United States Visitor Visa Guides

Pakistani travellers head to the United States to see relatives, attend conferences, take holidays or seek medical treatment, and all of these trips use the same B-1/B-2 visitor visa. B-1 covers business visits such as meetings and conferences; B-2 covers tourism, family visits and medical care. Either way, the visa must be issued at a U.S. embassy or consulate before you travel.

The U.S. Mission in Pakistan handles visitor visas at the Embassy in Islamabad and the Consulate General in Karachi. The Mission asks you to apply in your country of residence or nationality. Scheduling, fee collection and passport delivery are run by its contractor through the official USTravelDocs Pakistan website, and that is the only place to book. You complete the DS-160 form on the State Department's CEAC site, save the confirmation page with its barcode, pay the visa fee, and then book your interview. Expedited appointments exist only for genuinely urgent travel backed by evidence.

Almost every applicant in Pakistan now attends an in-person interview, children and older adults included. The main exception is a narrow renewal category, and even then the officer can call you in. Bring your passport, the DS-160 confirmation, your appointment letter and evidence of your purpose, funds and ties to Pakistan.

What you prepare matters less as a stack of paper than as a consistent story. The State Department does not require an invitation letter or an affidavit of support for a visitor visa, and the Karachi consulate says there is no fixed list of supporting documents and that the officer may or may not look at them. Even so, a salaried employee can bring an employer letter confirming leave, recent pay slips and bank statements; a business owner can bring registration and tax records; a student can bring an enrolment letter and transcripts. Your DS-160 answers, your documents and what you say at the window should all match.

The usual mistakes are booking through an unofficial site instead of USTravelDocs, DS-160 answers that contradict your job letter or travel plan, buying non-refundable tickets before the visa is issued, and believing anyone who guarantees an appointment or an approval. Fees are non-refundable. The State Department publishes refusal-rate statistics by nationality each fiscal year; they describe past applicants as a group, not your own chances.

Guides on this site: our USA B-1/B-2 visa documents guide for Pakistani passport holders at /united-states/pakistan lists the official documents, explains each step from DS-160 to interview, and shows the published refusal-rate figure with the context it needs.

Where do Pakistanis apply for a US visitor visa? At the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad or the Consulate General in Karachi, booking and paying through the official USTravelDocs Pakistan site.

Is an invitation letter required for a B-1/B-2 visa? No. The State Department says an invitation or affidavit of support is not required, although you may bring relevant supporting material.

Do children need a US visa interview in Pakistan? Generally yes. The U.S. Mission says almost all nonimmigrant applicants in Pakistan, including children, need an in-person interview.

Can I book a cheaper or faster appointment through an agent? No. Use only USTravelDocs Pakistan. Expedited slots are granted by the Mission for genuine urgency, and nobody outside the consulate can promise one.