I (Media) Visa Revalidation

U.S. Department of State
Bureau of Consular Affairs

I (Media) Visa Revalidation

General Information
Visa Revalidation Is Not Guaranteed
Visas That Cannot Be Renewed In The U.S.
How To Apply And Visa/Document Return
Processing Time
Required Documentation for I Visas
Fee Payment
Visa Refusals
Related Links

General Information

The Visa Revalidation Division of the Visa Office accepts applications for revalidation of I (media representative) visas from applicants who hold an I visa and meet certain other criteria. Revalidation is also called renewal or reissuance. Applicants may also apply for a new visa at a U.S. embassy or consulate abroad that processes nonimmigrant visa applications.

The Visa Office considers existing visas for revalidation when they are within sixty days of expiration. Visas received for revalidation before that sixty-day period are returned without revalidation. If your visa has expired, the Visa Office accepts applications for visa revalidation only if the visa is within one year of its expiration date. Your nationality must be the same as when your previous visa was issued for the Visa Office to accept your visa revalidation application.

Visa Revalidation Is Not Guaranteed

I visa validation is not guaranteed. If your application does not meet all of the Visa Office’s established revalidation criteria, or if there is any other reason why your application is not clearly approvable for revalidation by the Visa Office, you must make a new visa application at a U.S. consulate or embassy abroad.

Visas That Can Not Be Renewed In The U.S.

The Visa Office does not revalidate I visas for nationals of Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Libya, North Korea, Sudan, or Syria, the seven countries currently designated as state sponsors of terrorism. These applicants must apply for new visas at a U.S. embassy or consulate abroad. For more information, please see the Notice: Special Visa Processing Procedures Pursuant to Section 306 of the Enhanced Border Security and Visa Reform Act of 2002.

How To Apply And Visa/Document Return

Media representatives in the U.S. who need to revalidate their I visas, or their sponsoring organizations, must mail their visa revalidation applications to one of the addresses:

U.S. Postal Service

Department of State
Post Office Box 72099
St. Louis, MO 63195-2099

All Courier Services

Department of State
Box 72099
1005 Convention Plaza
St. Louis, MO 63101

Issued visas and other documents (I-94s, employment letters, etc.) are returned via your self-addressed, stamped envelope or prepaid courier airbill and courier envelope. On the courier airbill, please ensure that you have written your courier company account number or a valid credit card number. Ensure that you make a note of your airbill or other tracking number. You will need this information if you want to contact the courier for status information. The Visa Office is unable to provide this information to you if you misplace it.

Processing Time

The Visa Office processes I visa revalidation applications expeditiously, generally within 3 working days of receipt from the St. Louis lockbox operation (i.e. the mailing address above).
If there are time constraints, please apply for the visa at a U.S. embassy or consulate abroad.

Required Documentation for I Visas

All required documentation must be submitted with the visa application. The Visa Office is unable to accept supplementary mailings from applicants who forgot to include some or all of the required documentation or other information.

Each applicant for an I visa revalidation in the Visa Office must pay the nonrefundable US$100 nonimmigrant visa application processing fee and submit:

