DS-160 Online Application Form – Entirely online!

Available and Mandatory from April 1st, 2010

Beginning April 1st, 2010, the Consular Section at the U.S. embassy in Djibouti will no longer accept hard copies of visa application forms.  Any person who submits a non-immigrant visa application on or after this date must complete the new DS-160 interactive online application form, available at https://ceac.state.gov/genniv.  Completed forms will be transmitted electronically to the Consular Section of U.S. Embassy Djibouti. However, applicants need to print the confirmation page of form DS-160 containing its barcode.

Check Your Answers Carefully

Once an on-line application has been submitted, there are no quick and easy ways to correct or add information at the visa interview. 

Applicants must take special care to identify the correct visa category when completing the online application form.  Visa type is determined by the purpose of travel (e.g. tourism). If you are uncertain how to correctly answer the question “Purpose of your trip,” visit the Visa Types page to establish which visa category you should apply for.  You may also call the Consular Section at 35.39.95 between 12:30 and 16:00 from Sunday to Thursday, or email us at DJI-CONS-NIV@state.gov.  When so doing, applicants should explain their purpose of travel.  Each possible response ends with a letter in parentheses, such as “student (F),” which designates your visa category. Verify whether you selected the appropriate visa category.  Selecting the wrong visa category on the DS-160 online application can significantly delay the visa process.


Significant errors in your application, or information incorrectly marked as “Not Applicable,” “Nil,” or “Don’t Know,” may result in your application being rejected at the time of your interview.  This would require you to resubmit the entire application and to reschedule your interview appointment.

Do-It Yourself Photo System

Applicants must upload a photo in order to submit the DS-160 online application.  For specific photo requirements, see http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/frvi_3877.html. 

Applicants are expected to make every effort to upload a photo that meets the designated requirements.  However, if the photo upload is not accepted as suitable by the DS-160 system, applicants will be given the option to continue without a photo.  Whether a photo is successfully uploaded or not, applicants are requested to bring to the interview a photo meeting the above requirements.

Bring the Confirmation Page on Visa Drop Off Day

After completing the DS-160 online application and before you submit it, we recommend that you save a copy, in case your application is later found incomplete and you are requested to reapply; this could afford you to go back to the information and save time on data re-entry. Once you submit the DS-160, be sure to print the confirmation page generated by the online system and bring that page to the embassy on visa drop off day.  You are welcome to print the entire application form for your own records, but it is the confirmation page that you must bring to physically submit your application and supporting documents.  Applicants who have submitted the DS-160 form and arrive at the Embassy on or after April 1^st, 2010 without this confirmation page cannot be interviewed.

Problems, Questions?

The State Department’s official website has answers to the most frequently asked questions about the online DS-160 application form at http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/forms/forms_4401.html.

What Else to Bring to the Visa Interview

The DS-160 application form does not replace the following supplemental forms, which must be completed and brought to the interview, depending on the selected visa category, as indicated below:

• Students (F visa): Form I-20 and SEVIS Receipt
• Exchange Visitors (J visa):  DS-2019 and SEVIS Receipt
• Temporary Workers, Artists, Athletes, etc. (H, O or P visas):  Form I-797
• Blanket L1 Applicants: Form I-129S
• Diplomats and Officials (A, G or NATO visas):  Diplomatic Note
• Treaty Trader/Treaty Investor (E visa):  Form DS-156E
• Ship/aircraft workers (B1 visa), crew (C1/D visa), journalists (I visa): a letter from the employer verifying details of employment, and a letter from the inviting organization in the U.S., if applicable.

Return to the NIV application instructions page.