We are getting updates from the U.S. Department of State and from other sources that the global visa processing system used by the Department of State to process U.S. visa applications and passports is experiencing technical problems — as a result, U.S. Consulates around the world are unable, at least temporarily, to complete visa application processing.
Database Glitch Causing Increasing U.S. Visa Processing Backlogs
The database which seems to be causing problems is the State Department’s system of record and is used to approve, record and print visas and other documents to ensure that national security checks are conducted on applicants.
The problems have reportedly started on Saturday and the inability to properly process visas has already created a huge backlog of visa applications waiting to be processed. We are hearing that there may be as many as 50,000 visa applications being on hold in one country only (and growing), as a result.