Please follow the steps below before your immigrant visa interview at the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo, Japan.
As soon as you receive your appointment date, you must schedule a medical exam in Japan. Click the “Medical Exam Instructions” button below for a list of designated doctors’ offices in Japan. Please schedule and attend a medical exam with one of these doctors before your interview.
It is important that you bring all required original documents to your interview. We’ve created a checklist that will tell you what to bring. Please print the checklist below and bring it to your interview along with the listed documents.
Read our interview guidelines to learn about any special actions that you need to take before your visa interview.
All immigrant visa applicants, regardless of age, require a medical exam prior to the issuance of a visa. Only a physician accredited by the U.S. Embassy can perform this exam. It is your responsibility to schedule a medical exam with one of the doctors listed below before your visa interview appointment at the U.S. Embassy. Medical examination results from other physicians will not be accepted. If your medical examination will not be completed by the time of your interview, you must reschedule your interview appointment.
The medical examination report is normally valid for a maximum of six months.
The medical examination information and approved Physicians are available at the Embassy website.
The medical examination will include:
Be prepared to discuss your medical history, the medications you are taking, and current treatments you are undergoing. More information on general medical requirements for U.S. immigrants is available on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's website.
U.S. immigration law requires immigrant visa applicants to obtain certain vaccinations prior to the issuance of a visa. Current immigrant visa vaccination requirements are available on CDC's website. You can also read Frequently Asked Questions about our medical examination requirements on Travel.State.Gov.
When your examination is completed, the doctor will provide you a copy of the vaccination worksheet by email or by post. For K visa applicants, the panel physicians will send you the exam results in a sealed envelope. DO NOT OPEN THIS ENVELOPE. Instead, bring it to your visa interview. Any x-rays taken will be given to you. You DO NOT need to bring the x-rays to your interview. However, you must carry the x-rays with you when you travel to the United States for the first time.
Please use the list below to determine the items that the applicant must bring to the immigrant visa interview. If you cannot present all required documents at the interview, your application will be refused. We strongly encourage you to reschedule your appointment if you cannot gather original or certified copies of required documents before your scheduled interview date.
A “LetterPack Plus” self-addressed, prepaid envelope: Available at most post offices and some convenience stores. Please write “documents” on the “Contents Descriptions” field and include your local address. We will use this to return your passport once the visa has been issued.
Appointment Letter: A copy of your NVC interview letter (does not apply to Diversity Visa, fiancé(e), adoptive, or asylee/refugee applicants).
Passport: Unexpired passport valid for six months beyond your intended date of entry to the United States. Any previous passports with valid U.S. visas should also be submitted.
Photographs: Two (2) color passport-size (5 cm x 5 cm, or 2 inch x 2 inch) photographs of each person applying for a visa taken against a white background. Please review our online photo requirements.
DS-260 Confirmation Page: Confirmation page of the Form DS-260 Application for an Immigrant Visa you submitted online at ceac.state.gov/iv.
Birth Certificate: Your original birth certificate with English translation.
Original or certified copies of birth certificates for all children of the principal applicant (even if he/she is not accompanying).
Marriage Certificate: Your original marriage certificate with English translation.
Divorce or Death Certificate (if any): Both you and your spouse’s original divorce decree of every prior marriage or prior spouse’s death certificate with English translation.
Police Certificate: The original or certified copy of a police certificate from all countries you have lived in using these criteria. You should review the Reciprocity Schedule for information on obtaining foreign police certificates.
Note: Your Japanese police certificate should be in a sealed envelope. If the seal is broken, the certificate is no longer valid. (Only send a photocopy of the sealed envelope to the National Visa Center, but not the actual police certificate itself.)
Court and Criminal Records (if any): Court and criminal records with English translation, and a photocopy.
Military Records: If you served in the military of any country, a military record with English translation, and a photocopy.
Applicants who fall into any category below should bring these additional documents:
For family-based visa applications:
For employment-based visa applications:
If you are adopted:
If you are the petitioner’s stepchild:
Sending documents to the U.S. Embassy
If the consular officer asks you to submit additional documents to the U.S. Embassy, please follow any instruction given by the interviewer.
Rescheduling or cancelling your interview
If you are unable to attend your appointment, please use the embassy’s Interview Request Form to ask for a new appointment date.
If you cannot present all required documents at the interview, your application will be refused. We strongly encourage you to reschedule your appointment if you cannot gather original or certified copies of required documents before your scheduled interview date.
For some family-based and employment preference visa categories, visas only became available within the month your appointment was scheduled by the National Visa Center. Diversity Visa (DV) applicants should be aware that visas are numerically limited and must be issued by September 30 of the program year. It is very important for DV applicants to collect all the required documents before their appointment to make sure they stay eligible for the program. For numerically limited visa categories, there is no guarantee that a visa will still be available on the date of your rescheduled interview. Please consult the Visa Bulletin before you decide to reschedule your interview.
Security screening procedures
All visitors to the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo must follow certain security procedures. Any visitor who declines to be screened by U.S. Embassy security personnel will be unable to enter the embassy. To avoid delaying your entry and that of those in line behind you, please bring only what is required for your interview. For detailed information on screening procedures please refer to the embassy website.
