US Visa for Filipinos: The 2026 Guide

US Visa Categories for Filipino Citizens

1. B1/B2 Visitor Visa

For temporary business or temporary pleasure travel, including tourism and visits to friends or relatives (22 CFR 41.31(b)). Our B1/B2 guide sets out what the law and the State Department say about who qualifies, the DS-160, the interview and the fees.

• Fee: $185 (22 CFR 22.1, item 21(a)).
• Where: the Embassy lists one post for consular services in the Philippines: the US Embassy at 1201 Roxas Boulevard, Manila 1000.
• How long you can stay: the appointment service says the visa lets you travel to a port of entry, and that the Customs and Border Protection officer who processes your entry decides how long you may remain. The validity of the visa does not decide it.

2. K-1 Fiancé(e) Visa

USCIS says a US citizen who wants to bring a foreign fiancé(e) to the United States to marry files Form I-129F, the first step to a K-1 visa. The couple must intend to marry within 90 days of the fiancé(e)'s admission to the United States, must both be legally free to marry (any earlier marriage ended by divorce, death or annulment), and must have met in person at least once in the 2 years before the petition is filed. USCIS lets the petitioner request a waiver of the meeting requirement if the petitioner can show that meeting would violate strict and long-established customs of the fiancé(e)'s foreign culture or social practice, or would result in extreme hardship to the petitioner. USCIS processes fiancé(e) petitions in the order it receives them and publishes current processing times.

• Petition first: the Manila appointment service says a Filipino fiancé(e) needs an approved I-129F petition to apply for a K-1 visa, and that only a US citizen may file it.
• Documents: the service says a fiancé(e) is considered an intending immigrant and presents documents similar to an immigrant visa applicant: a passport, a birth certificate, legal documents proving the end of any earlier marriage, an NBI clearance, police certificates from foreign countries where the applicant lived for at least six months from age 16, evidence of the relationship and of financial support, a medical examination and visa photographs. It adds that evidence must show the couple met in person within the two years before the petition was filed.
• Fees: $265 for each K visa applicant (22 CFR 22.1, item 21(d)), payable through the appointment service in US dollars or the peso equivalent. The service puts the medical examination at $213.35 for adults (15 and older) and $185.35 for children under 15.
• Validity: the regulation says the approval of a K-1 petition is valid for four months, and that a consular officer can revalidate it for four months if the couple are still free to marry and intend to marry within 90 days of the beneficiary's entry (8 CFR 214.2(k)(5)). The Manila service's FAQ gives six months for the petition, so ask the Embassy which date applies to you. The service says the K-1 visa is valid for a maximum of six months and is single-entry, and that if it expires a new one can be issued on written request and payment of another $265.
• After arrival: the fiancé(e) has 90 days from admission to marry the petitioner, and the service says the visa does not allow marrying anyone else. USCIS says a fiancé(e) who marries within the 90 days may apply for a Green Card with Form I-485. If the marriage is under two years old when that is approved, the card is conditional for 2 years, and Form I-751 is filed in the 90 days before it expires. The service says the fiancé(e) can apply to USCIS for a work permit after entering the United States.
• Children: only unmarried children under 21 named in the petition can apply for K-2 visas. If they cannot leave with their parent, the service says they have one year from the issue of the K-1 visa to be issued K-2 visas.
• Why K-1 applications are refused: the service says K-1 applications are reviewed on the same standards as immigrant visa applications, and lists lacking documentation, a need to review or verify evidence, a relationship that cannot be petitioned, misrepresentation, medical concerns, criminal grounds and potential public charge. It calls a prior marriage of the beneficiary or the petitioner that has not been legally terminated a common basis for refusal, and says a consular officer will accept only a death certificate or a court ruling of annulment or of presumptive death as evidence that a Filipino marriage has ended, while a US citizen may end a Filipino marriage through a US divorce.

3. Immigrant Visas

The Manila appointment service describes an immigrant visa as one issued to a qualified person with an approved petition based on a family or work relationship who wishes to live in the United States permanently.

