Brazilians planning to visit the United States and who do not yet have a passport or an American visa will need to plan well in advance.
A report from CNN Brasil showed that the wait to schedule an interview at American consulates to obtain a visa is taking about a year.
In November 2022, the wait at the American consulate in São Paulo was 420 days. In Brasília, the delay could reach 388 days. At the American consulate in Rio de Janeiro, it was 364 days, and the shortest wait was in Porto Alegre, where the average delay was 287 days.
The U.S. Embassy and Consulate reported that they continue to work to increase the availability of appointments for all types of visas, but since services were fully resumed in November 2021, the scheduling time has been long.
The consulate emphasizes, however, that the wait time can vary significantly because it depends on demand, the type of visa, and the capacity for service. Thus, the wait time today may not be the same in a few weeks. Additionally, some people get lucky and manage to reschedule their interview when a cancellation occurs. So the secret is to frequently visit the consulate’s page and keep track of available interview dates.
Those wishing to renew their visa will also be subject to other timelines, as in most cases, an interview is not necessary.
Lack of Passport
In addition to the wait for a visa, Brazilians are also facing a wait for passports.
The Brazilian Federal Police had completely suspended the issuance of the document since November 19 due to a lack of resources.
The government released R$ 37.4 million for the “maintenance of the passport issuance system, control of international traffic, and registration of foreigners.” But the amount is about half of the R$ 75 million requested in August, and the release of the other half still depends on the approval of an extraordinary credit (outside the spending cap) by the National Congress — which still has no date to occur.
Thus, the Federal Police temporarily resumed the issuance of passports. The corporation stated in a note that the released funds are not sufficient to fully resume issuance.
“Considering the insufficiency of the released amounts, after the mentioned date, new issuances will again be suspended until the remaining amounts are transferred.”
The forecast is that Congress will approve the extraordinary credit (outside the cap) in early December. The month began this Thursday (1st), but the vote will depend on the Congress agenda and an agreement between the federal government and deputies and senators.