B-1/B-2 visitor visa: What you need to know

Published on November 29, 2023 · 8 min read

The B-1/B-2 visa is the most common visa the U.S. issues. It’s also one of the most denied visas. If you’re hoping to receive a B-1/B-2 visa for business or travel, knowing what you’re getting into may help you avoid a denial.

This article explores what you need to know about the B-1/B-2 visa. We explain what it is, how to qualify, how to apply and what to keep in mind when applying.

What’s a B-1/B-2 visa?

The B-1/B-2 visa is known as the visitor visa. The B-1 visitor visa allows you to travel to the U.S. for business, while the B-2 visitor visa allows you to travel to the U.S. for tourism.

Specifically, the B-1 business visa allows you to travel to the U.S. to:

Consult on business
Negotiate the terms of a contract
Attend a professional conference or convention
Settle an estate

And the B-2 tourist visa allows you to travel to the U.S. to:

Visit friends and family
Vacation and sightsee
Seek medical treatment
Attend social events or gatherings
Attend brief classes not offered for credit
Participate in amateur sporting, musical and similar activities

You may request a B-1 visa, a B-2 visa or a B-1/B-2 visa covering both purposes.

How do you qualify for a B-1/B-2 visa?

Generally, when you apply for a B-1/B-2 visa, you need to prove three things to the satisfaction of the U.S. government officer reviewing the case:

You’re traveling to the U.S. for business or tourist purposes
You don’t intend to settle in the U.S.
You have sufficient funds to cover your travel expenses

Proving the trip’s purpose

Exactly what proof you have available depends on the underlying reason for your trip, but you may offer evidence of specific events and your intention to attend them. Below are some examples of situations and the type of proof you might be able to offer.

Trip purpose

Business event

Potential evidence

A schedule of events

Trip purpose

Social gathering

Potential evidence

A wedding invitation

Trip purpose

Amateur competition

Potential evidence

Information about the competition and proof

of your registration

Trip purpose

Settling an estate

Potential evidence

Evidence of your role in managing the estate

Trip purpose

Vacation

Potential evidence

An itinerary

Trip purpose

Visiting friends

Potential evidence

A signed letter from people you’re visiting, explaining the relationship between you and what you’ll do together

Trip purpose

Medical treatment

Potential evidence

Documentation of your medical condition and information about where you’re seeking treatment and why you’re seeking it in the U.S.

Proving nonimmigrant intent

Temporary visas are nonimmigrant visas, meaning you must not intend to immigrate to the U.S. when you apply for them. You typically prove your nonimmigrant intent by showing you have sufficient ties to the country where you reside, such as:

Family and friends
An ongoing job
A home or ongoing lease

Sometimes proving nonimmigrant intent may conflict with proving the purposes of your trip. For example, if most of your family lives in the U.S., your application may be more heavily scrutinized.

Proving sufficient funds

Sometimes showing proof of employment is enough to convince an officer that you have enough funds to cover your travel to the U.S. Indeed, the documents you provide showing the purpose of your trip and your intent to return home may be enough.

Other times you may provide evidence of financial reserves, like bank statements, covering your time in the U.S.

If you don’t have sufficient funds on your own and you have contacts in the U.S. who are willing, they may submit Form I-134, Declaration of Financial Support with United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). In their I-134, they promise to financially support you while you’re in the U.S.

However, you may not want to submit Form I-134 if the information your contact shares could raise questions about your intention to return to your home country after your trip. If you’re unsure about your funds, you may want to consult an immigration attorney for advice about how to juggle proving nonimmigrant intent and sufficient funds.

How do you apply for a B-1/B-2 visa?

USCIS usually plays little role in the B-1/B-2 application process. Instead, you apply directly with the closest U.S. consulate or embassy by submitting a Form DS-160 and a B-visa application fee (currently $185), both online.

Write down or store your application ID as soon as you begin. The site is prone to timing out and crashing, and you need your ID to return to the application. You also must have a valid passport and submit a passport-style photo.

After filing your DS-160, you’ll likely need to schedule an interview and submit documents showing you meet the U.S. tourist visa requirements. Most applicants must attend an interview at the U.S. embassy or consulate where they filed, but you may be exempt if you are:

Age 13 or younger
Age 80 or older
Renewing your visa

During the interview, a consular officer typically asks questions about you, the purpose of your travel and your ties to your home country. Once completed, your interviewer may tell you that day whether they’re issuing your visa, or they may request more time or documentation and place you on administrative processing.

If your application is approved, you’ll be issued a visa within your passport booklet. If your application is denied, you should be provided a reason.

What should you do if you’re denied a B-1/B-2 visa?

Typical reasons for denying a visa include:

Incomplete applications or supporting documents
Failure to prove the purposes of your trip
Lack of nonimmigrant intent
Lack of financial resources
Criminal history
Fraud or misrepresentation
Past visa overstays

If you’re denied for failure to provide complete information, you typically may submit the missing documentation or information within one year without reapplying.

Denial for lack of financial resources is fairly rare but not unheard of.

Denial for failing to prove nonimmigrant intent is particularly common. Often, this denial is based on “INA section 214(b)”, referring to the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).

If you believe you can resolve the reasons for the denial, you may reapply by submitting a DS-160, the application fee and accompanying documents again In this instance, most applicants include additional documentation based on why they were denied. For example, if you were denied for failing to prove nonimmigrant intent, you might provide evidence of an ongoing job in your home country, a lease or property you own there, or information about family and friends who live there.

You then attend another interview, where the officer will likely ask about the reasons for your initial denial, giving you a chance to explain why the denial was wrong.

Depending on the circumstances, you may also seek a waiver to enter the U.S.

What may you do once you have a B-1/B-2 visa?

Once you receive your visa, you may travel to the U.S. As a multiple-entry visa, although B-1/B-2 visas typically last 10 years, the B-1/B-2 length of stay for a single trip is generally six months. Unless you’re granted an extension, you must depart after six months, even though the visa remains valid for years to come.

You may apply to extend your stay using Form I-539, Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status. On the form, you explain why you should be allowed to stay in the U.S., why staying is consistent with having nonimmigrant intent and how staying will affect your foreign job or living arrangements.

You can’t work in the U.S. with a B-1/B-2 visa. But you may end up wanting to stay longer because you meet someone you want to marry, receive an offer of employment or decide you want to study at a U.S. school.

If you hope to extend your stay under a different temporary visa, you generally submit Form I-539 or have your employer submit Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker, with USCIS. If you’re seeking an immigrant visa, your sponsor needs to submit Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers, or Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative, along with you submitting Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status.

When you apply for an immigrant visa while on a B-1/B-2 visa, be prepared to answer questions about your nonimmigrant intent when you applied for the B-1/B-2 visa. If an officer concludes you intended to immigrate at that time, it may complicate your application.

How an attorney may help

The B-1/B-2 visa is one of the most frequently denied visas. One of the most common reasons is that the applicant failed to show nonimmigrant intent.

If you’ve been denied or want to try to limit the chance of denial, you may want to consult with an immigration attorney. They may help you offer the type of evidence the government considers persuasive in showing your travel purposes and ties to your home country. They can also help you complete your application and review it for errors or incompleteness.

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What’s a B-1/B-2 visa?