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As we move into summer, many foreign national employees will be taking trips abroad for vacation, to visit family and possibly to renew their visas while outside of the country.
While we continue to experience a general increase in visa appointments, an exciting improvement after the delays and lack of availability over the last couple of years, there are still many spots where backlogs exist. The backlogs could be due to a shortage of consular staff managing the post, specific types of visas that are being prioritized or the inability of a location to support the number of visa applications they’re receiving.
One of the great services BAL provides is U.S. consular support. Via this service, we offer real time visibility into appointment calendars around the world. There are a lot of variables in how we can help our clients be successful depending on the type of visa and the current backlog in the location where they need to file.
Here are three tips to manage the variables as best as possible and ensure foreign nationals have the best chance of success for their summer travel plans.
The first tip, and the most important for me, is encouraging applicants to check:
It is difficult to catch up on an applicant’s status if they are in between time frames. Many people forget that the visa has one expiration date, but their underlying status also has an expiration date, and it’s important that both of those are valid. I’ve had many clients who planned summer travel but were only able to get a very limited amount of time because their underlying status hadn’t been extended.
To get the most out of their immigration status, foreign nationals should make sure they have the right documentation ready to extend it. Think about it not just as getting a visa, but how it extends their overall immigration status in the United States.
I always recommend applicants secure their appointment first, then get the travel plans on the calendar. It’s disappointing to an applicant when they have travel plans booked and I can’t get a date for them in that limited window of time, especially when consulates and embassies are seeing hundreds or even thousands of people every single day.
However, if we initiate the process in a timely manner, we will be able to discuss potential travel dates before they’re solidified, our team can identify where a consulate could accommodate the desired travel dates. Or if they are flexible and can move the trip a week or two, they can get an appointment with their preferred consulates due to greater availability.
It is also important to note that it may take longer in the summertime for the overall processing to happen, especially for those traveling to Europe – particularly Paris – with the Olympic and Paralympic games. Services are going to be very limited this summer in Paris, and in-person appointments might not even be available at all except for life and death emergencies. We are also finding that availability for third country national filings throughout Europe continue to be limited for foreign nationals who are not residents in that location.
Considering all the potential obstacles, I can’t emphasize it enough: let’s get the appointment on the calendar, then plan your travel.
I won’t have a lot of fans on this one, but my third tip is to not just assume that an interview waiver is going to be the faster option. The State Department highlights the interview waiver process as an advantage, and I think it is an advantage for many people, but it won’t necessarily result in a faster turnaround time for approval.
We normally see the consulate turn the visa around within five to seven business days after an interview, whereas interview waivers can take up to ten to fifteen business days. A lot of it has to do with the immediacy of an interview: the consulate has the foreign national’s passport in hand and will complete the process in the moment. On the other hand, while it’s convenient to mail in the application for the interview waiver, there’s also no telling when the consulate will actually pick it up, adjudicate it and turn it around.
It really comes down to the individual circumstances. If the foreign national plans to be in the country for multiple weeks and qualifies for an interview waiver, it’s a great option. Otherwise, I would recommend moving forward with the interview.
A question I’ve heard many times is, “what if I can’t get a visa interview?” In that case, there is the option of utilizing what’s commonly referred to as an expedite request. The way you approach these requests is completely unique to each consulate, but it generally involves the applicant asking the U.S. consulate to prioritize them over other visa applicants due to extenuating circumstances.
These extenuating circumstances – the ‘why’ behind the request – are crucial. You need to be able to explain why your case is so important that it needs to be taken care of now. When I’m able to approach the consulate with a solid answer to that question, it gives us a chance to have the request accepted.
I recommend that anyone who finds themselves in this urgent situation first review the appointment calendar and take the first available option, then submit the request. From there we can finalize the ‘why’ and work with the consulate to identify a gap in their schedule.
Happy traveling to everybody.
