LATEST NEWS ALERT: Changes Regarding Visa Receipts and Consular Interview Process (08/05/2025)
International artists and their U.S. petitioners should be aware of several new and upcoming changes affecting both the USCIS petition and State Department consular processes.
A new alert on the USCIS Processing Times webpage states:
“USCIS processing times for certain form types may no longer reference a specific service center location (for example, Vermont Service Center). We are in the process of adjusting all processing times for service center-related forms to now list “Service Center Operations (SCOPS).” Service Center Operations has expanded its capability to process casework at multiple locations, at various points in time, based on business needs and staffing requirements. Therefore, listing a specific location is no longer an accurate representation of where a case is processed. ** We are adjusting our case processing time metrics to provide the most accurate and up-to-date information by form type.
While certain form processing times are now listed under Service Center Operations, you may continue to receive correspondence from USCIS listing a specific service center location.”
Since October 2023, petitioners have already been filing O and P petitions (as well as related PPS requests) at the Texas Service Center, but receipt notices typically stated where the petition was transferred. At present, receipt notices from Premium Processing cases continue to list the specific service center adjudicating petitions while receipt notices for standard (non-expedited) O and P visa petitions have begun listing simply “SCOPS Texas Facility.” The processing times website now reflects SCOPS processing times for O and P, rather than be broken out by the California and Vermont centers.
The service center information has been helpful when petitioners weigh whether to upgrade a petition to PPS depending on processing times at a particular location, but with USCIS currently taking 8-12 months to process regularly-filed O and P petitions, neither location is providing timely service.
Consular Interviews Now Required
A news item from the Department of State indicates that, effective September 2, 2025, eligibility to seek an interview waiver will be virtually eliminated, including for applicants who previously held the same type of visa within the last 12 months. All artists and petitioners will therefore need to plan on substantially increased wait times to schedule a consular visa interview, which adds to the overall visa timeline from start to finish.
Targeted Visa Bond Program, Visa Integrity Fee
B-1/B-2 visitors from certain countries will be required to pay a bond ranging from $5,000 to $15,000 to receive a 30-day, single-entry visa under a new 12-month Visa Bond pilot program that will launch soon. The U.S. Department of State will announce the countries via Travel.State.Gov no fewer than 15 days before the Pilot Program takes effect, and this list may be amended throughout the pilot, with 15 days from announcement to enactment. Compliance requires arrival into and departure from pre-selected airports. The first two countries -- Malawi and Zambia -- have been posted online on 8/5/25.
Authorization to implement a new $250 Visa Integrity Fee was included in the substantial U.S. budget and tax bill signed into law in early July. Several new and increased fees were named but with minimal detail as to timing, process, and next steps. As soon as more concrete information is available, a dedicated news item will be posted here on Artists from Abroad.