Is VISA stamping must for travel?

USA Visa Stamping - US Travel
1

Hello,
On my Indian passport I have visa L-2 stamping that expired in 2019. I got visa renewed while living in USA i.e. I-797 A valid until April 2022. I had travelled back to India in July 2021. I want to go back to US now.

Is it possible to travel with valid passport and valid I-797 A ?
I have been waiting to get a consular appointment for more than 40 days. I qualify for Interview waiver/drop box but that also needs booking an appointment.

Please advise.

2

I-94 attached to I-797 is your work permit. You need a VISA ( travel document granting entry) to enter in the US. As your visa expired in 2019, you need to go for stamping/dropbox.

3

Thanks for your response.
I am already so frustrated with waiting for drop box appointments since 3 months, that I was even willing to risk of booking tickets and show up at immigration to take a chance. But I will not do so now as it seems like visa stamping is must even with valid work I-797A. I was wondering if both the governments are making some concessions in wake of COVID-19 situations to make people’s life easier but apparently nobody cares.

4

@Naveed_Desai_Gorwank Did you explore options to get visa stamped outside of India?

5

@MANDAR1 , May you please provide more information on this? I did a quick lookup on the internet but would appreciate any recommendation. Thanks in advance.

6

Hi Naveed,

Sorry looks like Mexico US consulate is not processing Third country national at this time.
Status of U.S. Consular Operations in Mexico in Light of COVID-19 - U.S. Embassy & Consulates in Mexico (usembassy.gov)

Canada US consulate page doesn’t mention any such restriction. Someone from this forum is trying this route
H1B Visa Stamping as Third Country National in Canada - USA / H1B Visa - RedBus2US Community

1 Like
7

Check with Nepal/Bangladesh/Srilanka consulates. Could be easier than getting Canadian tourist visa.

8

I am traveling to India through AbuDhabi my US visa is expired.

Shall I travel through AbhuDhabi by Ethihad airways or not?
Do I need an AbuDhabi transit visa?

As I am not staying in the airport only as I have a 2.3 hr layover in Abu Dhabi airport.

Please assist with priority

9

Check with your airlines and/or specific country transit requirements.