The United States Embassy in Accra says the number of Ghanaians applying for Visas to America has shot up significantly and is even outstripping the increased resources allocated to process visa applications speedily.
Although the US mission concedes the movement of people between the two nations will enhance its people-to-people relations with Ghana, there is an emerging constraint where the demand for US visas has tripled since 2019 hence creating the backlog.
The remarks are coming at a time when the US Embassy plans to migrate all Visa applications onto a new system starting August 16.
Speaking at a roundtable at the US Embassy in Accra, American Consul General in Ghana Elliot Fertik noted that in a certain sense, the demand is very flattering for the United States especially as the numbers could be interpreted to mean a lot of Ghanaians want to go to the United States to visit temporarily.
“I’ve said before that if you look at the number of people who paid the visa application fee in 2019 before the pandemic and compare it to the number of people who did so in 2023, the number in 2023 is triple what it was in 2019. So certainly, we hope this new system will provide some additional enhancements and will be more efficient” Mr Fertik noted.
He added “We’re seeing it’s not just non-immigrant visas on the immigrant visa side. Diversity visa. Again, the numbers are through the roof. And, you know, we want to encourage as much legitimate travel between the United States and Ghana as we can. It is incredibly important to us. We want to encourage qualified students to study in the United States. And that’s why, as I said, that’s why we’ve had to bring more resources to doing interviews. Unfortunately, the demand is outstripping even the increased resources we’ve had and we’re going to continue increasing our resources”.
The U.S. Embassy in Accra’s transition to a new visa services provider is set to take effect on August 26, 2024. This change will affect access to the current visa service provider’s website and services, which will cease on August 16, 2024.
Consequently, between August 16 and August 26, applicants will not be able to make new visa appointments, cancel or reschedule existing appointments, or access customer service. All existing nonimmigrant visa interview appointments will remain valid through this period.
Key Details for Visa Applicants:
Interviews on or Before August 16:
No further action is required.
Continue to access your account at ustraveldocs.com to review appointment details and contact customer service as needed.
Interviews between August 16 and August 26:
No further action is required, but you will lose access to your ustraveldocs.com account after August 16. Print your appointment confirmation letter before August 16.
Attend your scheduled visa interview as rescheduling or cancellation will not be possible during this period. If you miss your interview, check the website after August 26 for rescheduling instructions.
Interviews on or After August 26:
No further action is required, but access to your ustraveldocs.com account will end on August 16. Print your appointment confirmation letter before August 16.
Beginning August 26, visit the new visa services website to create a new user account for managing appointments and accessing customer service.
For Applicants Who Have Paid the Visa Application Fee:
Schedule a visa appointment as soon as possible and follow the guidance based on your interview date.
For Those Planning to Travel to the U.S. in August or September:
Pay the visa application fee and schedule your appointment promptly. Note that appointment slots are limited during these months.
For Those Planning to Travel After September:
Consider waiting until after August 26 to begin the visa application process.
Important Dates to Remember:
August 16: Last day to access ustraveldocs.com for fee payments, appointment scheduling, and customer service.
August 21: Last day to drop off documents at Premium Delivery locations.
August 23: Last day to drop off documents at Ghana locations for Embassy delivery.
August 26: New visa appointment website goes live with updated services.
The U.S. Embassy encourages all applicants to take necessary actions before the transition to avoid any disruptions in their visa application process.
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