Country: India
Visa Type: B2 Tourist Visa
Location: Hyderabad
Applicants: Family of 4 – Father, Mother, Sister and Me

I recently completed the US B2 visa process with my family of four in Hyderabad. I used Reddit extensively while preparing for our interview, so sharing our experience for anyone currently waiting for their appointment.

Timeline

• DS-160 submitted: August 1, 2025
• Visa fee paid: August 1, 2025
• OFC/Biometrics: July 28, 2026
• Interview: August 17, 2026
• Interview location: US Consulate General, Hyderabad
• Interview time: 8:15 AM

When we paid the visa fee in August 2025, the only available Hyderabad slots were around August 2026, so we had to wait almost a year. I handled the entire booking and application process myself without using an agent.

OFC / Biometrics – July 28

Our appointment was at 3:00 PM. We reached around 2:30 PM and waited outside. They allowed people in according to their appointment slots.

At the entrance, they checked our passports and DS-160 confirmation pages.

My parents had renewed their passports after submitting their DS-160s, so their passport numbers no longer matched. We were told to submit new DS-160s. There was a help center in the same building where their staff filled out the new forms based on the information we provided. They charged ₹500 per person, so carrying cash is useful.

Also, keep in mind that DS-160 forms are valid for one year from the date of submission. If it has been more than a year since you submitted your DS-160, it would be better to fill out a new form at home beforehand and carry the new confirmation page. This way, you can avoid having to fill out a new DS-160 at the OFC.

Phones, watches and other electronics were not allowed inside, although lockers were available.

After the DS-160 correction, we were given a number and called to a counter where they checked our documents, took our photographs and fingerprints, and attached a barcode sticker to the back of our passports.

Keep this sticker safe because it is scanned again at the consulate.

The whole OFC process took around 15–20 minutes for us, mainly because of the DS-160 correction. Otherwise, it would probably take less than 10 minutes.

Visa Interview – August 17

Our appointment was at 8:15 AM. We reached the consulate around 7:30 AM and left our phones and other belongings in the car.

Around 7:45 AM, they started calling the 8:00 AM batch. Once they entered, the 8:15 AM batch was asked to form a line.

At the entrance, they took our passports and scanned the barcode sticker from the OFC appointment.

We then went through security, similar to airport security. Documents, car keys, belts and other belongings were placed in trays for checking, followed by a security scanner and pocket check.

Inside, there was another queue leading to the interview booths. There were around 20 booths, with the officer sitting behind glass.

Documents We Carried

We carried:

1. Old and new passports
2. DS-160 confirmation pages
3. Appointment confirmation
4. Last 6 months' bank statements
5. Invitation letter from our relative in the US
6. Relative's US passport and visa copy
7. Property documents
8. My job offer letter
9. My sister's university allotment letter

We were not asked for a single document during the interview.

Interview Experience

Since we had a family appointment, all four of us were interviewed together.

The officer was polite and easygoing.

Officer: Good morning. All of your passports please.
Me: Good morning, here are all our passports.

The officer entered our passport details and reviewed the DS-160 for around a minute.

Officer: What is the purpose of your travel?
Me: Tourism and sightseeing.

Officer: What places do you plan on visiting?
Me: San Francisco, San Diego, Las Vegas and Los Angeles.

Officer: What's the planned duration?
Me: 2–3 weeks.

Officer: Who is sponsoring the trip?
Me: My father.

Officer: Did you travel internationally before?
Me: No, this will be our first international trip.

He then asked my father:

Officer: What is your occupation?
Father: I have an automobile business here in Hyderabad.

Officer: How much do you earn?
Father: Around ₹1.5–2 lakh per month.

He asked my mother and sister what they do. My mother said she is a housewife and my sister said she is studying engineering.

He then asked me:

Officer: What do you do?
Me: I'm a software engineer at [Company].

Officer: How much do you earn?
Me: ₹50,000 per month.

He then asked:

Officer: Do you have any relatives in the US?
Me: Yes, my father's brother is a US citizen and lives in California.

Finally:

Officer: As a family, do you feel threatened in your country?
Me: No.

