Kyrgyz citizens will be required to pay a visa deposit when applying for US visas

From 21 January this year, Kyrgyz citizens applying for non-immigrant visas to the US in categories B-1 (business trips) and B-2 (tourism) will be required to pay a refundable deposit of between $5,000 and $15,000. This is stated in a document published on the US State Department website.

The new measure will be applied as part of the Visa Bond pilot programme, which aims to combat visa overstays. Kyrgyzstan has been added to the expanded list of 38 countries for which this measure is being introduced. Among the Central Asian states, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan are also included in this list.

The amount of the bond is determined individually based on the results of an interview at the embassy or consulate. It is specified that paying the bond does not guarantee the issuance of a visa. The bond is paid through the US Department of the Treasury system. A link for payment is provided by a consular officer after the interview.

The deposit is automatically refunded if a Kyrgyz citizen leaves the United States before the expiry of the permitted period of stay, does not use the visa or is denied entry at the border.
It has also been established that holders of visas issued with a deposit must enter and leave the United States only through three airports: Logan in Boston, John F. Kennedy in New York or Dulles in Washington.