The State Department publishes a proposal on allowing third parties at interviews for U.S. citizen services. Foreign musicians and artists express concern about proposed filing fee increases. And a look at how passport applications have swamped the State Department — and what that means for business.
Get this news and more in the new episode of BAL’s podcast, the BAL Immigration Report, available on Apple, Spotify and Google Podcasts or on the BAL news site.
This alert has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice group.
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Beyond ruining tourists’ travel plans, U.S. passport delays are snarling companies’ ability to conduct their affairs abroad, and the disruptions to operations are impacting everyone from C-suite executives to field technicians who are required to travel.
Getting a passport or renewing one used to be a reliable, straightforward process taking about two to four weeks. COVID changed that. Even in this post-pandemic world, travelers now may face months of delays, spoiling vacation and business plans abroad, due to backlogs and understaffing at the U.S. State Department.
We sat down with BAL Senior Counsel Tiffany Derentz and Immigration Manager Paulina Morelos to learn what is causing the delays, how companies are being impacted and what they can do.
Q: Tiffany, you’re a member of BAL’s Government Strategies team and a former State Department official. What is the State Department saying about the unprecedented passport delays?
Derentz: There are a few factors impacting passport processing: First, there was a surge back in 2017, following record passport issuance in 2007, and increased demand nearly every year since then. Second, the department never fully recovered from the backlogs created between 2017 and 2019. And third, the COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted consular services.
A record 22 million U.S. passports were issued in fiscal year 2022, and the State Department expects 2023 numbers will exceed that. With COVID restrictions finally easing, weekly passport applications were up as much as 40% above 2022 numbers in the first quarter this year, according to Secretary of State Antony Blinken in a recent press report. The State Department was receiving 500,000 applications per week through May this year, and around 400,000 per week during peak summer travel months. In a recent social media post, the department said it has authorized up to 40,000 overtime hours per month to try to keep up with demand. More Americans have U.S. passports today than at any time in our history.
Q: Can’t someone just go to a State Department Passport Agency in the nearest metro area to file a passport application directly, and wouldn’t that help to shorten processing times?
Derentz: Previously, yes, a U.S. citizen could make an appointment to visit a nearby Passport Agency and apply in person. However, demand is so high, in-person appointments are simply not available right now.
Q: Is it true other requirements have also been added to the expedited service process?
Derentz: The State Department breaks services down into four categories: (1) routine, (2) expedited, (3) urgent travel and (4) emergency. The latter three categories require that the international travel be within a certain time frame, and some applicants have been asked to provide proof of a travel itinerary. Many individuals are finding themselves in quite a stressful situation — they need their passport within a number of days but have no certainty whatsoever that they will have it back in time for their travel.
Q: Paulina, what kinds of disruptions are businesses experiencing due to their employees’ passport delays?
Morelos: Passport delays can lead do any number of disruptions to business travel, including missing important meetings. Companies can also face staffing gaps if workers’ passports expire and they are unable to travel. Sometimes it is workers’ children’s passports that cause delays. Newborns need passports, and children’s passports are good for only five years.
Second passports are often needed for frequent travelers because, when they need to apply for visas for certain places, their primary passport stays with the consulate office in the U.S. while the visa is processed. Travelers need to submit a letter from their employers justifying the business need they have for the individual to hold more than one passport.
Q: What does it take to get an emergency passport?
Morelos: To qualify for one, a person must prove a medical, family or business emergency and provide specific documents. Although it is easier to get an emergency passport at a U.S. consulate abroad, getting an appointment for one is difficult because appointments are limited.
Q: What other ramifications should people be aware of?
Morelos: Another consideration is, because the need is so great, we are seeing more scams. There are many online companies promising expedited passport services, but buyer beware! People are paying these companies high fees only to discover they are then stuck waiting the same processing time for the government to process their applications.
Q: What can companies do to help their employees and avoid the business disruptions we’ve discussed?
