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What has actually changed on the US visa portal
There has been a lot of misinformation circulating about the US visa portal — also known as usvisascheduling.com — changing dramatically. The reality is that no major change has happened. The portal changed about two years ago and has remained the same since. For Fall 2025, it will stay the same. That said, there are five specific updates worth knowing about.
1. The gap between biometric and interview is now a minimum of 72 hours
Earlier, your biometric and interview appointments could be back-to-back — literally one day apart. That is no longer allowed. There is now a minimum 72-hour gap between the two. If your gap is 10 days or even 15 days, that is completely normal. The minimum is just 72 hours. I believe this change was introduced to ensure that your photo, fingerprints, and especially your DS-160 details are captured correctly in the embassy system before your interview — because once your biometric is done, your DS-160 form cannot be changed.
2. Slot booking is being monitored much more strictly
You may have heard that the US embassy recently cancelled around 2,000 visa appointments because they were suspected to have been booked using bots. Those accounts were flagged and the appointments were cancelled. Slot booking has become far more monitored. My advice: do not use any bot or external automated tool to book your slot. It is completely fine to take someone's help to book — but make sure the person helping you is credible, and make sure that not too many people are logging into your account from different locations. Ideally, only you and one other trusted person should ever be logged in.
3. Rescheduling is now only allowed once
Previously, you could book your appointment and then reschedule up to four times. That gave you a lot of flexibility to switch around your dates and locations. Now you are only allowed one reschedule. This means once you book, you have very limited room to change your mind. When students ask me which consulate is best, I always say: go by availability. You do not really have the luxury of holding out for your preferred location anymore. Have a priority list, but stay flexible.
4. No change to the DS-160 form process — but here is what many people get wrong
The DS-160 form itself follows the same process as before. You start the form, get your application ID, and enter that ID into the portal when you book your slot. The confirmation page of that form must be valid — if the form expires or gets lost, your appointment is no longer valid. This has been the rule for the past two years and nothing has changed. What has changed is that many students wait until they have fully completed the DS-160 before even looking at slots. Do not do this — it delays everything. Instead, start your DS-160 form, keep it active by logging in every two to three days, complete at least one or two pages, and go ahead and book your appointment. You can always come back and submit the form later. If you realise after booking that there are errors in your DS-160, you can fill a new form. At your biometric appointment, bring both the old and new confirmation pages and ask them to update it to the new form. As of today I have had clients get their DS-160 updated at biometric — this process has not stopped.
5. Document verification has become more stringent
You do not upload documents to the portal — you bring them to the interview. But the verification of those documents has become much stricter. Any fraudulent or inaccurate information is being flagged. Make sure every document you prepare is genuine, correct, and sits in the right timeline. This is especially important for anything related to your work history, internships, courses, and gap years. Even if a document is not asked for at the interview, having a wrong document can have serious consequences.
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Book a Mock InterviewFresh slots for Fall 2025: what to expect and when
If you are appearing for your F1 or J1 visa interview for the first time, here is the good news: every year — and this is my fifth season working with students — slots start opening around the end of April, typically for May interview dates. That pattern has held again this year. Around April 20th to 22nd, the first minor opening happened, with interviews falling roughly between May 10th and May 20th. If you did not get a slot in that opening, please do not panic. That first opening is always a small one, mainly targeted at students with June intakes.
Based on past trends, the next opening comes about two weeks after the first. Since the first opening was around April 20th, the next one — which is the biggest opening of the season — should fall somewhere in the first week of May. This is the bulk opening. After that, there is typically one more opening. Every intake, we see three openings: one minor and two bigger ones, roughly two weeks apart. So if you have not secured a slot yet, you have at minimum two more openings ahead of you. Just make sure your DS-160 is active, your portal account is set up, your fee is paid, and you are actively monitoring.
As for which locations opened in the minor slot: Chennai and Hyderabad had the most openings, as has been the trend for at least the past two years. Mumbai and Delhi had some openings as well. Kolkata had the fewest, as it appears to be focused primarily on tourist visas right now.
To know the moment slots open, you need to be part of communities where people share real-time updates. Join our WhatsApp community — I see students there sharing credible, specific information about slot openings and which locations are going live. I also post slot updates on my Instagram stories whenever I see them. There are also credible Telegram groups that track this. The key is to be in the right places so you are not the last to know.
Slots for applicants with a previous refusal: the honest picture
I know this is where most of the anxiety is, and I want to be straight with you. Refusal slots will open — but they will not open in large numbers, and getting one will take more effort, more monitoring, and more patience than it would for a fresh applicant. That is the honest picture.
If your refusal was about a year ago (Fall 2024 or earlier)
If your previous interview was in May, June, July, or August of 2024 and you received a refusal then, your chances of getting an appointment for Fall 2025 are actually quite good. The system automatically starts showing you more available slots once roughly a year has passed since your last interview. So if your refusal is about a year old, the slots will come — keep monitoring, stay active, and be ready. When that appointment comes, your preparation has to be on point. Your DS-160, your answers, your mock interviews — everything needs to be sharp. Do not waste the opportunity.
If your refusal is recent (Spring 2025 or later)
If you were refused in Spring 2025 — or even as recently as March or April — you need more patience. Slot availability for you will be very limited, and it will take significantly more effort and monitoring to secure an appointment. I am not saying slots will not come — every year they do open up, even for recent refusals, because Fall is a big intake. But this year the availability appears to be lower overall. There is no official communication from the embassy saying refusal slots will not open. They will. It will just take time. So if this is your situation, right now is not a time to panic — it is a time to strategise. Think about what went wrong in your last interview. Consider whether you need any big changes: a different university, a different course, a stronger profile. If those changes need to happen, make them now, while you still have time before the slots come up for you.
One thing almost everyone is underestimating right now
Here is something I am seeing across the board: everyone is so focused on getting a slot that preparation is being treated as an afterthought. When slots open, your interview date can be as soon as 10 days away. That is not much time. I also see a lot of students copying answers from ChatGPT. Yes, all of us use it — but those answers are too polished, too perfect, and very difficult to actually speak naturally in front of a visa officer. Your answers need to sound like you. They need to be crisp and real. Good DS-160 preparation, structured answers, and mock interviews take time and effort. Please do not wait for the slot before you start. Do both in parallel.
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