Before you pay any fee or engage any agency: as of 13 September 2026, the US Embassy in Abu Dhabi and the US Consulate General in Dubai state that they are processing only very limited nonimmigrant visas, including B1/B2 visitor visas, for urgent travel such as critical medical needs. Student visa appointments remain available. This is published on the embassy’s own website, and it changes what “booking an appointment” means right now.
Check this before anything else. Open ae.usembassy.gov/visas and read the notice at the top of the page. It is updated by the mission and overrides everything below, including this guide. We recheck this page monthly, but the embassy can change its notice on any day.
Checked on 13 September 2026 against the US Embassy and Consulate General in the UAE and the US Department of State. Sources linked at the end.
On this page
- What the mission is processing right now
- Why agency wait-time figures do not agree
- The application steps
- Fees, and the one people get wrong
- Why there are two appointments
- Who to contact with questions
- Questions people ask
What the mission is processing right now
The embassy’s notice divides applicants into three groups.
- B1/B2 visitor visas — being processed for urgent travel only, with critical medical needs given as the example. If your trip is a holiday or a family visit, you are not in the group currently being served through the routine route.
- F, M and J student and exchange visas — appointments available as needed, so that students can travel before their programme begins.
- Everyone else — the mission directs applicants to follow its instructions to request an expedited appointment.
What this means in practice is that the ordinary advice — pay the fee, log in, take the first free slot — does not describe the situation in the UAE today. Read the mission’s instructions on requesting an expedited appointment before you spend money.
Immigrant visas
Immigrant visa processing at Abu Dhabi is running for a defined set of categories, including IR and CR spouse and child cases, K visas, certain healthcare E-3 cases, I-5 and EB-5, SB-1 returning residents, and specified special immigrant visas. The current list is on the embassy page.
Why agency wait-time figures do not agree
Search for a US visa appointment in Dubai and you will find confident numbers. While researching this guide in September 2026 we found one UAE agency stating the Dubai wait was about 12.5 months and Abu Dhabi about 6 months, and another stating Dubai was around 284 days and Abu Dhabi up to 433 days. Those cannot both be true, and both sites sell appointment-monitoring services.
The Department of State publishes its own appointment wait times, and the mission commits to posting them. That is the figure to use. Treat any number on a commercial site as marketing until you have checked it against the State Department’s tool.
Nobody can sell you an earlier interview. Services offering to monitor slots or secure faster dates cannot create appointment capacity, and they have no access the applicant does not have. Where a genuine emergency exists, the route is the mission’s own expedited appointment request, which is free.
The application steps
For a nonimmigrant visa applied for from the UAE, the sequence is:
- Read the mission’s current notice and confirm your category is being processed, or follow the expedited request instructions.
- Complete the DS-160 online application form and keep the confirmation page with its barcode.
- Pay the MRV application fee through the official service provider’s system.
- Create a profile and book your appointments once your fee receipt is registered.
- Attend the document review and biometrics appointment.
- Attend the interview.
- Collect your passport, or receive it by the delivery method you chose.
You apply on the passport you hold, not on a UAE travel document. Living in the UAE lets you apply here rather than returning to your country of citizenship, but it does not change the standard a consular officer applies to your case.
Fees, and the one people get wrong
The MRV application fee is USD 185 for B1/B2 and most common nonimmigrant categories. It is non-refundable, whatever the outcome, because it pays for the assessment rather than the visa. The receipt remains valid for 12 months from payment, so if you need to reapply inside that window you generally do not pay again.
The $250 visa integrity fee
This is where guides currently disagree, and where you should be careful.
A visa integrity fee with a statutory minimum of USD 250 was created by legislation signed in July 2025. It is payable at visa issuance rather than at application, so a refused applicant does not owe it. Several sources reported through the first half of 2026 that implementation guidance had not been issued and that collection had not begun at most posts. Other guides simply state the total cost as USD 435.
Because this is unsettled, confirm the position on the State Department’s fee schedule before budgeting. Do not assume either figure from a blog.
