The US State Department will let some travelers pay $750 to jump ahead in the visa interview line. The pilot programme starts July 1 and applies only to B1 and B2 nonimmigrant visas — the categories covering business and tourism travel. It runs through December 31, 2026.

A temporary final rule published in the Federal Register on June 9 sets out the mechanics. "Applicants at identified posts will have a chance to move to the front of the appointment line by paying a $750 fee without providing a written justification or seeking personal intervention through the Priority Appointment Request or Referrals processes," the rule states.

The payment buys speed, not certainty. Travelers who pay will secure a visa interview appointment within 10 business days, rather than waiting for the next available opening. That difference matters: wait times vary sharply by location. As of the announcement, the next available B1/B2 interview slot in Abu Dhabi is 16 months away, while in Istanbul it is less than half a month away.

The $750 charge comes on top of the standard $185 nonimmigrant visa application processing fee, bringing the total cost to roughly $935.

The State Department describes the initiative as a "proof-of-concept" pilot designed to measure demand for expedited services. Officials stress three limits on the offering: it is optional, it is limited in quantity, and it is available only at posts the department specifies on its travel website.

One boundary the department draws clearly: the fee does not accelerate the visa decision itself. "This service will not expedite any processing steps, including any time needed for administrative processing," the department says in its guidance.

The programme affects a specific group: first-time or re-applying B1/B2 applicants at the designated posts who can afford the surcharge and want an interview date sooner than the standard queue allows. Applicants at posts not listed by the State Department cannot use the service. Everyone else's process stays the same — standard fee, standard queue, standard adjudication.

Immigration practitioners have already flagged equity concerns. New York-based immigration attorney Michael Cataliotti told USA TODAY the price will be out of reach in many applicant countries. "I would argue it's a lot of money in this country, but it's an exorbitant amount in many of the countries where people are applying for these visas," he said.

Cataliotti also questioned the choice of visa category. "There's no indication that they're going to approve these applications," he said, noting that the option covers only B1 and B2 visas. "There are plenty of other categories where that would make more sense to expedite and speed up, like work-based visas where somebody's coming here as an international scholar or somebody with 'extraordinary ability' who's phenomenal in their industry, somebody with a specialty occupation, all those different areas."

After the pilot closes on December 31, the State Department will evaluate the results and decide whether to continue, adjust, or drop the premium service. The department has not announced which posts will participate beyond its published list, nor how many premium slots each post will release.

For travelers weighing the option, the practical picture is straightforward. Paying $935 in total gets an interview within 10 business days at a participating post. It does not buy faster adjudication, and it does not waive administrative processing if a consular officer requires it. Paying the standard $185 keeps the applicant in the regular queue, where the wait depends entirely on location.

The State Department publishes current global visa wait times and the list of participating posts on its travel website, travel.state.gov. Applicants should check both before deciding whether the fee is worth paying at their location, since the value of a 10-day guarantee depends heavily on how long the standard line is at a given post.