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Immigrant Visas

Step 3: Application

  • After your immediate family member submits a petition for you at the U.S. Consulate, he or she will be informed approximately when your case can be processed. Please be aware that there are backlogs in some categories of visas, and these backlogs mean that some people may have to wait a substantial amount of time before a case can be processed.
  • If your case cannot be processed immediately, you can follow the progression of your case by clicking on the “Priority Dates” link under "Useful Links" at left.
  • If there is no wait in your category, your immediate family member will be given Information Packet 3 with instructions on how to proceed with your case.
  • If your immediate family member files a petition at an USCIS office in the USA, USCIS will forward your case to the National Visa Center (NVC) for processing. The NVC will send information directly to your immediate family member or his/her designated agent in the United States.  It will be up to your family member or designated agent to communicate with you. When your case is ready for final processing, NVC will forward your case to the correct Consulate and send Information Packet 4 directly to your immediate family member or his/her designated agent in the United States who in turn will forward to you for proper action.
  • If your immediate family member files the petition in Jerusalem, and once you receive Information Packet 3, you must complete and return to this office the enclosed Form DS-230 Parts I and II, Application for Immigrant Visa and Alien Registration (Biographic Data). You may download form DS-230 here.  You may also send the form by mail directly to the American Consulate General, Visa Section, PO Box 290, 91002 Jerusalem, or leave it in a sealed envelope at the Consulate's reception desk, Monday through Friday, between 8:30 and 10:30 am. Do NOT send any other documents with this form.
  • Once these completed forms have been received, you will be scheduled for a visa interview. The Consulate will send you an appointment letter approximately one month in advance. It is not possible to predict when your interview will be scheduled since it may depend on the priority date for your visa category and country.
  • When you arrive for your appointment, you must pay a non-refundable processing fee of 355 US Dollars and a surcharge fee of 45 US Dollars. This will equal 400 US Dollars. All fees must be paid in cash or by credit card in dollars or shekels. We do not accept personal checks.  The fee is paid according to the prevailing rate of exchange between the U.S. dollar and the shekel.
  • In order to submit an application for an immigrant visa, you also need to know the following information:

Note:  All forms are in PDF format.  To read or download PDF files, the free Adobe Acrobat® reader is required.  If you do not have Adobe Reader, you may download the latest version from Abode.com.