VERIFIED NEWS · CONSULAR SERVICES
State Department expands paid expedited B-visa appointment pilot
The optional program now covers selected U.S. missions in Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, and elsewhere announced by State. It changes appointment timing only; it does not guarantee approval or faster adjudication.
Official U.S. Embassy Mexico photograph, published January 25, 2023. Applicants receive consular services at embassy windows. The image is illustrative of visa operations in Mexico and does not depict the 2026 paid-expedite pilot or a particular applicant in it. Original official media ↗
What the pilot offers
State says eligible applicants may pay a separate $750 fee per person to schedule a B-visa interview within 10 business days, subject to limited appointment availability. The ordinary $185 machine-readable visa application fee still applies. The paid option appears only when it is available at the post and the applicant meets the pilot criteria.
What the fee does not buy
The payment buys an earlier interview appointment only. State says it does not change screening, legal eligibility standards, adjudication, or the possibility of refusal. The expedited fee is nonrefundable and nontransferable. A missed or canceled paid-expedite appointment forfeits that fee, and State says the appointment cannot be rescheduled.
Where and when it operates
The official notice lists Mission Mexico as launching July 21, 2026. Mission Canada and the embassies in Bogotá, Guatemala City, San José, and Tegucigalpa launched August 18. The notice says additional locations may be announced. Because availability is controlled by each participating scheduling system, this article does not treat the list as proof that a slot is available at any moment.
Scope and limits of this report
This is a consular-service development abroad. It is not an ICE interior-enforcement action, a CBP airport inspection program, a green-card filing rule, or an immigration-court change. It does not affect whether a traveler may be admitted at a U.S. port of entry.
Primary federal sources
- State Department: Nonimmigrant Visa Expedited Appointment Pilot Program ↗ — official notice last updated August 18, 2026.
- State Department: Visitor Visa overview ↗ — official description of B visitor visas and ordinary interview processing.
Corrections: No corrections have been made. We update material corrections transparently and revise the verification date.