Officer: Is there anything stopping you from returning to your country?
Me: No.

The officer then took the fingerprints of all four of us and told us that our visas would be issued.

That was the entire interview.

We were not asked to show any financial documents, property documents, invitation letter or any other supporting document.

One thing I noticed while waiting was that the experience can vary significantly depending on the officer. At some nearby counters, I saw applicants being rejected, and those officers appeared to have a much more serious interaction with the applicants. This is only my personal observation and shouldn't be taken as a general rule.

Visa Status

After returning home, I checked our status on the CEAC visa status website.

All four applications showed Approved on August 17.

The next day, August 18, at around 1 PM, all four changed to Issued.

We selected passport pickup and are currently waiting for the passports to be ready.

Final Tips

• Carry your supporting documents even if they aren't requested.
• Keep answers short and direct.
• Make sure everyone traveling together knows the basic itinerary, duration, sponsor and accommodation details.
• Don't panic if the officer takes some time or appears to be typing on the computer during the interview. This is a regular part of the process as they review or enter information into their system.
• Keep the OFC barcode sticker on your passport safe.
• If your passport was renewed after submitting the DS-160, check the passport number carefully before your appointment.
• Carry cash at the OFC in case you need assistance submitting a new DS-160.

After waiting almost a year for the appointment, the actual interview was only a few minutes and was much more straightforward than I expected.

Hopefully this helps someone preparing for their Hyderabad B2 interview.

Hi Everyone,

I know this is of least concern and might be silly as my visa has been approved after 221G administrative processing and social media vetting.

But I’m still eager on how much time will it take to move from Approved to issued ?

Because according to other’s experience it gets updated within a few ours after approval.

Can anyone help me with this ?

This was a quick interview at kolkata.
My background
23 M
Btech
Visit purpose is business meeting

Interview day
I arrived 30 min before the slot and guard allowed me to join the queue. He then asked for me preferred language, I said English

VO : hey gm
Me : gm officer

VO : you work at xx?
Me : yeah, for a year now

Vo : okay cool
Vo : do you have a LOI

Me : yes, here it is
Vo scan it in a minute

Vo: okay approved, place your fingers here

Thanks

After how many days or hours we recieve tracking of passport once it’s shown approved on ceac
My college starts on 24th, someone please lmk

Profile

School: Beloit College.

Scholarship: $58,000/yr

Deficit: $21,000

I spoke with confidence, looked into her eyes.. that was my first time though...

Consular: Good morning

Me: Good morning

Consular: How many schools did you choose?

Me: I chose Five schools

Consular: Why did you choose Beloit?

Me: I chose Beloit College because of its unique liberal arts approach to learning computer science....

Consular cuts in

Consular: Who is paying for your education?

Me: My father will be paying for my education. He..

Consular cuts in very quickly here

Consular: What does he do?

Me: He is a real estate investor and the managing director of Sustainable Organic Ltd. An agribusiness here in Ghana that deals with poultry and livestock farming. They supply produce to both regional and local markets as well. I have ( i was about to show the financial statements)

Consular cuts in

Consular: Do you have any fears living in Ghana?

Me: I do not.

Consular: Whats your highest level of education?

Me: High School, I graduated last year.

Consular: How old are you?

Me: I am 18

Consular: Sorry you do not qualify for this visa class. Next!!

I want to know what I did wrong. Some say I should've added why I chose Beloit from the how many schools did you choose questions; it was advised that I should answer the questions asked by the consular; it's a lot, but it didn't end well.

Hey everyone, I’m planning for the Spring 2027 intake and wanted to check the current appointment availability for F1 student visa interviews at the U.S. Consulate in Istanbul. Are slots currently available on the portal, and if so, which months or dates are people generally seeing open right now? Any recent updates on appointment timelines would be really helpful!

I am an American and my husband is a Greek citizen. We got married here in New York City. I plan on moving to Greece with him. Should I apply for my visa thru family reunification here in New York before I go or should I travel to Greece with no visa under the 90 day tourist visit and apply for family reunification when I arrive in Greece? I have an appt with the Greek embassy/consulate in New York in October but I was hoping to get more information before then. Can anyone give any advice or help with this process? It would be greatly appreciated 🙏🏻

Hi everyone,

I’m 38 years old, Egyptian, with a Bachelor’s degree in Law and a Diploma in International Law.

