US Visa Interview Document Checklist
Choose your visa type and where you are interviewing, and get the documents to take to the window — with a line on why each one matters. Tick items off as you gather them, then print the list or save it as a PDF. No sign-up, and nothing you select is stored or sent anywhere.
Type the first letters to jump to a country.
F-1 (Student) checklist — Nepal
Officers decide F-1 cases on three questions: are you a genuine student, can you pay, and will you leave. Each document below supports one of those.
Required
Take these to the window. Missing one can end the interview before it starts.
Supporting documents
Often not requested, but you cannot go back for them once you are in the queue.
Before you go
Bring originals and one photocopy set
Officers rarely take documents, but a missing original when asked is a bad look. Photocopies let you leave a copy if requested.
Organise by category, not by date
Academic, financial, ties. If the officer asks for a bank statement you should find it in two seconds, not thirty.
Most of these are never asked for
A typical F-1 interview is two to four minutes and the officer may look at nothing beyond your I-20 and passport. Carry them anyway — you cannot go back for them.
Kathmandu: bring originals and photocopies of every financial document
Funding questions are the most common line of enquiry at this post. Have the source of every large deposit explainable.
Documents are the easy part. If you want to rehearse the questions, practise a full interview with our AI visa officer — the first one is free.
What you need, by visa type
Every US visa interview needs the same four core documents — a valid passport, your DS-160 confirmation page, the appointment letter and the MRV fee receipt. Beyond those, requirements diverge sharply by category.
Study
F-1 (Student) required documents
Officers decide F-1 cases on three questions: are you a genuine student, can you pay, and will you leave. Each document below supports one of those.
- Passport
- DS-160 Confirmation Page
- Interview Appointment Confirmation
- MRV Fee Payment Receipt
- Passport Photograph
- Form I-20
- SEVIS I-901 Fee Receipt
- University Admission Letter
- Academic Transcripts and Certificates
- Bank Statements
- Sponsor Affidavit and Income Proof
M-1 (Vocational Student) required documents
M-1 covers vocational and technical training rather than academic study. The critical difference from F-1: you must show funds for the entire course up front, because M-1 students cannot work to cover costs.
- Passport
- DS-160 Confirmation Page
- Interview Appointment Confirmation
- MRV Fee Payment Receipt
- Passport Photograph
- Form I-20 (M-1)
- SEVIS I-901 Fee Receipt
- School Acceptance Letter
- Proof of Funds for the Entire Course
- Previous Education Certificates
Work
H-1B (Specialty Occupation) required documents
H-1B is a dual intent visa — you are not required to prove ties to home. Documents here verify that the petition is genuine and that you are the person described in it.
- Passport
- DS-160 Confirmation Page
- Interview Appointment Confirmation
- MRV Fee Payment Receipt
- Passport Photograph
- Form I-797 Approval Notice
- Copy of the I-129 Petition
- Labor Condition Application (LCA)
- Employment Offer Letter
- Degree Certificates and Transcripts
L-1 (Intracompany Transfer) required documents
L-1 is dual intent, so ties to home are not the test. What the officer verifies is the qualifying relationship between the two companies and your qualifying year of employment abroad.
- Passport
- DS-160 Confirmation Page
- Interview Appointment Confirmation
- MRV Fee Payment Receipt
- Passport Photograph
- Form I-797 Approval Notice
- Copy of the L Petition
- Proof of One Year Abroad with the Company
- Proof of the Qualifying Company Relationship
- Detailed Job Description
O-1 (Extraordinary Ability) required documents
The petition already established your extraordinary ability. At the window, the officer is confirming the work is real, the itinerary is genuine, and you are the person described.
- Passport
- DS-160 Confirmation Page
- Interview Appointment Confirmation
- MRV Fee Payment Receipt
- Passport Photograph
- Form I-797 Approval Notice
- Copy of the I-129 Petition
- Employment Contract or Deal Memo
- Itinerary of Events or Engagements
Exchange
J-1 (Exchange Visitor) required documents
J-1 is an exchange programme, so documents should show a genuine placement and — where 212(e) applies — that you understand the two-year home residency requirement.
- Passport
- DS-160 Confirmation Page
- Interview Appointment Confirmation
- MRV Fee Payment Receipt
- Passport Photograph
- Form DS-2019
- SEVIS I-901 Fee Receipt
- Programme Sponsor Letter
- Proof of Funding
- Degrees and Professional Credentials
Visitor
B1/B2 (Visitor) required documents
There is no petition backing a visitor application, so your documents exist to do one job: show the trip is temporary and you have reasons to return.
