Your royal highnesses: Both TAL 221G folks, and non-TAL 221G folks please bear with me as I offer you some solutions on how to avoid a 221G Case as well as what to do if you are already a victim of Administrative Processing.
I have put a “My Comments” on the reality of the 221G at the end of this article. Please read them, they are of utmost importance.
The following “GENERAL” data is majorly obtained from redbus2us.com . Thanks a lot to them for the details they have provided, “but these details weren’t enough for me to understand the ground reality of this situation”.
What is 221(g) in context of US visa Stamping ?
When the US consulate officer determines that additional processing is required before they can make the decision on your US visa issuance, they issue you a 221(g) form. It is a basically a piece of paper and it can be in various colors, depending on the consulate and processing they would like to do or information they need to verify.
When is 221g issued ? What are the common reasons for a 221g issual?
A person can be put under administrative processing, also called as 221g, because of several reasons. Some of the most common reasons are:
- Background check: This can often happen if a person has a common name synonymous with a suspected terrorist’s name, or is working in an industry like pharmaceutical, biotech, engineering etc that’s there on TAL (Technology Alert List); or has a name matching to an entry in alert list.
- Employment check: This can happen if a person is working for a consulting company and the officer wants to ensure that the submitted client/project information is correct; or want to check if the employer maintains control over employee’s tasks and activities (employer-employee relationship).
- Petitioner Information Management Service(PIMS) : This can happen when the petition has not been updated at the KSC (Kentucky Service Center) and the officer puts the processing on hold until the information gets updated there.
What does the Department of State (DOS) do after 221g is issued?
Once your visa stamping case is put under administrative processing using 221g, following steps happen:
- Issuance of 221g a Color Slip : A slip will be issued to you as the visa applicant by the US Consulate officer. Different color slips are issued for different reasons by different consulates. The slip will have the case number assigned to your stamping. The case number starts w/ the year of interview date and will be of the format 2012xxx-xxx-x or 2012xxx-xxx-xx (assuming the candidate went for interview in 2012).
- Submit Documents, mentioned in 221g Slip : If the consulate needs additional documents for the processing, they will ask you to submit the documents. These can be submitted electronically or at VFS drop-box. The issued slip will have information about the required documents and how to submit them. The processing will not start until all the documents have been submitted.
- Waiting time : After you submit the documents, if requested in the slip, you just need to sit back and wait for them to process your case. There is nothing you need to do, just need to wait…It can be long at times…
- Submit Passport or Visa issuance Decision : Once the processing is complete and you are determined to be eligible for the visa, then you will be asked to submit the passport (if not already submitted) and they would stamp the visa in the passport. If you are not found to be eligible, then they would return the original documents (except for 797) and give a denial letter. Check out Sample 221g US Visa Denial Letter.
How long does 221g processing take to resolve and come to a decision ?
There is no set timeline or SLA for 221g processing. It totally depends on the case and it can take as little as a week, or as much as several months. It is very hard to know how much time it will take for them to come to a decision on your visa stamping case. As per US Travel Docs Website, they say that most of the administrative processing cases resolve typically in 60 days, but there is no SLA as such. See below.
When can you follow up on 221g with Consulate or US Dept. of State ?
As per US Dept. of State, unless it is an emergency like injury, death of family member or something critical, you should not contact them regarding administrative processing before 180 Days. It is kind of long, but that’s what it is.. See below from Dept. of State website.
How to follow-up on your 221g processing ? What are the options to check your 221g case ?
As per US Dept of state guidance, you cannot reach out before 180 days, but users can still track their case online using the options provided and sometimes, they can call as well. Below are the various options to follow-up on your 221g case :
- Track your passport on US Travel Docs Website
- Track your case number on US Department of State Visa Status Page. Note that not all cases can be tracked electronically, and each consulate has a different method of updating the cases. You should check your country’s US Travel Docs website to know where to check.
- Call customer service using contact us on US Travel Docs Website. There are options for live chat, Skype calling and other options. Note that they will not provide any more meaningful information than what’s already available from (1) and (2), but you can always ask more.
- Email concerned US consulate (contact information available at respective consulate website). Note that they may not be very good in responding, but you can try it.
