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I've recently submitted, on behalf of my wife, a Visa application to visit the US on a short holiday trip. My daughter and I are part of the Visa waiver program so we just had to get our ESTAs sorted out.

There is one issue though, when filling out my wife's ds160, I selected "B2 Tourism/Medical treatment" as the type of Visa instead of "B1 & B2 Business and leisure (temporary visitor). At the time, since I knew the tourist visa is the B2, it made more sense to select the one I did to avoid confusion. In my native language, the / means and/or so it would become "Tourism and/or medical treatment".

I have already booked the interview at the US embassy but I'm not sure if this mistake will be an issue and we should try to submit a new application and rebook the the appointment. The problem is the application is 199USD and the appointment is 160USD which I've already paid.

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    'In my native language, the / means and/or so it would become "Tourism and/or medical treatment"': it means the same in American English, or at least in this case. Why do you think you need a combination visa?
    – phoog
    Mar 3, 2020 at 23:11

3 Answers 3

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You haven't necessarily made a mistake as the B2 visa is meant for tourism. The State department lists these as valid uses of the B2 visa:

  • Tourism

  • Vacation (holiday)

  • Visit with friends or relatives

  • Medical treatment
  • Participation in social events hosted by fraternal, social, or service organizations
  • Participation by amateurs in musical, sports, or similar events or contests, if not being paid for participating
  • Enrollment in a short recreational course of study, not for credit toward a degree (for example, a two-day cooking class while on vacation)

The combination B1/B2 allows for both tourist and business visits to the USA. Unless she is also going to carry out business while on this visit, then the B1 portion is not that important. You can certainly make a new application and appointment for the B1/B2, but you would be out the money you have already paid.

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    I would point out that when someone with a B-1/B-2 visa is admitted to the US, they are admitted either in B-1 or B-2 status. So, for a tourist visit it does not matter in the least whether the visa is a B-1/B-2 or a B-2.
    – phoog
    Mar 3, 2020 at 23:14
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You haven't specifically mentioned why you need a B1/B2 rather than a B2 visa.

In the end it's up to the officers at the Embassy to provide you with a B1/B2 visa. In my case I applied for a B2 visa however they gave me a B1/B2 which is a more common than rare decision.

If you really do need a B1 (Business) visa, I would suggest to cancel the appointment, fill out a new DS160 and schedule a new appointment. If what you need is a tourist visa but you don't require a business visa, don't change anything as there is a high chance they will give you a B1/B2 anyway.

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In the past when I noticed errors prior to the appointment I emailed to clarify and the consulate has been able to update the appointment details.

It looks like the email for you would be: weeac_contactus+gb+info+en@visaops.net (from https://ais.usvisa-info.com/en-gb/niv/information/contact_us )

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