In response to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus in the Hubei province of mainland China, on January 31, 2020, President Trump issued a proclamation which took effect on February 2, 2020 and which restricted the entry of certain individuals who have traveled to China during the outbreak. This post focuses on the impact of the coronavirus outbreak on foreign nationals who have traveled to China and also provides updates and guidance on visa stamping options for Chinese nationals who require a new nonimmigrant visa stamp while the proclamation remains in effect.
With respect to travel restrictions, all foreign nationals (other than certain family of U.S. citizens, permanent residents, diplomats, and flight crew) who have traveled in China within 14 days of their arrival, will be denied entry into the United States. Note this refusal of entry does not apply to U.S. citizens who will, instead, be rerouted to one of several major U.S. airports and be subject to certain period of quarantine and/or additional medical screening.
For Chinese or other foreign nationals who planned to schedule nonimmigrant visa stamping appointments at one of the U.S. consulates or embassies in China, as of today, February 10, 2020, the U.S. Department of State has temporarily suspended all regular visa services at the U.S Embassy in Beijing and the U.S. Consulates General in Chengdu, Guangzhou, Shanghai and Shenyang. In addition, USCIS has announced the closing of its Field Offices in Beijing and Guangzhou, stating that it will reschedule all affected appointments and will send new appointment notices to applicants. Due to the ongoing situation relating to the coronavirus, the U.S. Embassy and Consulates announced they will have very limited staffing and may be unable to respond to requests regarding regular visa services. While emergency appointments will be available for foreign nationals qualifying for one of the exemptions listed above, if an individual’s urgent travel does not qualify under an exemption, their request will be denied until the proclamation is rescinded.
As such, individuals in need of U.S. nonimmigrant visa stamps will need to consider processing their applications at non-Chinese consular posts as third country nationals and should be prepared to experience processing delays. Which posts will agree to take jurisdiction over their third country national nonimmigrant visa stamp application in light of the proclamation needs to be determined on a case-by-case basis. As such, individuals are encouraged to consult with immigration counsel prior to scheduling any third country national visa stamping appointments.
D&S is continuing to monitor this situation and will provide updates as they become available.