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D and D/C1 Visa
Crewmember, Transiting Crewmembers
Overview
Apply
Pay Fees
Schedule an Interview
Local Information
Application Status

Overview

Based on your responses, you should apply for a D visa or a combined C1/D visa.  This means that you are planning to visit the United States as a:

        • pilot or flight attendant on a commercial airplane
        • captain, engineer, or deckhand on a sea vessel
        • lifeguard, cook, waiter, beautician, or other service staff on a cruise ship
        • trainee on board a training vessel

If you travel to the United States to join the vessel you will work on, in addition to a crewmember (D) visa, you also need a transit (C-1) visa or a combination C-1/D visa.

For more details on a D Visa, visit Travel.State.gov.

Additional Information

        • You may apply for a crewmember visa without being employed at the time of your visa application. However, the crewmember visa may only be used for entry to a U.S. port if you are employed on the sea vessel or aircraft on which you arrive.
        • There is no guarantee that you will be issued a visa. Do not make final travel plans or buy tickets until you have a visa.
        • Crewmember (D) visa holders must depart the United States on a vessel within 29 days. The United States is defined as including the continental United States, Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. You are not considered to have departed the United States until the vessel you are on travels to international waters destined to a foreign port.
        • The operating base is where the vessel takes on supplies regularly, where the cargo of the vessel is sold, or where the owner or master of the vessel engages in business transactions.
        • Spouse or Children –
          • Your spouse and unmarried, minor children may apply for visitor (B) visas to accompany you, if they will not perform services required for normal operation of the vessel.
          • If your spouse and/or children plan to enter the United States for another purpose, then they must apply for the visa category required for that purpose of travel. Review all visa categories.
        • A valid U.S. visa in an expired passport is still valid. Unless canceled or revoked, a visa is valid until its expiration date. If you have a valid visa in your expired passport, do not remove it from your expired passport. You may use your valid visa in your expired passport along with a new valid passport for travel and admission to the United States.
You do not qualify for a Crewmember Visa if: You may be able to apply for the following visa category:
Dry Dock: The primary services you will perform are dry dock repairs under warranty while the boat is docked at a U.S. port. B-1
Fishing Vessel: You are a crewmember on a temporary basis on a fishing vessel that has a home port or operating base in the United States. H-2
Coasting Officer: You are a replacement coasting officer employed when an officer of a foreign vessel is granted home leave, and the vessel does not remain in U.S. waters for more than 29 days. B-1
Private yacht: You are a crewmember on a private yacht sailing out of a foreign port which will be cruising in U.S. waters for more than 29 days. B-1
Outer Continental Shelf: You are a crewmember going to the Outer Continental Shelf. B-1

 

Be sure to view local information below to determine fees and payment process and additional requirements.

How to Apply

Complete the Online Visa Application

        • Online Nonimmigrant Visa Application, Form DS-160 – You must: 1) complete the online visa application and 2) print the application form confirmation page to bring to your interview.
        • Photo – You will upload your photo while completing the online Form DS-160. Your photo must be in the format explained in the Photograph Requirements.

You should have the following documents available while you complete your DS-160:

        • Passport
        • Travel itinerary if you have already made travel arrangements.
        • Dates of your last five visits or trips to the United States if you have previously travelled to the United States. You may also be asked for your international travel history for the past five years.
        • Résumé or Curriculum Vitae – You may be required to provide information about your current and previous education and work history.
        • Other Information – Some applicants, depending on the intended purpose of travel, will be asked to provide additional information when completing the DS-160.

Some applicants will need to have additional information and documentshandy while completing the DS-160

        • Students and Exchange Visitors (F, J, and M): You will be asked to provide your SEVIS ID, which is printed on your I-20 or DS-2019, so you should have this form available when completing your DS-160. You also will be asked to provide the address of the school/program at which you intend to study. This information should also be on your I-20 or DS-2019 form.
        • Petition-based Temporary Workers (H-1B, H-2, H-3, CW1, L, O, P, R, E2C): You should have a copy of your I-129 available when completing your DS-160.
        • Other Temporary Workers: You will be asked for information about your employer, including the employer’s address while completing your DS-160.

After you complete your DS-160, gather the required documents

        • Passport valid for travel to the United States – Your passport must be valid for at least six months beyond your period of stay in the United States (unless exempt by country-specific agreements). Each individual who needs a visa must submit a separate application, including any family memebrs listed in your passport.
        • Nonimmigrant Visa Application, Form DS-160 confirmation page.
        • Application fee payment receipt, if you are required to pay before your interview
        • Photo – You will upload your photo while completing the online Form DS-160. If the photo upload fails, you must bring one printed photo in the format explained in the Photograph Requirements.

Additional Information may be required

A consular officer will interview you to determine your qualifications for a crewmember visa, and may request additional documents. If transiting the United States to meet a vessel, be prepared to provide evidence you are transiting to meet the vessel, for example, a letter from your employer or your employer’s agent.

Additional requested documents may include evidence of:

        • The purpose of your trip;
        • Your intent to depart the United States after your trip; and/or
        • Your ability to pay all costs of the trip.

Evidence of your employment and/or your family ties may be sufficient to show the purpose of your trip and your intent to return to your home country. If you cannot cover all the costs for your trip, you may show evidence that another person will cover some or all costs for your trip.

Crewmembers Traveling to Meet Vessels

If you travel to the United States to meet and board the vessel you will work on, you need a transit (C-1) visa. (This is in addition to the crewmember (D) visa required to work on the vessel.) The interviewing consular officer may request that you provide evidence you are transiting to meet the vessel, for example, a letter from your employer or employer’s agent.

If you apply for the transit (C-1) visa at the same time as your crewmember (D) visa, you may be issued a combination C-1/D visa, if the reciprocity schedule for your country of citizenship allows for issuance of a C-1/D visa, and if the consular officer determines you are qualified. Select the country reciprocity schedules for more information.

Pay Fees (Prices in U.S. Dollars)

Each Applicant must pay a non-refundable processing (MRV) fee of US$185.00.

For some nationalities and visa types, an additional issuance fee may be required. Detailed information is available on your country of nationality’s Reciprocity Table on travel.state.gov. These additional fees will be paid at the time of your interview.

View local information below to determine fees and payment process.

Schedule Your Interview

Schedule an interview online  (using the barcode of your Form DS-160) and print the appointment confirmation. Because of space limitations in our public waiting area, only the person with an appointment for an interview will be admitted. Exceptions: Parents or guardians of a minor child who has an appointment, a caregiver for a disabled person, and young children accompanying the person with an appointment will be allowed to enter the waiting area.

Applicants aged 14 – 79 are required (some exceptions for renewals) to book one interview slot each and appear in person for an interview with a consular officer. While an interview is generally not required for children aged 13 and younger or for adults aged 80 and older, please keep in mind that a consular officer can require any applicant to appear for an interview. When submitting an application for a non-present child, the person present at the interview should bring the child’s birth certificate or family book as a supporting document.

Local Information

Please read the information in this section carefully.  It contains location-specific information that you will need to know when applying for your Visa.

Select the country or area where you will apply for your visa:


     

    Application Status

    You can check the status of your visa application on ceac.state.gov.

    Some visa applications may require further administrative processing, which takes additional time after the visa applicant’s interview by a consular officer. Applicants are advised of this requirement when they apply. When administrative processing is required, the timing will vary based on the individual circumstances of each case.