US B2 tourist visa

[Gnilias]

Hi,
Apologies if this is not the correct forum to post on but I'm hoping someone here will have a similar experience they can share.
I have dual UK and Australian citizenship and am looking to take my boat to the US in 2025. I understand that it isn't permitted to enter the US on a private boat under the ESTA / visa waiver program so I intend to apply for a tourist visa.
I'm a liveaboard cruiser currently in Europe and not planning to return to Australia for a couple of years.
My home is Australia, my house is in Australia, my family ties are all in Australia. But the nearest US embassy to me is London.
I was planning to apply for my visa as an Australian citizen but to request an interview at the London embassy. But a US visa consultant told me to forget this plan and that it was much better to have my interview in Australia.
This will cost an expensive return airfare and interfere with this year's cruising, but I will do it if I have to.
Does anyone else have experience of applying for a US B2 visa in London with your residency being elsewhere? Were you successful?
Appreciate that this forum is mainly to do with boats and maintenance, so if you can suggest a more suitable forum for me to post this question on please let me know.
thanks.

[barnab]

I don't have experience with London, but I did the interview in Casablanca (Morocco), that was no problem.

[Gnilias]

thanks Barnab, that's an interesting option for us to look at. Did it take long for them to process the visa after you had your interview? and was it a long wait to get the visa? Did the US embassy there have any problems with you applying outside of your own country?

[barnab]

The decision to grant the visa was instant, but they keep your passport for two weeks, then you get it back with the visa.The embassy had no problem with us applying there.

It was a bit strange to be without passport in a country that required me to have one, but when we left the boat we also carried only copies of the main page and the entry stamp (nobody ever wanted to see our passport, except when we arrived and left the country)

[s/v Jedi]

You can find the interview wait times online for each embassy.

You have to make clear that you are a sailor and that you are in the country where you request the visa.

Many do this in the Bahamas, Panama etc. but wait times can be crazy.

[goeasy123]

It's a 2 minute interview. It's nationality agnostic unless your from a non-visa exempt country. There are all sort of nationalities in the line in London. You don't need to go back to Australia

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by goeasy123

It's a 2 minute interview. It's nationality agnostic unless your from a non-visa exempt country. There are all sort of nationalities in the line in London. You don't need to go back to Australia

A two minute interview is a bit of an exaggeration but you missed my point about wait times. Today, as I checked it, the wait time is 110 calendar days for the London embassy, see attachment.

[s/v Jedi]

Nassau Bahamas only 28 days now.

[Gnilias]

thanks all, most helpful. I should have saved my money that I spent on a US Visa Consultant and just asked this forum in the first place!

[donradcliffe]

As a US citizen, I also had to get a special multiple entry visa before I sailed into Australia. I got mine in Fiji and it took one day. I looked again today, and they are quoting 30 days.

[psk125]

The State Department website makes it look like you can go to a Consulate for a visa interview too. There are US Consulates in Edinburgh and Belfast. The embassy in Paris is also easy to reach from London and there are U.S. Consulates in Bordeaux, Lyon, Rennes, Toulouse, Marseille & Strasbourg as well.

[Gnilias]

Well, I've worked my way through the online visa application form now. SV Jedi - I've a question for you before I submit - when you say "You have to make clear that you are a sailor and that you are in the country where you request the visa" do you mean that you do this at the interview? Or in the application form? If in the application form, whereabouts did you find the space to explain this? Thanks

[Montanan]

On the application try to indicate that you are in-transit in the UK and not at your home country of OZ.


Do you have an address in the UK to which the passport with visa can be sent, that is to say, a place you reside in the UK given you are a UK citizen?

Nonimmigrant visas are processed at the U.S. Embassy in London or the Consulate General in Belfast. If you are in the United Kingdom, you may schedule an appointment to apply for a visa at either post regardless of your nationality or status in the United Kingdom.

If you are eligible to apply for a visa by courier, and you are in England, Scotland or Wales you should submit your application to the Embassy in London. If you are in N.Ireland, you should submit your application to the Consulate General in Belfast.

Of administrative issue:

It is not possible to submit a passport to the U.S. Embassy, London for visa issuance from outside the U.K.

Applicants are required to submit their passport to the Embassy within the U.K. for return delivery to a U.K. address.

U.S. Consulate General Edinburgh
!! TEMPORARY SUSPENSION OF SERVICES AND FACILITY CLOSURE!!

The U.S. Consulate General in Edinburgh will be is temporarily closed to the public.

The ongoing construction at the U.S. Consulate General in Edinburgh continues to make progress. Consular Services are expected to resume on June 10th 2024. Appointments beginning June 10th are available through our online scheduling tool. All routine consular service appointments must be scheduled through the online appointment system: https://uk.usembassy.gov/u-s-citizen-services/

We anticipate that routine passport and Consular Report of Birth Abroad (CRBA) services will have an estimated turn-around time of three weeks from when a complete application is accepted. Please schedule an appointment that will allow for sufficient processing time.

For passport, notary, or citizenship needs during the temporary facility closure please continue to use our Mission UK website to schedule an appointment for consular services at the U.S. Embassy in London or the U.S. Consulate General in Belfast:


FYI:

Important: A valid visa or ESTA does not guarantee entry to the United States upon arrival. Admission is a matter for CBP officials at the Port of Entry, and all travelers are subject to questioning. No assurances can be given in advance.

But the vast majority of valid visa holders are granted entry by the Customs and Border Patrol agents, but they have complete discretion in this regard.

A valid visa or ESTA allows one to be allowed to travel to the USA but does not assure entry privilege.

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by Gnilias

Well, I've worked my way through the online visa application form now. SV Jedi - I've a question for you before I submit - when you say "You have to make clear that you are a sailor and that you are in the country where you request the visa" do you mean that you do this at the interview? Or in the application form? If in the application form, whereabouts did you find the space to explain this? Thanks

I believe I got the question when requesting the appointment for the interview. You must be in the country where you request the interview. If not, they will deny the request, telling you to apply in your home country.

[carstenb]

As Jedi noted - you can do this in the Bahamas. You can also get the visa in Barbados and I believe the waiting time there is less than 1 week.

When you do enter with the B1/B2 visa, make sure you request a 1 year stay. CPB personel are allowed to give you 1 year, but they generally will only give 6 months unless asked. When you ask, tell them you expect to cruise the US for a full year. Make sure you get a 1 year cruising permit.