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DS-160

$ds160_ek, the Online Nonimmigrant Visa Application, is required for applying for a US nonimmigrant visa. US embassies and consulates process visa applications by referring to this form, along with an interview, to determine eligibility for a nonimmigrant visa.

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Key Points

1 DS-160 is for the nonimmigrant US visa application.
2 Submit this form online after DS-2019 issuance and before the visa interview.
3 Consular officers use it to determine visa eligibility.
4 is required for the interview.

How to Submit?

What to Note?

1 DS-160 is linked to the consular post location you choose at the start. Once the appointment is set, altering it may be difficult and require another MRV fee. Given the difficulty in making changes, decide on the interview location from the start.

2 If you are currently in the US, you must apply at a consular post outside the US, usually in your home or permanent residence country, unless otherwise permitted at the discretion of the respective consular post. Also, guidelines and interview wait times vary by consular post.

3 You must arrive in the US before their program start date. Failure to do so will necessitate program amendment fees and may lead to other complications. Click HERE to check interview wait times for your consular post and allow extra time for contingencies and delays. Post-interview, allow a few days for passport return.

4 Mistakes can delay the visa application process or result in a denial. Double-check your answers before submitting. If an error is discovered after submission, create a new DS-160 with a new confirmation number, update it on your ustraveldocs.com website, and bring the correct confirmation (along with the previous one, just in case) to the visa interview. Rules vary by consular post, so consult with your respective embassy.

5 If possessing dual citizenship/permanent residence, apply as per your primary passport/LPR choice(s).

6 You may not complete DS-160 in one session. Ensure you record the application ID and security questions, and always save your progress so you can return and correct it in case of potential internet connectivity issues.

7 Eligible Canadians and Bermudians are exempt from the visa interview. Confirm with your consular post. If applying for J-1 status at the border, hand carry the required documents.

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This section provides guidance for completing DS-160. Use it for general reference and adjust your answers according to your circumstances. We are not responsible for any outcomes resulting from its use.

Getting started. Select the location corresponding to the U.S. embassy or consulate where your visa interview will take place. Write down the Application ID (begins with AA followed by 8 digits).

1 Where you will apply Answer your answers as needed
2 Click START YOUR APPLICATION, the read and click I AGREE
3 Write down your Application ID and answer a security question

Personal Information 1. Answer as per your answer(s) in Panel 01/A and in English except when asked to provide your full name in your native alphabet. Adjust all date formats to DD-MMM-YYYY. You may capitalize every letter or only the first letter of each word.

1 Surnames
2 Given Names
3 Full Name in Native Alphabet _____________ Answer if applicable
4 Have you ever used other names (i.e., maiden, religious, professional, alias, etc.)? Yes/No Answer YES and explain or NO
5 Do you have a telecode that represents your name? Yes/No Also known as Chinese Telegraph Codes. Click HERE
6 Sex
7 Marital Status
8 Date of Birth
9 City and State/Province of Birth
10 Country/Region of Birth

Personal Information 2. #2 and #3 are applicable if you have dual citizenship and/or residency. If YES, indicate other than the ones you indicated in Panel 01/A or Form DS-2019. Note that LPR is different from temporary residence for stay.

1 Country/Region of Origin (Nationality) Answer as per your Form DS-2019.
2 Do you hold or have you held any nationality other than the one indicated above on nationality? Yes/No
3 Are you a PR of a country/region other than your country/region of origin (nationality) indicated above? Yes/No
4 National Identification Number Generally refer to your LPR number in your application with us.
5 US SSN _____________ Unless you have been in the U.S. and issued one before, answer DOES NOT APPLY.
6 US Taxpayer ID _____________ Refers ot . Unless you have been issued one before, answer DOES NOT APPLY.

Travel information. This section captures your travel plans, even if some information is not finalized. Provide answers to the best of your knowledge. Tentative information (e.g., hotel address) is acceptable if provided in good faith. For #6, temporary address (e.g., hotel) is acceptable if an actual rental agreement hasn’t been finalized. CP interns in NYC may enter the designated hotel address (135-21 37th Ave, Flushing, NY 11354).

1 Purpose of Trip to the US EXCHANGE VISITOR (J)
2 Specify EXCHANGE VISITOR (J1)
3 Have you made specific travel plans? Yes/No A normal answer is yes, which shows that you have planned ahead.
4 Intended date of arrival You are allowed to enter/leave within 30 days before and after your program period.
5 Intended stay length days or weeks Answer per your flight plan.
6 Address Where You Will Stay in the US Yes/No
7 Person/Entity Paying for Your Trip SELF _____________ Generally SELF or OTHER PERSON (parents). Answer as per your responses in Panel 01/E, PDF #19, and DS-2019.