I was accepted into a Paralegal program at a community college in California, and I received my I-20. I then applied for an F-1 student visa.

During my visa interview, the consular officer asked me only a few questions:

• What is the name of your school? I gave him the name of the community college.
• How did you find out about this college? I explained that my professor in my Master’s program recommended it to me, and that I had also contacted one of the professors there.
• Who will finance your education? I said that I would finance it myself because I have money that I inherited from my father.

That was basically it. The officer did not ask me for any documents or supporting evidence and did not ask me any further questions.

Then he apologized for not granting me the visa without giving any reason.

In your opinion, what were the reasons that led him to refuse my student visa application? And what were the weaknesses in my application?

I’m wondering how I should interpret this.

Is it normal for an F-1 interview to be this short, especially for someone who is 38 and already has a law degree and a diploma in International Law?

Could the fact that the officer didn't ask for any documents be a good sign, a bad sign, or simply neutral?

I would really appreciate hearing from people who have had similar F-1 visa interviews, especially applicants who were older or were changing their academic direction.

My wife went to L2 Visa Interview at Hyderabad consulate in July 17th 2026 and the officer asked marriage certificate, photo, primary applicant's passport and visa copy and I-797 document.

We are newly married couple, just a month and half ago

She did not bring marriage photos at the time of interview and the officer specifically asked this and refaued visa and gave 221(g) form and informed her to send all the requested documents through email.

On the day itself, she sent all other documents and some marriage photos as only few where in mobile (like ritual kind) and got some extra photos of soft copy from photographer and emailed to consulate on next day (18th July 2026) to the same email id but she emailed as a zip file. (Did not know about this as it should not)

2 days later, got mail from consulate but with different email id informed us not to send zip file and informed to email as a separate photos with each less than 2Mb to the informed email id (the same consulate letter has)

Sent the same on that day itself.

Even after 2 days later (24th July), got a call from consulate and informed that email has not attachments and re send again and she sent again to both the email ids.

Still now got no reply from comsulate and its been 1 month over from interview data

Whether 221(g) will get approved for L2 and how long time will it take?

Please provide info

Anyone has same scenario?

Will WAR affect my visa procedure due to ongoing war

I have a big doubt regarding my eligibility for a visa, I lived in the usa as an immigrant for 13 years I was a minor, I entered when I was 2 years old and exited voluntarily not deported when I was 15, I am now 20 and have a sponsor for an h2b visa what can I expect in the consulate interview, I did not lie in my ds160 just to be clear.

Hi everyone,

I was refused an F-1 visa today under INA 214(b). I was admitted to UT Dallas (UTD) for an MS in Marketing and was originally scheduled to start in the upcoming semester. I have since requested a deferral to Spring 2027.

I'm trying to understand what may have concerned the officer and what I should improve before reapplying, so I'd really appreciate opinions from people with F-1/214(b) experience.

Funding

My original I-20 showed approximately $57,000 total funding:

• ~$34–35k from myself
• ~$23k from my sister

So the funding was basically right around the amount required on the I-20.

My plan for the new application is to fund the program myself through my savings/business income rather than relying on my sister.

Interview

The interview was quite short. These were essentially all the questions I was asked:

VO: Have you ever been outside Pakistan?

Me: Yes, many times. I've also been to the U.S. twice.

VO: Why the U.S.?

Me: I market on platforms that are based in the U.S., and I would get up-to-date knowledge and advanced/data-driven marketing strategies that I could bring back to Pakistan and be one step ahead in the market.

VO: Who is your relative in the U.S.?

Me: My sister.

VO: What visa is she on?

Me: J-1, and she lives in Philadelphia.

VO: How are you going to fund your studies?

Me: The major part will be funded by myself and the rest by my family.

VO: Do you have any other close relatives in the U.S.?

Me: No, only my sister.

VO: When did you complete your undergraduate degree?

Me: 2020.

VO: What have you been doing since then?

