U.S. Consulate in Ciudad Juarez resumes some services for immigrants
In March 2020, the United States Consulate in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, closed for all in-person appointments due to the coronavirus pandemic. This consulate conducts immigrant visa interviews for all Mexican nationals who are seeking admission to the United States, and is one of the busiest U.S. consulates. Because those interviews must be conducted in person, that means that the immigrant visa process was totally shut down for a time.
Prior to the shutdown, the wait time for an immigrant visa interview was about a year from the time of application to the time of the interview.
According to their update on January 6th, 2021, the United States Consulate in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, has resumed some in-person appointment activities.
Immigrant visa applicants: “The U.S. Consulate General in Ciudad Juarez has resumed very limited routine immigrant visa processing, beginning with spouses, children, and fiancé(e)s of U.S. citizens whose appointments were cancelled in March and April 2020. Immigrant visa appointments for adoptions and for cases meeting certain emergency criteria also remain available.”
Tourist visa applicants: “Routine tourist visa appointments remain suspended at this time across Mexico, and only cases that meet the requirements for emergency processing or are eligible for renewal with an interview waiver are being scheduled.”
Other visa applicants: “U.S. Consulates in Guadalajara, Monterrey, Nuevo Laredo, Hermosillo, Merida, and Ciudad Juarez have resumed limited processing of routine student and work visa appointments, including TN visas, as local conditions allow.”
When will we be “back to normal” for immigrant visa processing times in Mexico?
The honest truth is that we don’t know. The State Department does not provide information about immigrant visa backlogs, and nor does it provide any way to ask about the status or processing time of any immigrant visa application. My guess is that the backlog will take a substantial time to get through, which will add perhaps a year of extra time onto the wait for an immigrant visa interview in Ciudad Juarez.
