America (USA) Student Visa Information

Appointment Scheduling Service:
1. Applicants may take advantage of visa scheduling services offered by Saimon Overseas Ltd.
2. This service allows applicants to purchase a fee receipt, fill out and submit their forms and passports, and schedule an interview in one easy stop at the Saimon Overseas branch office in Gulshan, Dhaka.
3. Applicants who use this service will not have to come to the Embassy until the day of their interview and successful applicants will be able to pick up their issued visa from the Saimon Overseas office where they submitted their application.
4. For this service Saimon Overseas Ltd. will assess a per passport service fee of 440 taka. Address of service provider for non-immigration visa applications:

Saimon Center
House 4A, Road 22, Gulshan 1
Dhaka 1212
Tel: 02-9893964

Nonimmigrant Visa Section Hours of Operation:
1. Telephone Inquiries (Sunday-Thursday): 09:00-10:00
2. Nonimmigrant Visa Appointment Scheduling (Sunday): 14:00-15:00
3. No-Show Passport Pick-up and Rescheduling (Monday): 14:00-15:00
4. Passport and documents collection for administrative processing (Monday & Thursday): 14:00-15:00
Visa Fees:
1. Saimon Overseas, Dhaka will provide a teller booth at their office in Gulshan, where people can pay the $100 non-refundable visa fee.
2. Saimon Overseas also offers all non-immigration visa applicants the opportunity to fill-out and submit their application forms, along with passport and one photograph, and to schedule an interview date/time slot in one step.
3. Applicants can also purchase fee receipts from the selected CitiBank, N.A. branch offices in Gulshan or Motijheel.
Sevis Registration & Fees:
1. All applicants for student visas will be required to provide proof of a new $100 processing fee which must be paid to DHS in the United States. No interview can be done without proof of fee payment.
2. The SEVIS fee will apply to students who hold I-20s issued after September 1, 2004. It will apply only to principal applicants, and not to their spouses or children. This is a non-refundable fee and is not contingent on visa issuance.
3. The SEVIS fee is good for the duration of their program of study unless the student falls out of status or changes status. A student will not be required to pay a new fee upon transfer to a new school, extension of stay, change in educational level.
4. SEVIS payments may be made by mail or over the internet. The website, www.fmjfee.com, will accept all major credit cards. Non-immigrant student can also pay the I-901 SEVIS fee locally via the use of the Western Union quick pay service. The fee must be recorded at least 3 days prior to the applicant?s visa interview.
5. If you do not have access to a credit card, you may contact VarsityAdmission.COM at 01819-282014 for SEVIS Fee payment by credit card. It is easier and convenient.
6. Additional information on the SEVIS program can be found on the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement?s Student and Exchange Visitor Program website, www.ice.gov. SEVIS fee must be paid prior to the visa application.
7. Students may schedule their visa interviews as soon as they are accepted to a University. While visas may not be printed without the I-20 form, students can complete their interviews with only an acceptance letter.
8. In addition to establishing that he/she is not an intending immigrant, each student must also demonstrate that she/he is a bona fide student and has access to financial resources.
9. For more detail visit Student Visa page.

Required Documents for Nonimmigrant Visa Appointment:
1. Passport with at least 6-months validity beyond the anticipated date of travel.
2. Complete a set of signed application forms (DS-156, DS-157and DS-158). ALL applicants regardless of nationality and age are required to complete these forms.
3. The additional Nonimmigrant Visa questionnaire.
4. Tow photographs for each application.
5. Non refundable $ 100 visa fee or taka equivalent (no credit card or bank cheques will be accepted).
Supporting Documents:
1. I-20 form from a school in the USA, a passport with at least 6 months validity beyond the intended date of entrance into the US.
2. SEVIS Fee payment receipt
3. All previous passports.
4. Passports or other identifying information for spouse and/or children in Bangladesh (even if they are not traveling).
5. Three to twelve months of personal bank statements.
6. Salary statements or job letters.
7. Property, tax or business records.
8. School documents for children or students.
9. Evidence of membership in organizations.
10. Copies of passports and/or immigration documents of relatives in the United States.

Important things for filling out form:
1. Respond to all the questions. If you have no response for a question, put "none" or "nil" - do not draw a line or write "NA" or "not applicable".
2. You must provide specific contact and address information both in Bangladesh and the United States. Applications with responses such as "any hotel" as the address in the U.S. will be suspended for additional information.
3. You must sign your application, even if someone else fills it out.
4. All applicants are personally responsible and accountable for the answers on their application forms, regardless of who fills out the forms.
5. All phone numbers must be correct.
6. All four forms (DS-156, DS-157, DS-158 including the new questionnaire) must be filled out completely, even if the information is repeated from other forms.
7. If your name on your passport uses initials, you must list your FULL NAME in the "other names used" box.

Photography specification:
1. Photo Size
a. 2 by 2 inches (roughly 50 mm square) with the head centered in the frame.
b. The head (measured from the top of the hair to the bottom of the chin) should measure between 1 inch to 1 3/8 inches (25 mm to 35 mm) with the eye level between 1 1/8 inch to 1 3/8 inches (28 mm and 35 mm) from the bottom of the photo.
2. Photo Appearance
a. The photograph must be a full-face view in which the visa applicant is facing the camera directly.
b. The applicant should not look down or to either side, and the face should cover about 50 percent of the photo area.
b. Side or angled views are NOT accepted.
c. The photograph must be in color, but must have only a white background. Photos with dark, busy, or patterned backgrounds will not be accepted.
d. In general, the applicant's head, including both face and hair, should be shown from the crown of the head to the tip of the chin on top and bottom and from hairline side-to-side. It is preferable that ears be exposed.
e. Head coverings and hats are only acceptable due to religious beliefs, and even then, may not cover any portion of the applicant's face.
f. Sunglasses or other wear which detracts from the face are not acceptable unless required for medical reasons (an eye patch, for example).
g. A photograph depicting a person wearing a traditional facemask or veil that does not permit adequate identification is not acceptable.
h. Photos of military, airline, or other personnel wearing hats are not acceptable. Photographs of applicants wearing tribal, national costume, or other headgear not specifically religious in nature are not acceptable.
3. Digital Photos
a. Digitally reproduced photographs must be reproduced without discernible pixels or dot patterns. Photocopied photographs are NOT accepted.