- Email or call Department of State in Washington DC (contact information available on Department of State website). Note that they will not provide any more meaningful information than what’s already available from (1) and (2), and may be short in conversation. As they mention, you need to wait for 180 days before reaching out to them. In the past it was 60 days, but now it has gone up.
- If you were working in US, then you can email your Senator and ask them for help. However, this should be done only if it has been pending for 180 days or more. Again, there is no guarantee. In the past we had the 60 days guidance to reach out on VFS website, but now it is different and the the guidance on Dept. of State website is 180 days to follow-up for non-emergency cases. .
Can I expedite 221g processing? Is there premium processing for US Visa Administrative Processing ?
Absolutely no premium processing or way to expedite the process, unless it is an emergency as indicated. You just need to wait. The wait can be long, but it is what it is…
Does delay in 221g processing mean rejection?
Not necessarily. Unfortunately, administrative processing takes time, and one needs to remain hopeful. If one has been asked to submit the passport, then that’s definitely a positive sign. However, if one has not been asked to submit the passport, then it’s not necessarily a negative sign.
Are there any alternatives to 221g situation for your US Visa?
There are not many alternates, but the few options available are:
- Apply for US visa in another category. This can be done as long as you are eligible for that visa category. One doesn’t need to withdraw the pending 221g application with US consulate.
- Apply for same visa but through another employer (applicable more to H1B applicants). Based on your current petition, an employer (same or different) can file cap-exempt petition for you. Once it is approved you can re-appear for visa interview. Again, one doesn’t need to withdraw the pending 221g application.
What happens in case of rejection with 221g ?
In case the US stamping request is rejected after the administrative processing:
- Consulate will send the petition back to USCIS for reconsideration along w/ their comments
- All your original documents will be returned to you, except for I-797 which is sent to USCIS
- Once USCIS receives the petition, they will send a notice of receipt to the petitioner
- USCIS will review the petition (this could take 2–3 months) and either issue NOIR (Notice of Intent to Revoke) or NOID (Notice of Intent to Deny). The petitioner will be given certain days (30–60 days, actual days given is mentioned in the NOIR/NOID) to respond.
- Based on petitioner’s response, USCIS will finally reinstate the petition or deny it
- If it’s reinstated, then USCIS will send the document to the concerned consulate, which in turn will get in touch w/ you to appear at the consulate.
Again, this is a very lengthy process and can take time. Some of these steps would happen during the administrative processing as well.
My Experience: Ground Reality
I had attended my US Visa interview in mid-December 2020, and was issued a 221(g) Yellow Slip on the spot by the Visa Officer (VO). I will not divulge the details of my interview, but I was questioned on my research area, and my case was put under Administrative Processing (under TAL) because the VO felt like he did not have enough data about me (majorly my research) to make a conclusive decision on whether I should be issued a US Visa or not. I had to submit some extra data related to my research area after the interview, via email. What followed after this depressing incident, was a 3 month wait while the extra data I submitted was processed. My visa was finally issued in mid-March 2021, and it was issued for only 4 years even though I provided data stating the PhD course that I was traveling to the US for, would take 5 years minimum to complete.
My Take on the 221G
Most TAL (Technology Alert List) related 221G cases get resolved eventually and is time taking to an intolerant extent. The Embassy tells the visa applicant that its gonna take some 4–6 weeks to process such cases, but mostly it takes longer, and 99% of the times, your visa is finally issued after careful review of your application. I have heard some cases take as long as 6 months or also longer at times. Meanwhile all you can do is to patiently wait, as time goes by (lol). You’ll surely need to drown this tension once you are through this mentally stressful phase, and once your visa is issued, please oh please, go get yourself a beer!
So, what I’ll be discussing in here is how you can handle certain situations after you get a 221G, as well as some preparatory precautionary measures of how you can make your stand stronger, when the Visa Officer is doubtful of what your research/course is really about.
