Follow the steps below before your immigrant visa interview at the U.S. Embassy in Algiers, Algeria.

After you receive your visa interview appointment, you must complete each of these steps below.  If you do not complete each step before your visa interview appointment the consular section may require you to reschedule for a later date.

All applicants must follow the instructions below before you go to the U.S. Embassy or Consulate.

Step 1: Register Online

Before your visa interview appointment, register online. Registering gives us the information we need to return your passport and documents after your visa interview. Registration also allows you to cancel or reschedule your interview if necessary

Note: For applicants with appointments scheduled by NVC/KCC (excluding K1s), you will receive a separate IV Atlas Electronic Check-in email with instructions for completing the electronic check-in process. This email will be sent at least 20 business days before your interview appointment. You are required to finalize and confirm your appointment within the Atlas System

Register >>

Registration Instruction in French and Arabic >>

Step 2: Get a medical exam in Algeria

As soon as you receive your appointment date, schedule a medical exam in Algeria. Click the Medical Exam Instructions button below for a list of designated doctor’s offices in Algeria. Make sure you schedule and attend a medical exam with one of the doctors on the list before your interview.

Medical Exam Instructions >>

Step 3: Complete your pre-interview checklist

It is important that you send all required original documents via Aramex at least 15 days before your interview date. We created a checklist that tells you what to submit. Print the checklist and fill it out.

Pre-Interview Checklist >>

Step 4: Review interview guidelines

Read our interview guidelines to learn about special actions you must take before your visa interview.

Interview Guidelines >>

Medical Exam Instructions

All immigrant visa applicants, no matter their age, must have a medical examination before a visa is issued. Only a physician accredited by the U.S. Embassy can perform the exam. It is your responsibility to schedule a medical exam with one of the doctors on the list before your visa interview at the U.S. Embassy. Contact the clinic directly to schedule an appointment. Medical examination results from other physicians are not accepted.

Approved Physicians

Important Note: The fees listed above do not include vaccinations. 

Items to bring to your medical examination

Bring these items to your medical exam:

• Your visa interview appointment letter
• Your passport
• Four (4) recently taken passport-sized color photographs
• A copy of your immunization records
  
• DS-260 confirmation page

During the medical exam

The medical exam will include:

• A medical history review,
• A physical exam,
• A Chest X-ray,
• Blood tests (for applicants 15 years of age or older),
• Gonorrhea testing (for applicants 18–24 years of age, or as needed)
• Tuberculosis testing (for applicants two years of age and older).

Your physician may request other tests as needed. Be prepared to discuss your medical history, the medications you are taking, and the current treatments you are receiving. More information on general medical requirements for U.S. immigrants is available on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's website.

U.S. immigration law requires immigrant visa applicants to get certain vaccinations prior to the issuance of a visa. Current immigrant visa vaccination requirements are available on CDC.Gov. There you can find information on what vaccines you need based on your age. You can also read the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about our medical exam requirements at Travel.State.Gov.

After the medical exam

When your examination is finished, the doctor will either:

• Give you the exam results in a sealed envelope, or
• Send them directly to the U.S. Consulate

If the doctor gives you an envelope to carry to your interview, DO NOT OPEN IT. Instead, bring the sealed envelope to your visa interview.

The embassy will not accept the medical examination results if the certificate was signed by a doctor that is not on the approved list above or if the envelope was opened before it was presented at the embassy.

Any x-rays that are taken will be given to you. You DO NOT need to bring them to your interview unless you suffer from tuberculosis (TB). However, you must carry the x-rays with you when you travel to the United States for the first time. 

The medical report must be less than six months old when you enter the United States as an immigrant.

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Pre-Interview checklist

You must submit your Immigrant visa application files to an ARAMEX branch office 10 to 15 days before your interview appointment at the United States Embassy. Every applicant must submit their documents to one of these ARAMEX Addresses:

- Algiers Aramex Office, Lot No. 199, Industrial Zone, Oued Smar, Algiers Algeria

- Oran: Lot 62, Dar El Amel Cooperative, Bir Eldjir. Oran 31000

- Hassi Messaoud: Aramex Hassi Messaoud Office, Euro Japan base, national road N3 Lot No 9, Hassi Messaoud. 30500 Ouargla, Algeria

Use the checklist that follows to decide what items you must submit with your immigrant visa application file to ARAMEX, at least 10 days before your appointment day:

• A copy of your NVC interview letter. (This does not apply to Diversity Visa, fiancé(e), adoption, or asylee/refugee applicants).
  
  
• A copy of your IV registration confirmation form/profile at this link.
  
  
• Unexpired passport valid for six (6) months after the date you plan to enter the United States.
  
  
• Two (2) color passport-size photographs of every person applying for a visa (5 cm x 5 cm, or 2 inch x 2 inch). Please review our online photo requirements.
  
  
• Confirmation page from the Form DS-260 Application for an Immigrant Visa that you submitted online at ceac.state.gov/iv.
  
