C-3 Foreign Government Official Transit Visa
For an accredited foreign government official (and immediate family, attendants, or personal/domestic employees) proceeding in immediate and continuous transit through the United States on official government business, available when the traveler's government extends the same transit privilege to US officials.
- Duration
- Admission for a period not to exceed 29 days (8 CFR 214.2(c)(3)).
- Extensions
- Cannot extend or change status - C is on USCIS's list of classifications ineligible to file Form I-539.
- Work
- None for the official; personal/domestic employees may only perform the domestic duties for which they accompany the principal.
- Dual intent
- No
- Dependents
- Immediate family, attendants, and personal/domestic employees of the C-3 principal receive the same C-3 classification (9 FAM 402.3-6(B)).
- Path to a green card
- None from this status; single-intent category.
- Processing time
- unverified - no fixed timeline published.
Who qualifies
- Accredited official of a foreign government transiting on official business, entitled to INA 212(d)(8) benefits, if the foreign government grants reciprocal privileges to US officials
- Immediate family, attendants, and personal or domestic employees of such an official, who receive the same C-3 classification
Requirements
- Reciprocity: the sending government must grant similar transit privileges to US government officials
- Immediate and continuous transit only, with a prearranged itinerary
How to apply
- 1
Complete Form DS-160 online and print the confirmation page
- 2
Gather passport and photo meeting requirements
- 3
Obtain evidence of the official's accredited status and the reciprocal transit privilege
- 4
Interview generally waived for the accredited official (not for attendants/servants/personal employees, who must be interviewed)
- 5
Attend any required interview/fingerprinting
- 6
Await any administrative processing
Fees and forms
| MRV nonimmigrant visa application fee | No fee for the official and immediate family - C-3 is exempt under 22 CFR 41.26 / 9 FAM 402.3-4(F); this exemption also extends to C-3 personal/domestic employees, though they are not exempt from all visa ineligibility grounds or from the interview requirement |
What changed in 2025 and 2026
- 2025-09-18: C-3 officials (but explicitly NOT their attendants, servants, or personal employees) remain on the interview-waiver-eligible list effective October 1, 2025.
- 2026-03-30: State Dept expanded social media vetting to C-3 applicants who are domestic workers, requiring public/open social media privacy settings during screening.
Where it goes wrong
- C-3 domestic workers/personal employees do not get the interview waiver that the accredited official and non-domestic-worker family members receive, and are also now subject to expanded social media vetting
- Reciprocity is required - if the sending government does not grant the same transit privilege to US officials, C-3 is not available
- Of the INA 212(a) ineligibility grounds, only 212(a)(3)(A), (3)(B), (3)(C), and (7)(B) apply to C-2/C-3 applicants generally, but this narrower waiver does not fully extend to C-3 domestic workers
Also in transit
Not sure this is the one? Describe your situation and the finder will name the options worth exploring. None of this is legal advice; eligibility turns on facts a page cannot see.