- Passport
- DS-160 Confirmation Page
- Interview Appointment Confirmation
- MRV Fee Payment Receipt
- Passport Photograph
- Employment Letter
- Bank Statements
Dependants & family
F-2 (Dependant of F-1) required documents
The officer is testing two things: that the relationship is genuine, and that the F-1’s funding stretches to one more person. F-2 holders cannot work, and can only study part-time.
- Passport
- DS-160 Confirmation Page
- Interview Appointment Confirmation
- MRV Fee Payment Receipt
- Passport Photograph
- Form I-20 issued in your name
- Marriage or Birth Certificate
- F-1 Holder's Passport and Visa
- F-1 Holder's Status Documents
- Proof of Financial Support
- Marriage Registration Certificate
M-2 (Dependant of M-1) required documents
M-2 mirrors F-2 but is tied to a vocational programme. Funding must cover the whole course for the family, since neither of you can work.
- Passport
- DS-160 Confirmation Page
- Interview Appointment Confirmation
- MRV Fee Payment Receipt
- Passport Photograph
- Form I-20 issued in your name
- Marriage or Birth Certificate
- M-1 Holder's Passport and Visa
- M-1 Holder's Status Documents
- Proof of Financial Support
H-4 (Dependant of H-1B) required documents
H-4 inherits H-1B’s dual intent, so ties to home are not the test. The officer is verifying the relationship and the principal’s valid status.
- Passport
- DS-160 Confirmation Page
- Interview Appointment Confirmation
- MRV Fee Payment Receipt
- Passport Photograph
- Marriage or Birth Certificate
- H-1B Holder's Passport and Visa
- H-1B Holder's Status Documents
- Proof of Financial Support
- Principal’s Recent Pay Stubs
L-2 (Dependant of L-1) required documents
L-2 follows the L-1 principal, including its dual intent. L-2 spouses are employment-authorised incident to status, which is a real difference from H-4.
- Passport
- DS-160 Confirmation Page
- Interview Appointment Confirmation
- MRV Fee Payment Receipt
- Passport Photograph
- Marriage or Birth Certificate
- L-1 Holder's Passport and Visa
- L-1 Holder's Status Documents
- Proof of Financial Support
- Principal’s Employment Letter
J-2 (Dependant of J-1) required documents
J-2 follows the exchange visitor, including the two-year home residency requirement where it applies to the principal. Health insurance is mandatory, not optional.
- Passport
- DS-160 Confirmation Page
- Interview Appointment Confirmation
- MRV Fee Payment Receipt
- Passport Photograph
- Form DS-2019 issued in your name
- Marriage or Birth Certificate
- J-1 Holder's Passport and Visa
- J-1 Holder's Status Documents
- Proof of Financial Support
- Proof of Health Insurance
K-1 (Fiancé(e) of a U.S. Citizen) required documents
K-1 is processed much more like an immigrant visa than the other categories here. It requires a medical examination and police certificates, and you must marry within 90 days of entry.
- Passport
- DS-160 Confirmation Page
- Interview Appointment Confirmation
- MRV Fee Payment Receipt
- Passport Photograph
- Form I-129F Approval Notice
- Birth Certificate
- Police Certificates
- Medical Examination Results
- Form I-134 Affidavit of Support
- Evidence of Your Relationship
- Proof You Met in Person
Does the officer actually look at these?
Usually not many of them. A typical interview lasts two to four minutes, and consular officers decide most cases on the conversation and the DS-160 they already have on screen. Documents matter at the margins: when an answer needs corroborating, when finances look thin, or when something in your history needs explaining.
That is the reason to carry them rather than to rehearse them. You cannot leave the queue to fetch a bank statement, and "I have it at home" is not an answer that helps. Bring the folder, expect not to open it.
What other applicants took, and what got asked
Applicants post their interviews here afterwards — the questions, the documents the officer actually looked at, and the outcome. Reading two or three for your visa type and consulate is the cheapest preparation there is. Browse interview experiences →
Covering 13 visa types across 158 countries with US consular posts. Required documents are set by the visa class rather than the post, so the list holds wherever you interview — a few countries add local requirements on top. Requirements change: always check your own consulate's instructions before travelling to the interview.