International soccer fans are facing significant challenges in obtaining U.S. visitor visas ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Despite several national teams already qualifying for the tournament, appointment wait times at various U.S. embassies and consulates currently exceed two years. This backlog, particularly severe in regions like South America, threatens to prevent thousands of supporters from attending matches hosted in the United States. While government officials have acknowledged the delays and are working to increase processing capacity, the lengthy queues remain a primary concern for travelers.
- The 2026 World Cup is scheduled to be co-hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico, with the majority of matches taking place in U.S. cities.
- Visa interview wait times in certain high-demand locations, such as Bogota, Colombia, have reached more than 700 days.
- Fans expressed concern that even if they secure tickets to see their qualified national teams, they may not receive the necessary travel documents in time for the tournament.
- The U.S. State Department cites a combination of unprecedented post-pandemic demand and staffing shortages as the primary reasons for the current backlog.
- Authorities are reportedly implementing new strategies to reduce wait times, including waiving interviews for certain renewals and increasing the number of consular officers.
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China’s foreign ministry on Thursday issued a notice warning citizens of security risks traveling to the U.S. and advised citizens not to enter the country from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
The Chinese ministry said recently that about 20 Chinese scholars traveled to the U.S. to attend an academic conference, but were subjected to “unreasonable questioning” by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers at the Seattle airport and were denied entry.
The Chinese scholars were holding valid U.S. visas, the ministry said.
Nationals planning trips to the U.S. should “strengthen safety awareness, avoid entering through this airport … and make all necessary preparations,” the ministry said, citing “repeated incidents of malicious questioning and harassment targeting Chinese scholars” at the Seattle-Tacoma airport.
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