Me: I established my business after graduation. Since I handle the marketing myself, I'm pursuing an MS in Marketing.

She also asked whether I had ever changed my name, and I said no.

Then I was given a 214(b) refusal slip.

Hi everyone, I submitted my Italian student visa (Type D) application at VFS Cochin on 18 August 2026 for my Master's at the University of Parma. After submitting my documents and completing biometrics, VFS asked me and three other student applicants to wait for about an hour. Later, they told us that there would be no interview that day and that we had to wait for confirmation from the Italian Embassy to know whether an interview would be required or not. So I'm a little confused about what happens next. Has anyone who applied through VFS Cochin / Mumbai Consulate experienced the same thing recently? Did you eventually get an interview later? Or did your application proceed without an interview? How long did it take to receive confirmation? Any recent experiences would be really helpful. Thanks!

Hey Everyone ,

I had my visa appointment on 17th August , Mumbai Consulate

Passport was kept by the officed but I was handed a 221G slip with no further action required from my side.

I read that other people’s status updates within a few hours on the same day but my status is still the same.

What should I do ?

Hey all,

today I had an interview for a b2 visa in Sarajevo. I was refused (214b).

Here's my situation.
My wife is a dual (Bosnian-American) citizen. Her parents live in the US.
Her father had a serious open heart surgery and could not attend our wedding, which is why we want to go visit them for 3 weeks.
I have a stable career,, well paying job, apartment lease, car, family and friends here. I do not plan to immigrate to the US.

My interview lasted approximately 7-8 minutes. The visa officer was an American lady, very friendly woman. She asked me why I'm traveling, how long I plan to stay, whether I have a job, whether I have 'fear' of returning to my home country, and what my wife does for work. After I told her my wife is unemployed at the moment, she left the window (presumably to consult a colleague), came back and told me that my visa has not been approved.

Here's some mistakes I think I made:
I didn't volounteer any info such as the stability of my job, my father-in-law's health situation, other ties to my home country, and I didn't show her any of the documents I brought (job contract, payslips, apartment lease contract, father-in-law's diagnosis), I was just too nervous and confused and it honestly didn't even cross my mind to do so.

I plan to re-apply, quite soon. Do you think it will be enough for me to submit a better, more detailed DS-160 and go into the interview speaking more proactively? Honestly I don't care about the fee, I just want to try again, because I'm deeply confident that I am eligible for the visa and that I need to do a better job in interview and the preparation.

For details there was an old lady that went before me, she was asked one question only (why she plans to travel), her answer was 'i miss my grandchildren' and she was immediately approved.

Hi, My employer suggested that I go back and reapply for a J1 Research Scholar visa instead of pursuing a Change of Status as it may be faster. If I do that, what do my chances of approval look like? I would appreciate any kind and honest suggestions/insights you may have. PS I am an Indian citizen and 212(e) would not apply to me.

Below is some more information about my undergraduate education and OPT and how it leads to the J1 position:

• I did my undergraduate with a major in neuroscience and significant coursework in computer science. For 3/4 of those years, I did research on Attentional Processing and Multisensory Integration, using EEG, eye-tracking, and R for statistical modeling. It was purely exploratory and not directly aimed at patients or treatments.
• During OPT, I worked at a large research institute in Cleveland doing neuroimmunology research for 3 months. However, the project I was told I would be working on - exploring why individuals with Alzheimer's have lower chance of getting cancer and vice versa - was not in sight for the next two years. The project I was assigned to involved mouse work which I could not continue with so I returned as a volunteer to a cognitive neuroscience lab at my undergraduate institute which uses computational models to understand Autism.
• My J1 sponsor is WVU (R1 university) and has the amazing Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute. I am not sure how it is perceived though. My research will be focused on Brain Computer Interfaces (my primary interest). The institute also has partnership with Precision Neuroscience, among the largest BCI companies worldwide, which provides latest of their technology to the labs. Projects I am interested in and would be contributing to:
  • Using Precision's Layer 7 cortical interface to map cortex to study motor function and speech and rehabilitate individuals with deficits in these areas.
  • Using an in-ear EEG (developed by my PI), eye tracking, acoustic data from hearing aids to find behavioral and cognitive biomarkers to neurodegenerative disorders
  • Many others to consider