Morelos: Companies can inform their employees about the reality of today’s lengthy passport processing delays to help them plan accordingly. Also, BAL offers reliable expedited passport processing services. The caveat is that people must reach out to the firm before they apply for the passports themselves. Once the application process has started, we cannot assist. They would need to either wait until the passport is issued or withdraw their application.
In most cases, if corporate clients are proactive and can notify BAL of an employee’s need to travel on a specific date or within a certain time frame, the firm can obtain passports in as little as five to 10 business days after applying for them. Current wait times otherwise can stretch up to 15 weeks.
Q: How can people reach you for more information on BAL’s expedited passport processing service?
Morelos: They are welcome to contact their BAL attorney or global_initiation@bal.com.
Tiffany Derentz leads BAL’s Washington, D.C. office. Tiffany joined BAL after nearly a decade with the U.S. State Department in the Bureau of Consular Affairs and as a senior adviser to the Chief Legal Adviser for immigration affairs. Tiffany served as a consular officer at multiple posts overseas and has experience adjudicating U.S. passport applications. She has direct in-person experience working with consular sections worldwide as well as the Passport Office.
With travel disrupted for much of the past year, employees who are U.S. nationals may not have needed to renew their passports. But now that travel is beginning to pick up again, they should be aware of passport processing times and plan well in advance of travel.
Many U.S. passport services were suspended last year due to COVID-19. Passport agencies stopped taking emergency appointments or offering expedited processing, resulting in a wait of several months to obtain a passport. In 2020, 11.7 million U.S. passports were issued, a sharp decline from 20.7 million issued in 2019. Although U.S. passport services have gradually reopened for mail-in service and expedited processing is once again available via mail-in service only, no in-person appointments are available. In addition, emergency appointments are extremely limited and reserved for life-or-death situations, such as needing to travel within 72 hours for a life-saving medical treatment.
Because U.S. passports agencies and consulates overseas are coping with severe backlogs and remain understaffed, applicants should continue to plan for extended delays. As of Oct. 1, 2020, the last time the government provided the figures, 923,000 passport applications remained pending. At this time, routine processing for a passport is taking 10-12 weeks and expedited processing is taking at least 4-6 weeks.
What to expect this year? With COVID-19 lingering into 2021, U.S. passport applicants should anticipate current processing times to remain the same. That said, should we experience new surges or see new variants of COVID-19 continue to emerge, applicants should be prepared for additional actions by the Department of State, which may suspend expedited processing or result in new processing delays.
U.S. nationals should take steps now to prepare for upcoming travel, even if they are not planning to travel for several months. If their passport is set to expire this year, they should renew immediately and not wait for a return to “normal,” as the pandemic remains fluid and continues to threaten normal processing times. Travelers should also check their passport’s expiration date and make sure that it will remain valid beyond their travel. Most countries require an inbound traveler’s passport is valid for at least three months beyond the travel dates; and other countries require six months. Additionally, some airlines do not allow passengers to board if their passport does not meet the validity requirements. Travelers should confirm the individual requirements of the destination country as well as the rules of their airline regarding passport validity.
U.S. citizens residing abroad who plan to travel this year should consider their options as soon as possible. The U.S. Embassy or consulates in their country of residence may be closed or short-staffed; however, U.S. citizens may be able to book an appointment if they are in need of urgent passport support. Often this will require that the U.S. citizen personally reach out to the U.S. Embassy or consulate; requirements and appointment availability may vary by location.
Finally, as the pandemic continues to impact services in unpredictable ways, U.S. nationals and their employers should remain flexible and remember that the availability of U.S. passport services could change with little or no notice.
Jonathan Nagel is a Senior Associate in the Boston, Mass., office of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP.
This article was originally published in the California Business Journal.
The information contained here is meant to be informational, and while BAL has made every effort to ensure the accuracy of the information, it is not promised or guaranteed to be complete. Readers of this information should not act upon any information contained on this alert/blog without seeking professional counsel. This alert does not constitute legal advice or create an attorney-client relationship. Any reference to prior results, does not imply or guarantee similar future outcomes.