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Travel Companions Information. The following questions can be subjective. For example, you may be traveling alone but other participants might be on the same flight. Answer in a way that best fits your situation.

1 Are there other persons travelling with you? Yes/No If traveling alone, answer NO. Otherwise, answer YES and enter details.
2 Are you travelling as part of a group or organization? Yes/No Generally, answer NO

Previous US Travel Information. If you have lost your passport and/or don’t remember some of the information, just answer to the best of your knowledge. For #3 and #4, be honest.

1 Have you ever been in the US? Yes/No
2 Have you ever been issued a US visa? Yes/No
3 Have you ever been refused a US visa, been refused admission to the US, or withdrawn your application for admission at the port of entry? Yes/No
4 Has anyone ever filed an immigrant petition on your behalf with the USCIS? Yes/No

Address and Phone Information. Enter your complete home address abroad (include any apartment number) where you have been living for the last six months except for those who are presently staying in the US and came to another country for passport stamping. Replace any slash with a dash.

1 Home Street Address
2 City
3 State/Province
4 Postal Zone/Zip Code
5 Country

Mailing Address. If your application is approved, indicate where do you want your passport to be sent to (or whether you want to pick it up on your own)? If it is the same as your current address, click YES. If it is different, enter it accordingly.

1 Is your Mailing Address the same as your Home Address? Yes/No
2 Street Address 1 Enter if it is different from your home address
3 Street Address 2
4 Postal Zone/Zip Code /
5 Country
6 Primary Phone Number
7 Secondary Phone Number
8 Work Phone Number _____________ Generally DOES NOT APPLY unless you are currently working
9 Have you used any other phone numbers in the last five years? Yes/No
10 Email Address
11 Have you used additional email addresses in the last five years? Answer accordingly

Social Media. List the identifiers associated with your social media profile you have used within the last five years. There is no need to list accounts for use by multiple users within a business or organization.

1 Do you have a social media presence? Yes/No Answer accordingly, the general answer is YES
2 Social Media Provider/Platform (1, 2, 3...) _____________
3 Social Media Identifier _____________
4 Do you wish to provide information about your presence on any other websites or applications you have used within the last five years to create or share content (photos, videos, status updates, etc.)? Yes/No

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Past & Present Employment Information.

Answer to questions in this section as per your answers in Panel 01/D. Since circumstances vary by individual, please adjust according to your own situation.

Present Work/Education/Training Information.

1 Primary Occupation Student Unless you have recently graduated
2 Present Employer or School Name
3 Street Address (line 1) _____________
4 Street Address (line 2) _____________
5 City _____________
6 State/Province _____________
7 Postal Zone/Zip Code _____________
8 Country
9 Start Date
10 Monthly Salary in Local Currency (if employed) _____________
11 Briefly Describe your Duties I am a full-time student studying at

Previous Work Information. As per CFR Part 22 62.22(e)(3), exchange programs “must not duplicate participants’ prior work experience or training received elsewhere.” As such, exchange interns normally have 0 years of prior experience related to their listed internship/training field as indicated in DS-7002.

1 Were you previously employed? Yes/No Generally NO but adjust per your own situations

Previous Education/Training Information. Answer as per your postsecondary-level or above education.

2 Have you attended any educational institutions at a secondary level or above? Answer YES or NO (enter details if answering NO)

1 Name of institution
2 Street address (line 1) / Street address (line 2) / City / State/Province / Postal zone/ZIP Code _____________
3 Country
4 Course of study
5 From/To /

Additional Work/Education/Training Information.

1 Do you belong to a clan or tribe? Yes/No
2 Language Name English Add additional language(s)
3 Have you traveled to any countries/regions within the last five years? Select each country
4 Do you have any specialized skills or training, such as firearms, explosives, nuclear, biological, or chemical experience? Yes/No
5 Have you ever served in the military? Yes/No
6 Have you ever served in, been a member of, or been involved with a paramilitary unit, vigilante unit, rebel group, guerrilla group, or insurgent organization? Yes/No

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Security and Background

Provide the following security and background information. Provide complete and accurate answers to all questions that require an explanation. A visa may not be issued to persons who are within specific categories defined by law as inadmissible to the United States (except when a waiver is obtained in advance).