• Fees: the regulation lists a $325 application processing fee per person for immediate relative and family preference applications (22 CFR 22.1, item 32(a)) and a $120 affidavit of support review fee when the review is done domestically (item 34). USCIS sets its own petition fees.
• Priority dates: the service says visa applications are processed strictly according to priority date because the number of visas is limited, and that the Embassy will not process an application until its priority date is current. The Visa Bulletin on travel.state.gov shows the dates.
• Petitioner in the United States: asked about a petitioner who has moved back to the Philippines, the service says US law requires petitioners to be domiciled or reside in the United States.
• Children: the service says children of US citizens are immediate relatives and need individual petitions, while a single child under 21 of a family preference applicant can derive status from the parent's petition.
• Documents at the interview: the Embassy says that since 19 May 2025, immigrant visa applicants who arrive without all the required original documents are not interviewed and must schedule a new appointment. The service's FAQ describes a different outcome, a refusal under section 221(g) with a pending letter listing what to present, so bring every required original document.

Registration with the Philippine Commission on Filipinos Overseas

The Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO) is a Philippine government agency, not a US one. Its list of immigrant visa categories for the United States shows K-1, CR-1 and IR-1 visas under its Guidance and Counseling Program and other immigrant classes under its Pre-Departure Orientation Seminar. The CFO says its list is regularly updated and that other categories may also require registration, so check its list and contact it before you travel.

Before You Apply: Social Media Privacy

The US Embassy in the Philippines instructs everyone applying for an H-1B, H-3, H-4 (dependent of an H-1B or H-3), F, I, J, M, K-1, K-2, K-3, Q, R-1, R-2, S, T, TN, TD or U visa, among other categories it lists, to set the privacy setting on all social media accounts to public or open, to facilitate the vetting needed to establish identity and admissibility under US law.

The Application Process in the Philippines (Nonimmigrant Visas)

Step 1: DS-160 & Payment

Complete the DS-160 online at ceac.state.gov. The State Department's visa appointment service for the Philippines (ustraveldocs.com/ph) says to log in to its online appointment system and create a profile so that the right amount is paid and activated on time; its links to that system point to usvisascheduling.com. The service says fees are listed in US dollars and that payment may be made in local currency or in US dollars depending on the option. The options it lists are cash at a bank, scanning a QR code with a mobile banking app or eWallet, a credit or debit card in pesos, and a Visa debit or credit card in US dollars, for which additional charges apply. With cash at a bank, the service says you can schedule your interview after four hours. A fee payment can be used to schedule an appointment within one year of the payment. If a payment seems to have failed, do not pay a second time: the service says the second payment will not be refunded and asks you to email its support center.

Step 2: Schedule Your Appointments

The Embassy says applicants need two appointments: first at the Visa Application Center for photo and fingerprint collection, then the visa interview at the US Embassy. You must schedule the Visa Application Center appointment at least one day before the interview. The appointment service says nonimmigrant visa applicants are encouraged to apply at least three months before they travel, that processing is typically three working days although some cases take longer, and that wait times are published on the State Department's travel site. It lists unforeseen needs that may qualify for an expedited appointment, depending on availability: medical needs, a funeral or death, students or exchange visitors, a lost or stolen visa, a denied ESTA and urgent business travel. Groups of five or more traveling together may request a group appointment.

Step 3: The Interview

Unless personal appearance is waived, each applicant aged 14 to 79 must appear before a consular officer and be interviewed, and the officer decides the proper visa classification and your eligibility from what you say, your application and other relevant documentation (22 CFR 41.102(a)). The appointment service says the interview is required for most applicants, with a few exceptions. Its interview waiver has conditions: it lists, for example, renewing a fully valid B-1, B-2, B-1/B-2 or H-2A visa that is current or expired within the past 12 months, if you were at least 18 when it was issued, you apply in your consular district of residence, all ten fingerprints were taken when it was issued, the visa was not lost, stolen or revoked, and you have never been refused unless the refusal was overcome or waived. Eligibility does not guarantee issuance, and an officer may call you for an interview.

What a Section 214(b) Refusal Means

The State Department's guidance for consular officers says 214(b) "does not simply mean that applicants must have 'ties' to their home country": a refusal means the applicant failed to qualify for the visa, which can happen by not convincing the officer that they are not an intending immigrant or by failing another requirement of the visa class (9 FAM 302.1-2(B)(4) and (B)(6)). The same guidance gives an example: failing to have sufficient funds to cover educational expenses results in a 214(b) refusal of a student visa, because sufficient funds are a requirement of the F-1 classification (9 FAM 302.1-2(B)(4)). Make sure the evidence you submit matches what you declare in your application.

Related Guides