comes up in the virtual queue.
To avoid additional delays, please review the list of required documents carefully and do not send original documents apart from the passports. If you are required to submit documents such as a polymer birth certificate or evidence of a recent name change, please only submit copies of those documents.
If a consular officer determines that additional information is needed, you will be contacted to either schedule an appointment for an interview or mail in the required documents. Remember, all applicants are responsible for the accuracy of the information on their DS-160 application form and no one outside of the Consular Section can guarantee your visa’s approval or an earlier appointment. All visa fees must be paid at Scotiabank and there is no online payment option to pay this fee. Please avoid being scammed: Do not pay or provide your credit card information or your passport number to anyone claiming the ability to review your application or guarantee a visa approval.
All official information regarding non-immigrant visas can be found at tt.usembassy.gov/visas, travel.state.gov, or our online scheduling website ais.usvisa-info.com. In addition, you may call our Visa Call Center at 1-868-235-4500 Monday-Friday between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.