STARTING September 28, 2024, the United States Embassy in Manila will transfer its visa processing center to a newly built Parqal building in Aseana City along Diosdado Macapagal Boulevard in Parañaque City.
The Visa Application Center (VAC) will cater to immigrant and non-immigrant visa applicants who are required to undergo photo capture and fingerprint scanning.
Interviews will be done separately at the US Embassy along Roxas Boulevard in Manila.
So, Filipino visa applicants should schedule two separate appointments online—biometric scanning and interviews, the US Embassy said.
A third-party contractor will handle the VAC’s photo capturing and biometric scanning services.
Asked why the need to separate biometrics scanning from consular interviews, US Embassy spokesman Kanishka Gangopadhyay said, “Visa Application Centers are used at many of our embassies and consulates, and our consular section in Manila is one of the world’s largest. The new VAC will help us meet an ever-growing demand for U.S. visas in the Philippines.”
Those who have applied and successfully made an appointment visa application BEFORE September 28 will not be affected by this new VAC system. It means, if you have already applied for US visa on September 6, and have an appointment on November 10, the current system still applies.
The US Embassy in Manila is the second largest consular office, handling over 300,000 visa applications a year. There are around 4.5 million Filipinos residing or working in the US.
Highlights of the new VAC system:
- For visa applicants who have successfully accomplished visa application ON AND AFTER September 28, the new visa application process applies
- The “new, secure and user-friendly” system for VAC applications will be available here: ustraveldocs.com/ph.
- Visa applicants who have existing accounts in current visa appointment system should sign in to this new VAC system using already-registered email address so they can retrieve their user profile such as payment receipts and appointment information
- Appointment slots for Monday to Friday is 7am-4pm while Saturday is 7am-11am
- No appointment is needed for applicants who would like to pick up their passports or drop off interview waiver visa applications and other required documents from 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Monday to Friday.
- Exact location of VAC: Parqal Building 8, Level 3, Diosdado Macapagal Boulevard, Barangay Tambo, Parañaque City
