Q. What consular services are currently being offered by the embassy during the coronavirus pandemic?

A. US Embassy Kingston’s Consular section continues to provide most consular services, although in a limited capacity. We have implemented a range of measures to protect the health and safety of our consular clients and our staff. For example, the US Embassy has established stringent protocols to protect applicants in the waiting areas including limiting the number of people in the waiting room for social distancing, requiring all visitors to wear cloth face coverings, and providing hand sanitiser at stations throughout the facility. We also require all visitors to comply with the Ministry of Health’s guidelines. If you arrived in Jamaica within the last 14 days or have been instructed by the Ministry of Health to quarantine, you must complete this requirement before you may visit the embassy.

American Citizen Services (ACS)

ACS continues to provide emergency assistance to US citizens and is accepting appointments for limited routine services. US citizens who require emergency assistance should contact the embassy at (876) 702-6000. If you have urgent travel and your passport has expired, please call the embassy during business hours or e-mail KingstonACS@state.gov. Routine passport and notarial appointments can be scheduled on our website. We recommend that US citizens register for the Smart Traveller Enrollment Programme at www.step.state.gov to receive timely updates about local conditions and to ensure that we have your contact information in case of emergency.

Immigrant Visa Unit (IV)

A limited number of mission-critical interview appointments for spouses and children of US. citizens are being offered at this time. We have also opened a small number of K-1 (fiancé) appointments each week consistent with our current COVID-19 posture and Department of State guidelines. K-1 appointments are available on a first-come, first-served basis and may be scheduled online. If there are no appointments currently available, please continue to check for future available appointments. We are also rescheduling previously scheduled IV appointments that were cancelled if those cases are not subject to suspension due to Presidential Proclamation 10014.

Non-Immigrant Visa Unit (NIV)

The US Embassy continues to process interview waiver renewals for individuals who were previously issued a full-validity B1/B2 visa, which is either still valid or expired less than 24 months ago. Individuals age 80 or over or younger than 14 years may also qualify for a waiver of interview. Eligibility for an interview waiver will be determined as an applicant goes through the process of scheduling an appointment online. The NIV Unit also continues to process mission critical cases that qualify under the current Presidential Proclamation, as well as limited numbers of routine cases. Those seeking visas for travel for dire family emergencies or demonstrable medical necessity may also seek expedited appointments on our system. If you require a routine visa appointment for tourism or business, we encourage you to check our system regularly for updated availability. Please note that the validity of visa fee payments (MRV fee) has been extended until December 31, 2021, to allow applicants who were unable to schedule a visa appointment as a result of the suspension of routine consular operations an opportunity to schedule a visa appointment.

Fraud Prevention Unit (FPU)

Currently, the US Embassy is operating at limited staffing to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The FPU is only providing a limited number of DNA appointments for children of US citizens and mission-critical immigrant visa cases; however, individuals who need to complete DNA testing may initiate the process of ordering a DNA kit from an AABB accredited lab. The embassy will contact you when your case is ready for testing. The US Embassy has established stringent protocols to protect applicants in the waiting area including limiting the number of applicants in the waiting room for social distancing, requiring the wearing of cloth face coverings, providing hand sanitiser, and the nurse will be wearing personal protective equipment. If you have a specific case question, please e-mail kingstondnatesting@state.gov.

You can find more information about American Citizen Services and consular operations on our website, jm.usembassy.gov/ Keep on top of Embassy news on our Facebook page, www.facebook.com/USEmbassyJamaica/ and by following @USEmbassyJA on Twitter. We also answer general questions on our Facebook and Twitter pages.