Answer the questions in this section truthfully. A YES answer does not necessarily indicate ineligibility for a visa, but an explanation during the interview may be needed.

Are any of the following applicable to you? Yes/No

Security and Background Part 1

1 Do you have a communicable disease of public health significance? (Communicable diseases of public significance include chancroid, gonorrhea, granuloma inguinale, infectious leprosy, lymphogranuloma venereum, infectious stage syphilis, active tuberculosis, and other diseases as determined by the Department of Health and Human Services.) Yes/No
2 Do you have a mental or physical disorder that poses or is likely to pose a threat to the safety or welfare of yourself or others? Yes/No
3 Are you or have you ever been a drug abuser or addict? Yes/No

Security and Background Part 2

1 Have you ever been arrested or convicted for any offense or crime, even though subject of a pardon, amnesty, or other similar action? Yes/No
2 Have you ever violated, or engaged in a conspiracy to violate, any law relating to controlled substances? Yes/No
3 Are you coming to the United States to engage in prostitution or unlawful commercialized vice or have you been engaged in prostitution or procuring prostitutes within the past 10 years? Yes/No
4 Have you ever been involved in, or do you seek to engage in, money laundering? Yes/No
5 Have you ever committed or conspired to commit a human trafficking offense in the United States or outside the United States? Yes/No
6 Have you knowingly aided, abetted, assisted or colluded with an individual who has committed or conspired to commit a severe human trafficking offense in the United States or outside the United States? Yes/No
7 Are you the spouse, son, or daughter of an individual who has committed or conspired to commit a human trafficking offense in the United States or outside the United States and have you within the last five years, knowingly benefited from the trafficking activities? Yes/No

Security and Background Part 3
1 Do you seek to engage in espionage, sabotage, export control violations, or any other illegal activity while in the United States? Yes/No
2 Do you seek to engage in terrorist activities while in the United States or have you ever engaged in terrorist activities? Yes/No
3 Have you ever or do you intend to provide financial assistance or other support to terrorists or terrorist organizations? Yes/No
4 Are you a member or representative of a terrorist organization? Yes/No
5 Are you the spouse, son, or daughter of an individual who has engaged in terrorist activity, including providing financial assistance or other support to terrorists or terrorist organizations, in the last five years? Yes/No
6 Have you ever ordered, incited, committed, assisted, or otherwise participated in genocide? Yes/No
7 Have you ever committed, ordered, incited, assisted, or otherwise participated in torture? Yes/No

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8 Have you committed, ordered, incited, assisted, or otherwise participated in extrajudicial killings, political killings, or other acts of violence? Yes/No
9 Have you ever engaged in the recruitment or the use of the child soldiers? Yes/No
10 Have you, while serving as a government official, been responsible for or directly carried out, at any time, particularly severe violations of religious freedom? Yes/No
11 Have you ever been directly involved in the establishment or enforcement of the population controls forcing a woman to undergo an abortion against her free choice or a man or a woman to undergo sterilization against his or her free will? Yes/No
12 Have you ever been directly involved in the coercive transplantation of human organs or bodily tissue? Yes/No

Security and Background Part 4
1 Have you ever sought to obtain or assist others to obtain a visa, entry into the United States, or any other United States immigration benefit by fraud or willful misrepresentation or other unlawful means? Yes/No
2 Have you ever been removed or deported from any country? Yes/No

Security and Background Part 5
1 Have you ever withheld custody of a U.S. citizen child outside the United States from a person granted legal custody by a U.S. court? Yes/No
2 Have you voted in the United States in violation of any law or regulation? Yes/No
3 Have you ever renounced United States citizenship for the purpose of avoiding taxation? Yes/No

Local Contacts. List at least two contacts in your country of residence who can verify the information that you have provided on this application. Do not list immediate family members or other relatives. Postal office box numbers are unacceptable.

1 Surnames _____________
2 Given Names _____________
3 Street Address 1 _____________
4 Street Address 2 _____________
5 City _____________
6 State/Province _____________
7 Postal Zone/ZIP code _____________
8 Tel Number _____________
9 Email Address _____________

Photo and Program Information. To complete the process, you will be required to upload a photo that meets the nonimmigrant visa photo requirements and sign electronically.

- Double-check the form one more time.
- Feel free to have ADMIN take a look for a second eye. Note: Participants are responsible for their own visa application outcomes
- If the system doesn’t accept the numbers, try entering them again without dashes.

1 SEVIS ID
2 Program Number
3 Do you intend to study in the States? No
4 Did anyone assist you in filling out this application? No

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