
U.S. suspending visa services worldwide due to coronavirus - jbegley
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-usa-visas-idUSKBN2153NP
======
rudle
Headline is misleading as USCIS is suspending _in-person_ visa operations.
Renewals and transfers of US visas are often conducted via courier and post.

From [https://uscis.gov](https://uscis.gov)

> As of March 18, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has suspended
> routine in-person services until at least April 1 to help slow the spread of
> Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). USCIS staff will continue to perform
> duties that do not involve contact with the public. However, USCIS will
> provide emergency services for limited situations. To schedule an emergency
> appointment contact the USCIS Contact Center.

~~~
goatherders
Agreed. That's a pretty big omission by the OP

~~~
dgemm
It is the exact title used by the Reuters article. It's a pretty big omission
but not by OP.

~~~
goatherders
Fair. Thanks

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zahma
After nearly two years of waiting for paperwork to be reviewed by CIS and
Department of State and for an appointment at the consulate, my partner
received the entry visa and passport in the mail only three days ago. I am
truly sorry for anyone who is about to start this process because it will take
even longer on top of what is already an inhumanely lengthy amount of time to
bring someone into the U.S.

~~~
rwmj
Yes it took me a year to sort out my visa. When I read this news I thought
"how will anyone tell the difference?"

~~~
ipqk
I applied for Global Entry _months_ after the 2018/2019 government shutdown,
and it was still significantly backlogged because of it.

~~~
ukabwlsbeux
I did too. My in person interview consisted of me showing them my drivers
license and verbally confirming my email.

Honestly I was pretty pissed that I needed to spend so much time waiting and
scheduling around a trip to the office for that.

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belval
As a Canadian that was supposed to do an internship at FAANG this summer the
situation is looking worse everyday.

I know some managers at Microsoft are considering remote interns but it will
be far from the same experience.

~~~
throwqwerty
>but it will be far from the same experience

why do you think so? except for free food and the city life of whichever city
you were supposed to be in, what's the difference?

~~~
khuey
You'll largely miss out on the social aspect of all the other interns, for
one.

~~~
throwqwerty
does not being able to socialize qualify as "far from"?

~~~
toast0
For a lot of internships, socialization is very significant. It really depends
on the intern and the team, of course.

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genidoi
I was just finalising some documents before booking an interview at the
Melbourne consulate for an E3 work visa.

I have no idea what to do now.

~~~
prpl
Email them, probably, ASAP. These things take some time to propagate some
times.

~~~
genidoi
Hopefully I'll be able to get an expedited apt before they close it
completely. This was a dream job at the tail end of a 6mo+ process.

~~~
enneff
Australia might be a better place to be in another 6 months.

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base698
How will this effect existing H1Bs?

~~~
dudul
Why would current H1Bs be impacted? They already have their non-immigrant visa
no?

~~~
objclxt
They'd be impacted if their visa is due for renewal.

~~~
Symbiote
Britain has been extended some visas, recognizing that it's sometimes
unreasonable (person from a country with more cases) or impractical (lack of
flights) for people to leave when they expected to.

The current extensions are only to 31 March, but maybe they will increase
again after that.

[https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-immigration-
guidance...](https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-immigration-guidance-if-
youre-unable-to-return-to-china-from-the-uk)

------
kawfey
This is probably a really huge blow to the Pleasant Green Youtube channel. Ben
was trying to get a visa for a Cameroonian woman needing surgery in Miami, and
now this. Hopefully they can get beyond it.

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jinushaun
Guess I’m not renewing my expiring passport any time soon… I’m a US citizen

~~~
chatmasta
Same. Passport expiring soon. I’m living in the UK and can’t go home to the US
right now (well I could, but it would require a 2 week quarantine). It’s
mildly disconcerting, I hope this doesn’t really go on for 18 months.

