Travel
Expanded Screening and Vetting for H-1B and H-4 Visa Applicants
December 8, 2025
Effective December 15th, all applications for those seeking the H-1B and H-4 visa will have their online presence screened as part of the application process per the Department of State announcement on December 3rd. Applicants will need to modify their privacy settings on all social media platforms to make them public. This will be required […]
Department of State Update on Visa Interview Appointments
September 16, 2025
The U.S. Department of State made a recent update on adjudicating nonimmigrant visa applicants. Effective September 6, 2025, all nonimmigrant visa applicants will be required to schedule their visa interviews in their country of nationality or residence. Applicants will need to prove residence in the application process. For those applicants of countries that do not […]
COVID-19 Vaccine Requirements End for Travelers to the U.S.
May 11, 2023
The Biden Administration has announced this past May 1st that effective May 12th, all air travelers coming to the United States are no longer required to show that they have had the COVID-19 vaccine administered. In addition, U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will also end their COVID-19 requirements on May 12th at ports of […]
CDC Implementing New COVID-19 Test Requirements for Air Travelers from China
December 30, 2022
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will implement new COVID-19 travel test requirements effective January 5, 2023, at 12:01 AM ET. All air passengers flying directly from China, Hong Kong, and Macau to the United States will need to have a negative COVID-19 test two days prior to their departure. This requirement will […]
Travel Season is Just Around the Corner
November 3, 2022
The countdown to winter break is approaching. Regardless if you are traveling back home or visiting elsewhere, it is best to plan ahead to avoid last minute hurdles. The next several months consist of peak holiday travel. The OIS wants to remind all international visitors to plan accordingly. Make sure you carefully review their immigration […]
New Travel Restrictions in Effect for South Africa and Other Countries to the U.S.
November 30, 2021
President Biden issued a new proclamation on November 26th which took effect November 29th restricting travel from South Africa and several other countries in the region to include Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, and Zimbabwe to the U.S. due to a new variant that has been identified. This travel restriction will not include U.S. […]
Travel Proclamations: Out with the Old and in with the New
November 1, 2021
As of November 8, 2021, the country specific travel ban restrictions are out and the proclamation regarding Advancing the Safe Resumption of Global Travel During the COVID-19 Pandemic is in. This proclamation will supersede the previous travel proclamations and they are replaced with a global requirement. Any non-citizen, non-immigrant air traveler coming to the U.S. […]
Presidential Proclamation Issued for India
May 3, 2021
A new Presidential Proclamation has been issued on April 30th that will suspend entry of nonimmigrants from India. This is due to the severity and amount of increasing COVID cases that India is currently experiencing. Any nonimmigrant that was physically present in India within the last 14 days prior to attempting to enter the United […]
Refrain from International Travel
February 2, 2021
It’s another blog post on international travel. We want to update and to reiterate to our community that future international travel within the next several months should be cancelled/delayed. The Office of International Services (OIS) truly sympathizes with you when it comes to desiring to visit family/friends/loved ones and/or to just plain get away. Traveling […]
Hold off on International Travel
January 25, 2021
The OIS wants to remind the international community that we discourage international travel at this time. This has been the case since last February 2020 due to the pandemic (see: Important Updates from OIS – Coronavirus and Travel Ban). The continued impacts of traveling internationally for our international visitors is still great, even though some […]