  
• Your original birth certificate and an English translation.
  
  
• Medical examination results in a sealed envelope (if the physician gives you these results).
  
  
• Original birth certificates for all children that will accompany (come with) the principal applicant.
  
  
• Note: Principal applicants only need to submit original birth certificates for children who will accompany them to the United States. Birth certificates for children that will not accompany the principal applicant are not required. If you are a parent of a US citizen applying for an IR5 visa on your behalf, you must submit the petitioner’s (your child) original birth certificate and an English translation.

Applicants who are in any of the categories listed in italics (below) must submit these additional documents at an ARAMEX branch 10 to 15 days before your visa interview:

For family-based visa applications:

• The proper Form I-864 Affidavit of Support for each financial sponsor with a photocopy of the sponsor’s IRS transcript or most recent U.S. federal income tax return, and all related IRS W-2 forms.
  
  
• Proof of your U.S. petitioner’s status and domicile in the United States (photocopy of a U.S. passport, naturalization certificate, or lawful permanent resident card).
  
  
• Evidence of the relationship between the petitioner and visa applicant (such as photographs and communication records).
  
  
• If you are married: Your original marriage certificate and an English translation.

If you were previously married:

• Your original marriage certificate
  
• Your divorce judgment or spouse’s death certificate
• English translations
• Photocopies

If you have ever been convicted of a crime:

• Court and criminal records
• English translation
• A photocopy

If you have served in any country’s military:

• Military records
• English translations
• A photocopy

If you are adopted:

• Adoption papers or custody documents
• English translations
• A photocopy

If you are the petitioner’s stepchild:

• The original marriage certificate of the petitioner and your biological parent
• English translations
• A photocopy
• Divorce records for any previous marriages of either parent, along with translations and photocopies.

If you are older than 16 years of age:

• An original, unexpired police certificate from your country of current residence and all countries where you have lived. We accept police certificates with up to two years validity. If these three items are all true, you must submit a more recent police certificate before your interview:
  
  1. You are older than 16 years;
  2. You obtained a police certificate and submitted it to NVC more than two years ago; and
  3. You still live in the country that issued the police certificate.

For employment-based visa applications:

• Letter from your U.S. employer dated less than one month ago.

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Interview Guidelines

Sending documents to the U.S. Embassy in Algiers

If you need to send us any documents, DO NOT mail them to us directly. Instead, email IV-DVAlgiers@state.gov and ask for information about courier services.

- Do not send original documents to us.
- Send only photocopies by courier or mail.
- You may bring the original documents (with a photocopy for the consulate’s files) to your visa interview.

Rescheduling or cancelling your interview

If you cannot attend your appointment, email IV-DVAlgiers@state.gov to request a new appointment date.

There may be a long wait before the next available appointment so try to attend the date you were assigned.

There’s no guarantee that a visa will still be available if you reschedule your appointment. Check the Visa Bulletin carefully before you reschedule your interview. If you’re applying for a Diversity Visa (DV), remember that visas are limited in number and must be issued by September 30 of the program year.

Security screening procedures

All visitors to the U.S. Embassy in Algiers must follow security procedures. Any visitor who refuses to be screened by U.S. Embassy security personnel cannot enter the embassy.

- To avoid delaying your entry and those in line behind you, bring only what is required for your interview.
- Large bags, such as backpacks or suitcases, and packages are not allowed on the embassy grounds.
- Electronic devices are prohibited. Please visit our website for complete entry requirements.

Accompanying persons

Attorneys cannot accompany clients into the waiting room or to their interview.

These people may accompany a visa applicant to their interview:

• Interpreter: Applicants who do not speak English, French, Arabic or Kabyle well enough to participate in an interview may bring one (1) interpreter.
• Special Needs Visitors: Applicants may bring one (1) person to help if they are elderly, disabled, or a minor child.

Immigrant visa fees

If you have not paid all required fees to either the National Visa Center or through the appointment website, be prepared to pay them on the day of your interview.

- All fees must be paid in either U.S. dollars or the Algerian Dinar equivalent.
- We only accept cash.

Note: If you are found ineligible to receive a visa, the application fee cannot be refunded. You can find a complete list of fees on our Fees for Visa Services webpage.

Do not make travel plans outside of Algeria

If your visa is approved, we will keep your passport at the embassy while we prepare your immigration packet and print a visa for your passport.

- We will return your passport to you later by courier service only.
- If you have to travel in Algeria while your passport is still with us, make sure you have a valid picture ID other than your passport.

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After Your Visa Interview

A consular officer can decide on a visa application only after reviewing the formal application and interviewing the applicant. There is no guarantee that you will receive a visa. Do not quit your job, sell your property, or make non-refundable travel arrangements until you have received your immigrant visa.

If more information is needed

Sometimes a consular officer refuses a visa application to review additional documents or for administrative processing.

For additional documents:

• The consular officer will give you a refusal letter that asks you to submit additional documents.
• The letter will include instructions on how to submit those documents to the embassy.