~~~
r00fus
> well I could, but it would require a 2 week quarantine

That's actually quite reasonable as most folks are effectively shelter-in-
place. Not a big deal, but would you really want to fly in these conditions?
Expired but valid US passport = you can still re-enter the USA.

~~~
chatmasta
I definitely wouldn’t want to fly now, no (I’m also sheltering in place). For
me it’s more of an existential panic that if there were some emergency it
would not be feasible for me to return home quickly.

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scotty79
I panicked for a moment because I thought it's about Visa not US visa and it
made no sense.

~~~
beatgammit
We don't want the virus to jump to cross the digital divide, so we're taking
every precaution. Stay tuned for updates about MasterCard and Discover.

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TheSpiceIsLife
I’m gonna back pedal here and delete my earlier comment.

~~~
beardedman
Agreed with your previous comment.

~~~
chance_state
What did it say?

~~~
beardedman
Basically what I've been "soap boxing" about. ;)

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beardedman
I struggle to see how bringing the economy (& everything around it) to a
grinding halt will help.

What happens when we "press unpause"? Do people really believe the virus won't
be there afterwards?

~~~
wolco
It stops the spread of the virus. If you did nothing 5% would die and worse
those that have recovered have problems breathing (can't walk up stairs).

Life would come to a halt regardless.

~~~
beardedman
No offense, I know people who have recovered and none of them have any hint of
anything afterwards.

~~~
wolco
No offense taken. I kind of worry about this mindset generally. It isn't real
unless I know someone who is in hospital. It gets real quickly when you get
sick.

~~~
beardedman
I didn't mean to be so "anecdotal" here. I do know people who are fine, I've
read stories of people who are fine, the data shows most people will be fine -
except that elderly age group & folks with seemingly compromised immune
systems. There are exceptions of course. And it is very real, but I think
people need to be cognisant of data when citing mortality rates & incidents.

------
AntonStratiev
We need to just accept 2-4 million sick and elderly Americans dying. That
outcome cannot be any worse than complete economic and social destruction that
we seem to be pursuing in the name of virus suppression.

Edit: I am specifically referring to the Imperial College report which
outlines this scenario. Here is the original report:
[https://www.imperial.ac.uk/media/imperial-
college/medicine/s...](https://www.imperial.ac.uk/media/imperial-
college/medicine/sph/ide/gida-fellowships/Imperial-College-COVID19-NPI-
modelling-16-03-2020.pdf)

And here is a summary:
[https://twitter.com/jeremycyoung/status/1239975682643357696](https://twitter.com/jeremycyoung/status/1239975682643357696)

~~~
joshgel
That’s not the only problem. Say you aren’t high risk, great! But do you
really want to live in a world without a functioning health care system.
Because that is what you are promoting. When hospitals get overwhelmed, even
minor issues can become catastrophic.

In a car crash? Need some surgical repair? Too bad, we’re not open for
business because we’re trying to keep critically ill patients alive and need
the gowns and equipment for healthcare workers.

~~~
AntonStratiev
That would only be the case for 3 months, after which those who were most
vulnerable to the virus would have perished.

2.8m Americans die annually, basically we are just seeing 1-2 years of deaths
brought forward into a 3 month window. It will be harrowing to triage those
patients but it can be managed.

I would prefer that situation to living through a great depression. Healthcare
is irrelevant without a job or any income whatsoever, with huge sections of
the economy closed and extensive restrictions on what individuals can and
can't do.

I have parents in their late 60s who are looking at their entire retirement
portfolio evaporating.

I have a terminally ill sister and aunt who are faced with spending their
final weeks/months in lockdown, with people unable to visit them or attend
their funerals. They are struggling to access regular supplies due to
hoarding.

~~~
dannyr
The thing is these millions of elderly people dying are someone else's
relatives.

It could even be yours.

Will you be ok with that?

~~~
aianus
What about the millions of elderly people who will die this year of natural
causes and whose final moments on Earth will now be of loneliness, boredom,
and despair?

Depending on the duration, of course, the lockdowns seem to have the potential
to be much crueler and sadder than an earlier death.

