Effective January 26, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will require all air passengers entering the United States to present a negative COVID-19 test, taken within 72 hours of departure. Airlines must confirm the negative test result for all passengers before boarding. Airlines must deny boarding of passengers if they do not provide documentation of a negative test or recovery. This requirement is separate from the visa application process. All Presidential Proclamations restricting travel due to COVID-19 remain in place, and continue to apply to subject potential travelers regardless of their test results or vaccination status. Travelers holding a National Interest Exception also remain subject to all applicable pre-departure testing requirements.

On December 31, 2020, the President signed a Presidential Proclamation on Suspension of Entry of Immigrants and Nonimmigrants Who Continue to Present a Risk to the United States Labor Market. This proclamation extends Presidential Proclamations (P.P.) 10014 and 10052 through March 31, 2021. P.P. 10014 suspends the entry to the United States of certain immigrant visa applicants, while P.P.10052 suspends the entry to the United States of certain nonimmigrant visa applicants who present a risk to the U.S. labor market during the economic recovery following the novel coronavirus outbreak. Specifically, the suspension of P.P. 10052 applies to applicants for H-1B, H-2B, and L-1 visas; J-1 visa applicants participating in the intern, trainee, teacher, camp counselor, au pair, or summer work travel programs; and any spouses or children of covered applicants applying for H-4, L-2, or J-2 visas. U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents, and aliens who are or were inside the United States or those holding valid nonimmigrant or immigrant visas on the effective date are not subject to the Proclamation.

As of November 16, the United States Embassy in Ukraine is unable to offer routine nonimmigrant visa appointments, including K visas. We continue to offer a very limited number of appointments for certain mission-critical visa categories, including C1/Ds, as well as humanitarian emergencies. We will resume routine visa services as soon as possible but are unable to provide a specific date at this time.The MRV fee is valid and may be used to schedule an interview appointment in the country where it was purchased until December 31, 2021. If you have an urgent matter and need to travel immediately, please follow the guidance provided at https://www.ustraveldocs.com/ua/ua-niv-expeditedappointment.asp (for B1/B2, students, and petition-based visas) or email KyivIV@state.gov(for K visas) to request an emergency appointment.

The U.S. Mission to Ukraine understands that many visa applicants have paid the visa application processing fee and are still waiting to schedule a visa appointment. We are working diligently to restore all routine visa operations as quickly and safely as possible. In the meantime, rest assured that the U.S. Mission will extend the validity of your payment (known as the MRV fee) until December 31, 2021, to allow all applicants who were unable to schedule a visa appointment as a result of the suspension of routine consular operations an opportunity to schedule and/or attend a visa appointment with the already paid fee. Please continue to monitor this site for information on when we will return to routine visa operations.

Presidential Proclamations on Novel Coronavirus: Entry of foreign nationals who were physically present within the following list of countries within 14 days prior to their entry or attempted entry into the United States is suspended, per Presidential Proclamations 9984, 9992, 9993, 9996 and 10041: Brazil; The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, excluding overseas territories outside of Europe; The Republic of Ireland; The 26 countries that comprise the Schengen Area (Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland); The Islamic Republic of Iran; The People’s Republic of China, not including the Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and Macau.

There are certain exceptions to the suspension of entry, including exceptions for U.S. lawful permanent residents and certain family members of U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents, among other exceptions listed in the proclamations. If you reside in, have traveled recently to, or intend to transit or travel to the above list of countries prior to your planned trip to the United States, we recommend you postpone your visa interview appointment until 14 days subsequent to your departure from the subject country(ries). Additionally, if you are experiencing flu-like symptoms, or believe you may have been exposed to the novel coronavirus, you are strongly encouraged to postpone your appointment by at least 14 days. There is no fee to change an appointment and visa application fees are valid for one year in the country where the fee was paid.

Presidential Proclamation 9983: On January 31, 2020, a new Presidential Proclamation (“Presidential Proclamation 9983”) was issued which added to the ongoing travel restrictions of P.P. 9645 by expanding them to the nationals of six additional countries.

If you are a citizen of a Visa Waiver Program partner but unable to travel to the United States under that program, you should apply for a nonimmigrant visa at least three months in advance of your desired travel. If you do not have imminent travel plans, you should pay the nonimmigrant visa application fee, fill out the DS-160 nonimmigrant visa application form at ceac.state.gov/genniv/, and schedule a visa appointment. If your travel is imminent, you may request an expedited visa appointment. Please include in your request the date and purpose of your travel, as well as a copy of any U.S. Customs and Border Protection message you may have received regarding your ESTA status. More information about restrictions to travel under the Visa Waiver Program, including the requirement for an electronic passport, is available here.

Dear applicants, please note that there is no facility at the Embassy to store prohibited items. In the past, applicants were allowed to check and store certain small items including cell phones with Embassy security staff. As of February 1, 2016, this will no longer be allowed, and you must make arrangements to store these items before entering.

The U.S. Embassy in Kyiv, Ukraine is the consular office for visa applications submitted by residents of Ukraine, including Crimea, which is the territory of Ukraine. As such, applicants from Crimea should be interviewed at the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv, must pay their MRV fees for visa applications only at Raiffeisen Bank Aval branches and must select a TMM Express passport pickup location inside Ukraine, as document pass back services to and from Crimea have been suspended indefinitely due to Russian activities in that portion of Ukraine's territory.