Hello guys, I am 26M working as an Associate Consultant at a Mid size company in Mumbai since last 2 years, before that worked for an MNC for 1.5 years so a total work ex of 3.5 years. I have filed ITR for last 3 years since i was employed. Some more information about me

Travel History : Germany, Switzerland, Netherlands, France, Italy, Japan, Dubai, Singapore and Malaysia (total 9 countries till date)

Salary : 9 LPA

Purpose of visit to US: For Christmas and meeting a friend who stays in Detroit, will visit Niagara Falls and do some sightseeing in Chicago, max 2 week visit.

I have completed my bio metrics last week @Chennai VAC and it went smoothly.

Requesting the community to review my profile and give me advice about preparation for the Interview.
Thank you in advance :)

I had filled DS - 160 last year in september. Got appointment for this year August. VAC was on 12th August and interview this morning. Both the processes were smooth. I updated my DS 160 in last week of June as my details had changed and I needed to update it.

VAC experience

Passport checked at security. Then moved inside. Told the guy at the reception that I had updated DS 160 and that needed to be updated in the system as well. Handed over confirmation page of both new and old DS 160. He stuck the barcode of the new one and asked me to move for biometric. Went to counter was asked date and place of birth. Photograph and finger print taken. New DS 160 confirmation page stamped and I was done. The whole process lasted less than 10minutes.

Interview experience

Reached embassy at 8 for 8:20 appointment. Frisked at the gate and then got in line. Passport checked and moved inside and frisked again airport style. Got in after that , Passport checked again and then was asked to sit and wait. I sat for about an hour. Once you are in queue your appointment time doesn't matter. They send row wise. After about an hour was asked to move in to the consulate building. Passport was checked again. Then left hand finger prints were verified. And then was asked to move in to the interview line. The line was moving pretty quick . From joining the line to my then I think it took about 30mins. From what I could hear while standing in line the officers were giving a mixed response of approvals and denials. The questions asked were pretty straightforward. There wasn't any officer who was giving all approvals or all denials. My interview lasted about a minute. Listing down the questions below.

First two questions were the generic threat and harm questions.

Q) Why are you travelling to the US?

A) A personal holiday of 10 days to New York and Orlando

Q) Who is travelling with you?

A) My husband

Q) Does he have a US visa?

A) Yes he has a valid Visa

Q) Can I see his Visa?

Handed over his Visa and Passport photocopy

Q) What do you do here?

A) I am a Customer PM at XYZ company and have been with them for 4yrs.

Q) What is your annual salary?

A) XYZ lakhs approx

Q) Have you travelled internationally before?

A) Yes. Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and France all for tourism and returned after my holiday.

Officer - Ofcourse. Thats why you are standing here

Me - Yes :P

Officer- You're Visa is approved. You'll receive it in a week.

I had carried all my documents. And my husbands as well. The only thing the Officer asked for was husbands Visa and once I handed over I think he checked his travel history.

The key to the interview is to stay confident and honest. When I was waiting I was a bit nervous for the first 5 minutes but then I realised I had nothing to lose even if they denied me the Visa and that I wasn't hiding anything whatsoever. While in the queue inside after hearing the questions which were very basic and standard I relaxed further and was very calm by the time I walked up to the window.

Hi everyone,

I’m wondering if anyone has been in a similar situation with an F-1 visa in Istanbul.

I had my interview at the U.S. Consulate in Istanbul on July 24. My case initially went into administrative processing, and my passport was kept by the consulate.

Then on July 31, my CEAC status changed to Approved. The message says the visa has been approved subject to final processing and that it still needs to go through a final screening step before issuance.

It’s now August 17, and the status is still Approved. I haven’t received any request for additional documents or any other communication.

My program starts on September 9, so I’m getting a little anxious about the timing.

Has anyone here had a similar experience, especially with an F-1 in Istanbul? How long did it take for your status to change from Approved → Issued?

Would really appreciate hearing from anyone who went through something similar. 🙏