A comprehensive letter from the journalist's employer on the employer’s letterhead identifying the journalist and describing in detail the nature and function of the journalist’s position. The letter must be addressed to the Visa Office, Department of State. If the employer is abroad and the journalist is the only U.S. representative, the letter must be signed by the employer and give the journalist's U.S. office address and telephone number.
One Nonimmigrant Visa Application, Form DS-156, completed in English, with the applicant’s original signature. (A parent should sign for an applicant under age 14.) All questions on the DS-156 must be answered. Applicants MUST give their U.S. home telephone number in the space numbered item 16. The principal applicant MUST give his/her telephone number in the space numbered item 16. The form must be typed or printed. Please spell out the month of birth (i.e., write "January 2," not 1/2 or 2/1). If the DS-156 is incomplete or improperly filled out, the passport(s) will be returned without visa(s). The Visa Office accepts only the February 2003 version of the DS-156. This version includes a space for a bar code sticker. The Visa Office does not provide copies of the DS-156.
One Supplemental Nonimmigrant Visa Application, Form DS-157, for all male applicants between the ages of 16 and 45, regardless of nationality, in addition to the DS-156. The DS-157 must be typed or printed. All questions on the DS-157 must be answered. Applicants whose native language is not written in the English alphabet should print their names in their native language in item 3 of the DS-157. The Visa Office does not provide copies of the DS-157.
One photograph stapled or glued to the DS-156 in the designated space, which meets the nonimmigrant photograph requirements. Do not submit a photograph in a glassine or other type of envelope. Staple or glue one photograph to the DS-156 in designated space.
A passport valid for travel to the U.S. and valid at least six months beyond the visa application date (including Visa Office processing time). If more than one person is included in the passport, each person applying for a visa must submit a visa application. You must present the passport bearing your most recent I visa. Each applicant receives an individual visa, and each Machine Readable Visa (MRV) covers a full passport page. Therefore, passports must contain a blank, unmarked visa page for each U.S. visa to be placed in the passport. Remove extraneous pieces of paper (slips of paper with phone numbers, old airline boarding passes, etc.) from the passport. You may submit a passport in a protective cover.
The original or a certified copy of Form I-94, Arrival-Departure Record annotated by the Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection (formerly Immigration and Naturalization Service) inspector from your most recent admission to the U.S. Please staple the I-94 to a page in your current passport.
If the spouse and/or dependent children are applying for visas separately from the principal alien, submit certified copies of the principal alien’s valid visa and valid I-94 (front and back) in addition to the other listed requirements.
Visa issuance reciprocity fee, if applicable. Please consult the Visa Reciprocity Tables to determine if you must pay a visa issuance reciprocity fee.
A prepaid courier service airbill and envelope or a self-addressed stamped envelope for return of the passport and other documents. The Visa Office does not endorse the use of any particular commercial courier service. If using the U.S. Postal Service, the Postal Service recommends a padded envelope for passport return. A family should submit one courier airbill/envelope or one self-addressed, stamped envelope for the return of their documents. Please use your address as the “from” address on the airbill or the self-addressed envelope. Please ensure that you have written your courier company account number or that you have given the courier company a valid credit card number on the airbill.

The U.S. Postal Service and the major courier service companies pick up envelopes and packages from the Visa Office’s office building daily. The Visa Office cannot guarantee that the U.S. Postal Service or any courier service company will pick up envelopes on any given day, or when the envelopes will be dispatched by the courier service company or the U.S. Postal Service. The Visa Office does not track outgoing envelopes or packages.

Fee Payment

Payment of visa revalidation fees may be made by bank draft, corporate check, or money order, payable to the U.S. Department of State. The Visa Office does not accept payment by cash, credit card, or personal check. Payment for the visa application processing fee and the visa issuance reciprocity fee, if applicable, may be combined in one bank draft, corporate check, or money order. A family may submit one bank draft, corporate check, or money order for all visa application processing fees and visa issuance reciprocity fees. Payment must be drawn on a U.S. bank and must be in U.S. currency.

Visa Refusals

If the Visa Office cannot revalidate your I visa due to lack of documentation, your passport, I-94, and documentation will be returned to you. You will receive a form stating what documents are required to continue your application. Please follow the instructions carefully when resubmitting your application. Return the Visa Office form with your resubmission to the address on the form. Please note that the Visa Office does not keep passports, I-94s, or other documentation in a visa revalidation application pending receipt of properly completed application forms, correct fees, etc.

The Nonimmigrant Visa Application Form DS-156 and photo and the Supplemental Nonimmigrant Visa Application Form DS-157 (if applicable) are not returned with your documentation if your documentation is refused. Therefore, you must include a new completed and signed DS-156 with photograph and DS-157 (if applicable) when you resubmit the complete application packet.

If the Visa Office informs you that your application for visa revalidation cannot be processed in the Visa Office, you must make a new visa application at a U.S. embassy or consulate. You will be required to pay a new nonimmigrant visa application processing fee.

If you paid a visa issuance reciprocity fee but the Visa Office cannot revalidate your visa, the visa issuance reciprocity fee will be refunded. Refunds are made by the U.S. Treasury. The $100 nonimmigrant visa application processing fee is NOT refundable.

(October 2003)