[ 2017-03-18 ]

Ghana was among 13 countries with denial rate of over 60 percent

Ghana among countries with most ‘bounced’ US visa applications
Ghana is among the countries with the highest
United States visa application denial rates,
according to the U.S. State Department.

Ghana was among the 13 countries with a denial
rate of over 60 percent according to figures from
the 2015 fiscal year.

The highest rates were found to be in African and
Middle Eastern countries, including Syria and
Somalia, whilst Cuba and Laos also had high denial
rates.

The Visa acquisition process

Despite the Donald Trump administration’s
attempted travel bans, the application process for
a US visa can take up to 12 months, and they
mostly end up in denials, per the figures.

The typical process begins with the submission of
the non-immigrant visa application online followed
by the payment of the application fee at a
designated bank to sign up for an interview.

The applicant has to have documents to indicate a
stable life and the unlikelihood of a visa
overstay.

This is followed by an interview with a Foreign
Service officer which can take up to four months
to secure in some countries.

The applicant’s information is checked against
American and foreign databases with officers from
various U.S. agencies also conducting interviews
and further research into one’s background.

The Visa is then issued if everything is deemed
satisfactory, though a successful applicant may
undergo an additional round of behind-the-scenes
screening by American customs officers at the
airport.

Upon arrival, one may be questioned by customs
officers and may be screened again.

Visa Waiver programme

Visitors from the 38 countries that are members of
the visa-waiver programme don’t follow all the
steps above.

But they still have to provide personal
information to the American government before they
can travel to the United States. There are however
no African countries on this programme.

Source - citifmonline.com

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