Why there are two appointments
Most applicants in the UAE attend twice.
The first visit is an in-person document review and biometrics. Staff check that your paperwork is complete, take your fingerprints and photograph, and confirm your passport details. The mission’s own guidance explains that this shortens the wait on interview day and makes approval more likely, because problems with the file are found before the officer sees it.
The second visit is the interview itself, usually about a week later.
If you are travelling into the UAE specifically to apply, the mission advises planning to stay at least 10 days to complete both appointments.
Who to contact with questions
This saves people a great deal of time. Questions about the application process, fee payment, document delivery and appointments go to the service provider’s call centre, not to the embassy or consulate. The mission states this directly. Abu Dhabi call centre 02 447-6084 Dubai call centre 04 376-8311 Hours Sunday to Thursday, 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Holders of diplomatic passports applying for a tourist visa are an exception and may request an appointment directly from the consular section.
What the officer is deciding
A consular officer assessing a visitor visa starts from a presumption in US law that you intend to immigrate. Your job is to overcome it by showing that your life is here and you will return to it.
What tends to count: stable employment in the UAE, a residence visa with time left, family here, a tenancy or property, a consistent financial picture rather than a sudden deposit, and a trip that makes sense on paper.
The mission publishes what it expects of you: plan as far ahead as possible, complete the application fully and accurately, be forthcoming about your purpose, and be able to describe your intentions clearly and concisely. It also commits to explaining the reason for any refusal.
Mistakes that cost time and money
- Paying the fee before checking the current notice. The fee is non-refundable and the mission is not processing all categories routinely.
- Trusting a wait-time figure from a company selling appointment services.
- Booking non-refundable travel before the visa is in hand.
- Emailing the embassy about process questions. Those go to the call centre.
- Inconsistencies between the DS-160 and interview answers. This is a common cause of refusal.
- Paying for an “emergency” appointment. Expedited requests go through the mission and are free.
Questions people ask
Can I book a US visa appointment in Dubai right now?
Only in limited circumstances. As of 13 September 2026 the mission states it is processing very limited nonimmigrant visas, including B1/B2, for urgent travel such as critical medical needs, with student visa appointments available as needed. Everyone else is directed to the expedited appointment request process. Check the mission’s notice for the current position.
How much is the US visa fee from the UAE?
The MRV application fee is USD 185 for B1/B2 and most nonimmigrant categories, and it is non-refundable. A separate visa integrity fee of at least USD 250, payable at issuance, was created by 2025 legislation; confirm its current status on the State Department fee schedule before budgeting.
Can I apply in Abu Dhabi instead of Dubai?
UAE residents may apply at either post. Wait times and availability can differ, so check both.
Do I need to go back to my home country to apply?
No. Legal residents of the UAE can apply here. Note that a consular officer will still weigh your ties, and applying in the UAE does not by itself improve or harm your chances.
Is my MRV fee refunded if I am refused?
No. The fee pays for processing the application. The receipt does remain valid for 12 months, so a reapplication inside that period generally does not require paying again.
Can an agency get me an earlier interview?
No. Nobody outside the mission can create appointment capacity. Genuine emergencies are handled through the mission’s own expedited appointment request, at no cost.
Related guides
Sources
- US Embassy Abu Dhabi and US Consulate General Dubai — visa section: ae.usembassy.gov/visas
- US Department of State — Abu Dhabi post supplement: travel.state.gov
- US Department of State — nonimmigrant visa appointment wait times and fee schedule, travel.state.gov
- Public Law 119-21, section 100007 — visa integrity fee
Written by Asad Waleed M, Dubai. Asad researches visa rules from government sources and publishes what they actually say. He is not an immigration lawyer or consultant, and Sifqa does not process applications or book appointments. Read the editorial policy.
Last checked 13 September 2026. Because the mission’s processing notice can change at any time, this page is rechecked monthly and after any announcement. Found an error? Email asadwaleed2020@gmail.com — it gets fixed and logged.
