Visa Issuance

If your visa is approved during your interview, you will receive an approval notice from the interviewing officer.  Follow the instructions provided in the notice in order to successfully complete the visa issuance process.  After the interview, you will need to go to the China Post counter outside the visa waiting room, where you will pay a fee to have your passport mailed to you. You may choose to (1) pick up your visa or (2) have it delivered to you. Unfortunately, the Post Office will not provide mail service outside Guangdong province at this time. Applicants from outside Guangdong province should arrange to pick up their visas at the Junyuan Post Office (directions to this post office will be provided to you by the China Post service counter).

Your passport should typically be available for pick-up on the third working day after the visa delivery payment is made.  However, should complications beyond the Consulate’s control arise during visa processing, your passport may not be available until later.  You are strongly advised not to make any travel arrangements before having your visa in-hand. 

In most cases, an immigrant visa is valid for six months from the date of issuance (K3 visas are valid for two years). This will give you six months to prepare for your departure to the United States.  However, visas may be limited to expire before the 6-month period due to the early expiration of important documents or other reasons.  Please review your visa information carefully. 

After you have received your visa, which will have been placed within your passport, and the accompanying visa packet, you should be sure to carefully read the information contained both on the visa itself and in the cover letter stapled to the visa packet. Make sure this information is correct; if it is not, contact the Consulate immediately. 

Do NOT open the visa packet.  Carry it with you on your flight to the United States; you will need to give it unopened to the immigration officer at the port of entry in the United States. 

The purpose of your immigrant visa is to gain admittance to the U.S. and attain Alien Resident status.  At the port of entry, it will be endorsed by the immigration officer and thus made into temporary proof of your Alien Resident status.  As such, it can be used for travel, usually for a period of one year.  Within this year, USCIS will send your Alien Resident Card (ARC), popularly known as a 'green card', to your U.S. address.  Green cards cannot be sent to an address outside the U.S.