Scenario 1: Precaution before the interview
a) For suspected general non-TAL/TAL cases You can apply for a Support Letter from your college, to support your purpose of visit to the US. It is just an added supporting document in your arsenal.
b) If you are a suspected TAL candidate, you ought to do this: ask for a Support Letter directly from your Departmental Advisor or HOD. Such a support letter is different from the first support letter I mentioned in many aspects, especially, because it contains the following deets:
It includes details on your research area (if decided), on your funding (if funded), and other details on whether you work (if decided) is connected with any US govt. projects and whether you’d have access to Export Technologies for the same. This letter is supportive in nature, and clarifies the doubts of the VO in most situations. People haven’t used it as a defense mechanism in their interviews much, but I know of one PhD Aerospace case in Jan ‘21 who had presented this letter to the VO when asked multiple questions about her research area, and it avoided a 221G. Your department will have to furnish this data on a letterhead, with authorized signatory.
Scenario 2 : The depression that comes after
In my situation, the Case Update date on the CEAC Tracker updated itself in Feb-end, but my Visa status still showed “Refused”. That bugged me a lot. I had my admit for Spring 2021, and I already had to defer to Summer 2021. So what that meant was, I was in possession of an updated i20, an updated admit letter and an updated funding letter, 3 documents that I had not passed on to the embassy whilst submitting my Documents for AP. So, I had emailed the embassy on the same email on which I had submitted my previous docs, informing them of my updated documents and attaching the same. I received a reply from the same email in a few days, and voila! I was asked to submit my passport to the nearest VAC. That is how I got my visa issued. A disclaimer tho: DO NOT TRY THE above stunt of emailing the consulate until at-least 2–2.5 months have passed after your interview.
Remember that your visa status will show: “Refused” as your case undergoes AP. “Refused” is completely different from “Rejected”. If it show “Rejected” then you have been denied a visa post AP, if you were issued a 221G previously.
Relating to the above, my college had informed me the following, in a handout :
Individuals who apply for a U.S. visa may be denied for a number of reasons, but common denial reasons for students or scholars are outlined below:
1. 214(b):
o The applicant did not sufficiently demonstrate to the Consular Officer that they qualified for the visa
o The applicant did not overcome the presumption of immigrant intent by sufficiently demonstrating strong ties to their home country. Strong ties are people and/or property that compel them to returning to their home country at the end of the temporary stay.
2. 221(g)
o The consular officer did not have all of the information required to determine eligibility to issue the visa, but the case is pending further action. The applicant will be given indication of the additional documents required (i.e. new financial documentation, updated form I-20 or DS-2019) or other types of information the information the Consular Officer identifies are missing)
o Their case is undergoing Administrative Processing (AP).
AP: as described by my college
Individuals subject to Administrative Processing should anticipate that the review of their visa will take anywhere from 2 weeks to 60 days or more. There is no expedite for Administrative Processing, although submitting appropriate evidence to the U.S. Consulate of current and past academic and/or research history will aid the review process.
Materials the visa applicant can prepare include: C.V. with a complete list of publications, summary of research activities current and past, official academic records, and abstract of thesis when applicable.
The academic “host” department can write a letter to support an individual subject to 221(g) Administrative Processing. The letter should be written on official letterhead, should include the business address of the post where the 221(g) was issued, and contact information for the host academic department and faculty supervisor. A good support letter must outline details of the academic program as well as a description of any research activities in which the student is engaged using concise but laymen’s explanation of the individual’s role in research activities at the respective college.
I hope that I have been able to provide you some comprehensive information about the 221G, and how can handle certain situations to my best knowledge. Share this article with your friends, and please take care of your mental health in case your wait during Administrative Processing is longer than expected! Best of luck and Take care :)
Join this incredibly helpful “F-1 221G Administrative Processing” WhatsApp Group for further assistance, ONLY AFTER YOU HAVE RECEIVED A 221G slip:
I am grateful to my friends who have assisted me before and after getting a 221G, for supporting me and helping me through the AP time. You can connect with me on LinkedIn as Pranoy Ray. Specifically a big shoutout to Janhavi Nistane and Karan Taneja for assisting me with the various deets, while I served my time in 221G exile. Pardon me for any grammatical errors, it’s been a long article haha :)
Also, hey don’t forget to hit the “clap” button i this article was of help to you ^-^
