Address:
U.S. Consulate Shanghai
1469 Huai Hai Zhong Road
Shanghai, 200031
P.R. China
Telephone: Consular Office telephone – (86)(21)6433-6880 Consular Office fax – (86)(21)6433-4122
Consulate Personnel:
Consul General: Joseph James Borich, Extension 200
Consul: Richard Adams, Extension 248
Chief of NIV Section: Nick Ferro, Extension 231
The consulate serves the provinces of Anhui, Jiangshu and Zhejiang. Applications by residents of other provinces may be accepted by the consulate but are usually denied.
Only non-immigrant visas are processed at the Shanghai consulate. All immigrant visa applications by Chinese Nationals are processed at a single consulate, Guangzhou.
Telephone inquiries are accepted from 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
First time visa applicants are required to obtain exit permits so as to provide the government an opportunity to determine whether the individual has any outstanding obligations to the Chinese Government. Once it is determined that the individual is debt free a clearance passport is issued.
* Non-Immigrant Visa Processing:
Original INS approval notices are required in all cases.
Visa applications are accepted in person daily between 8:00 and 10:30 am. Approved visas are generally issued the same day after 3 p.m.
Appointments are required for all L-1 applications. The consulate will schedule the appointment after receiving a complete L-1 petition from INS. Written notification of the appointment is sent directly to the beneficiary.
H visas are processed by the consulate after receipt of the original petition from INS. The complete petition should also be sent to the consulate along with the approval notice.
Attorneys are not permitted to attend interviews. Consular officials will review cases with attorneys after the interview.
There is a high incidence of fraud in L-1 cases and these petitions are highly scrutinized by the post.
Mail applications are not accepted.
Interviews are generally waived for applications submitted by the Chinese Foreign Affairs Office.
* Immigrant Visas:
As mentioned above only non-immigrant visas are processed at the Shanghai consulate. All immigrant visa applications by Chinese Nationals are processed at the in Guangzhou.
Disclaimer: This newsletter is provided as a public service and not intended to establish an attorney client relationship. Any reliance on information contained herein is taken at your own risk. The information provided in this article has not been updated since its original posting and you should not rely on it until you consult counsel to determine if the content is still valid. We keep older articles online because it helps in the understanding of the development of immigration law.