Accompanying persons
The following people may accompany a visa applicant to their interview:
If you plan to be accompanied by any of the individuals listed above, please contact us in advance.
Attorneys are not permitted to accompany clients into the waiting room or to their interview.
Immigrant visa fees
If you have not paid all the required fees to the National Visa Center, please be prepared to pay these fees on the day of your interview.
All fees may be paid in either Yen or U.S. dollars. We accept cash and credit cards (Visa, Mastercard, Discover, American Express, Diner's Club, and JCB). Be prepared to pay with cash in case the credit card verification system is unavailable. Payment by credit card is billed in U.S. dollars. Please note that if you are found ineligible to receive a visa, the application fee cannot be refunded. A complete list of fees can be found at Travel.state.gov.
Do not make travel plans outside of Japan
If your visa is approved, we will keep your passport at the embassy while we prepare your immigration packet and print a visa for your passport. We will return your passport to you later via mail only. If you have to travel within Japan while your passport is still with us, please make sure you have a valid picture ID other than your passport.
A consular officer can make a decision on a visa application only after reviewing the formal application and interviewing the applicant. There is no guarantee that you will receive a visa. Do not sell your house, car or property, resign from your job or make non-refundable flight or other travel arrangements until you have received your immigrant visa.
If more information is needed
Sometimes a consular officer refuses a visa application to review additional documents or for administrative processing.
For additional documents:
For administrative processing:
What happens after visa approval
Passport, Visa, and Sealed Immigrant Packet – We will place your immigrant visa in your passport. Please review your visa to make sure there are no spelling errors. Some applicants may receive a sealed envelope containing documents that you must give to U.S. immigration authorities when you arrive in the United States.Do not open this envelope. You must carry it with you; do not put it in your checked luggage. After your medical exam, only K visa applicants will receive X-rays on a CD. Bring it with you when you enter the United States on your immigrant visa.
USCIS Immigrant Fee – All individuals who are issued immigrant visas overseas must pay an Immigrant Fee to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) prior to traveling to the United States. This fee is for processing your residency status and printing your Permanent Resident Card. The only people exempt from paying this fee are: children entering the United States under the Hague and Non-Hague Adoption Process, Returning Residents (SB-1), Iraqi and Afghan Special Immigrants and people traveling on a K visa.
When You Should Travel – You must enter the United States before the expiration date on your visa, which is usually six (6) months from completion of the medical exam. Your visa cannot be extended and all fees are nonrefundable. The principal applicant must enter before or at the same time as other family members with visas. Unless they are eligible for benefits under the Child Status Protection Act, children who are issued a visa before turning 21 years of age must enter the United States before their 21st birthday to avoid losing their immigrant status.
Getting a Green Card – Your Form I-551 Permanent Resident Card, also known as a green card, will be automatically mailed to the address in the United States that you write in your visa application form. This is a very important document that proves you have permission to reside in the United States. Once your card is issued, you should not stay outside of the United States for more than one year. If you do, you will lose your status as a Lawful Permanent Resident.
Children’s Issues – In the United States, children are required to have certain vaccinations before they can enroll in school. We recommend that you bring your child’s complete vaccination records with you to the United States. If your child is adopted, you have full custody as a result of a divorce, or you share custody with another parent, you should bring a copy of all applicable adoption or custodial papers from the authoritative court in your home country. You will need these papers (translated into English) for issues such as school enrollment, medical care, and eventual citizenship.
Information for New Immigrants – Please visit the USCIS web page for helpful information on moving to the United States. You can read their publication “Welcome to the United States: A Guide for New Immigrants” online.
If you are interviewing for a Diversity Visa (DV), all the above instructions apply to you. Please schedule and attend a medical examination prior to your visa interview and gather the required documents.
Below are additional instructions that apply only to DV applicants.
Bring to your interview
In addition to the documents listed on the Pre-Interview Checklist in this package, DV applicants should also bring the following items to your visa interview:
Review your DV Lottery entry
Prior to your visa interview, we recommend that you review the data on your initial E-DV entry. On your initial E-DV application, you must have correctly entered your marital status. If you are legally married you must have listed your spouse, even if you are currently separated from him/her (unless your spouse is a U.S. citizen or Lawful Permanent Resident).
Additionally, you must have listed ALL your living children who are unmarried and under 21 years old. This includes your natural children, your spouse’s children, or children you have formally adopted in accordance with the laws of your country (unless your children are a U.S. citizen or Lawful Permanent Residents).
Failure to have listed an existing spouse or children at the time of your entry in the Diversity Visa lottery will result in the denial of your visa and visas for your family. Any fees paid to the U.S. government in support of your visa application(s) are nonrefundable. If you failed to include a child who had already been born, or a spouse to whom you were married when you entered the lottery, you should not proceed with the visa application. You can review the eligibility requirements at Travel.State.Gov.
Last Updated: 9/10/2025
1-10-5 Akasaka
Minato-ku, Tokyo
107-8420 Japan
