To enter the United States, a foreign national must first apply for and get a visa. It can be either a non-immigrant visa for a temporary stay or an immigrant visa for permanent residency. There are more than 20 non-immigrant visa types for people traveling to the United States temporarily. There are many additional types of immigrant visas available for those seeking to live permanently in the United States.

B-1 visa is a non-immigrant visitor visa that allows individuals to enter the United States briefly for business, while a B-2 visa is a tourism visitor visa. One can apply for a combination of the two by filling out the form for B-1/B-2 visa.

Visa Validity

A visa must be valid at the time a traveler seeks admission to the United States, but the expiration date of the visa (validity period/length of time the visa can be used) has no relation to the length of time a temporary visitor may be authorized by the Department of Homeland Security to remain in the United States.

Persons holding visas valid for multiple entries may make repeated trips to the United States for travel of the same purpose, as long as the visa has not expired and the traveler has not done anything to become ineligible to enter the United States at the port of entry.

Expired Passport

If your visa is valid but your passport has expired, you need not worry. A valid U.S. visa in an expired passport is still valid. Unless canceled or revoked, a visa is valid until its expiration date. If you have a valid visa in your expired passport, do not remove it from your expired passport. You may use your valid visa in your expired passport along with a new, valid passport for travel and admission to the United States.

If your visa is still valid, you can travel to the United States with your two passports, as long as the visa is valid, not damaged, and is the appropriate type of visa required for your principal purpose of travel. For example, if it is a tourist visa, when your principal purpose of travel is tourism.

Both passports, the valid and the expired one with the visa, should be from the same country. When you arrive at the U.S. port-of-entry (generally an airport), the Customs and Border Protection Immigration Officer will check your visa in the old passport, and they will stamp your new passport with an admission stamp along with the annotation “VIOPP” (visa in other passport).

Visa Nearing Expiry

If your visa is going to expire while you are within the US, you still do not need to worry. If the Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection Immigration Officer at the port-of-entry admitted you into the United States for a specific period of time, they will note your authorized period of stay on your admission stamp or paper Form I-94, called an Arrival/Departure Record.

You will be able to remain in the United States during your authorized period of stay, even if your visa expires during the time you are in the United States. Since your admission stamp or paper Form I-94 documents your authorized stay and is the official record of your permission to be in the United States, it is very important to keep it inside your passport.

Now, the most important thing before travelling on a US Visa is that if your name has legally changed through marriage, divorce, or a court-ordered name change, you will need to obtain a new passport. Once you have a new passport, the Department of State recommends that you apply for a new U.S. visa to make it easier for you to travel to and from the United States.