For administrative processing:

• This means the consulate needs more time to review your case.
• How long this takes depends on your specific situation.

Wait at least 60 days after your interview before asking about your application status.

What happens after visa approval

Passport, Visa, and Sealed Immigrant Packet: We will place your immigrant visa on a page in your passport. Please review it to make sure there are no spelling errors.

We will also give you a sealed envelope containing documents you must give to U.S. immigration authorities when you arrive in the United States for the first time.

- DO NOT OPEN this envelope. You must carry it with you. Do not put it in your checked luggage.
- If you receive X-rays during your medical examination, carry them with you and give them to the U.S. immigration authorities.

Passport, Visa, and Modernized Immigrant Visa (MIV): Again, we will place it on a page in your passport. Please review it to make sure there are no spelling errors.

- Your IV packets will be transmitted electronically to Customs and Border Protection. They are accessible at the U.S. Port of Entry.
- An immigrant traveler carrying a visa with a special note “IV DOCS in CCD” is not required to hand-carry an IV packet.

USCIS Immigrant Fee: All those issued immigrant visas overseas must pay an Immigrant Fee to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) before they travel to the United States.

- This fee is for processing your residency status and printing your Permanent Resident Card.
- The only people who do not have to pay this fee are: children entering the United States under the Hague Process, returning residents, and people traveling on a fiancé(e) (K) visa.

When You Should Travel: You must enter the United States before the expiration date on your visa.
The expiration date is usually six months from the date it is printed.

- Your visa cannot be extended and all fees are nonrefundable.
- The principal applicant must enter before or at the same time as other family members with visas.
- Unless they are eligible for benefits under the Child Status Protection Act (CSPA), children who are issued a visa before they turn 21 years old, must enter the United States before their 21^st birthday to avoid losing their immigrant status.

Getting a Green Card – Your Form I-551 Permanent Resident Card, also known as a green card, will be automatically mailed to the address in the United States that you wrote in your visa application form.

This is a very important document that proves you have permission to live in the United States.

If you plan to travel outside the U.S. before your green card arrives:

- Consult the USCIS and CBP websites for rules about what documents you need to re-enter the country.
- Check with the airline to make sure you are following their rules.
- Once your card is issued, you should not stay outside the United States for more than one year. If you do, you may lose your status as a Lawful Permanent Resident.

Children’s Issues: In the United States, children must have certain vaccinations before they can enroll in school.

- Bring your child’s complete vaccination records with you to the United States.
- If your child is adopted, you have full custody as a result of a divorce, or you share custody with another parent, bring a copy of all related adoption or custody papers from the court with authority in your home country.
- You will need these papers (translated into English) for things like school enrollment, medical care, and eventual citizenship.

Information for New Immigrants: Please visit the USCIS web page for helpful information about moving to the United States. You can read their publication, “Welcome to the United States: A Guide for New Immigrants” online.

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Diversity Visa Applicants - Additional Information

If you are interviewing for a Diversity Visa (DV), all of the above instructions apply to you. Please schedule and attend a medical examination before your visa interview, REGISTER to create an account, and gather the required documents.

These are additional instructions that only apply to DV applicants:

Bring to your interview

In addition to the documents listed on the Pre-Interview Checklist in this package, DV applicants must send the following items by an ARAMEX branch 10 to 15 days before to your visa interview:

• Appointment information printed from the Entrant Status Check on the E-DV website.
  
  
• Documents that show you have either a qualifying high school education OR two (2) years of qualifying work experience during the five (5) years immediately before your application (This only applies to the principal applicant.)

You can find more information on our Diversity Visa Process webpage.

**PLEASE NOTE: TO BE ACCEPTED, ALL QUALIFYING EDUCATIONAL DOCUMENTS MUST BE CERTIFIED BY THE MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF ALGERIA TO BE ACCEPTED. **

• Payment in cash of the $330 Diversity Visa Application Fee (or equivalent in Algerian Dinars) for each visa applicant.

Review your DV Lottery entry

Before your visa interview, review the information on your initial E-DV entry.

- Your marital status must be correct.
- If you are legally married, your spouse must be listed, even if you are now separated from him or her (unless your spouse is a U.S. citizen or Lawful Permanent Resident).
- You must have listed ALL of your living children who are unmarried and under 21 years old. This includes your natural children, your spouse’s children, or children you have formally adopted under the laws of your country.
- If you contracted a civil marriage after your DV registration and did not include your spouse on your registration, be prepared to bring additional proof of your relationship to your spouse to your visa interview. 

If you did not list an existing spouse or children when you entered the Diversity Visa lottery, your visa and the visas for your family will be denied.

- All fees paid to the U.S. government in support of your visa application(s) are nonrefundable.
- If you failed to include a child who had already been born, or a spouse to whom you were married when you entered the lottery, do not proceed with the visa application.
- You can review the eligibility requirements on our Diversity Visa Process webpage.

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