The U.S. Embassy, Accra has disclosed that over 1,000 appointment slots for non-immigrant visas are now open with immediate effect.

Officials stated that many B1/B2 visa interview slots, which cover business and tourist travel, are currently accessible and urged applicants to make use of the opportunity.

The availability is expected to allow travellers to secure interview dates within the coming week.

In a notice posted on Facebook on Tuesday, February 17, 2026, the embassy encouraged individuals intending to apply for visas to the United States to schedule their interviews promptly.

“There are more than 1,000 B1/B2 visa appointment slots available in the next week – one of those could be yours,” the notice said.

The decision is part of wider preparations by the United States to support increased travel ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which will be jointly hosted by Mexico and Canada.

Individuals who already have interview dates scheduled later in the year have also been encouraged to reschedule for earlier slots where possible.

“Book a new appointment – or move up one scheduled for later in the year – we want to interview you now!” the Embassy added.

Prospective applicants have been directed to visit the embassy’s official visa portal for further details on eligibility requirements and application procedures.

The announcement is expected to reduce anxiety among travellers who have faced extended waiting periods for interview appointments in recent months.

The Embassy reported a significant surge in the number of Ghanaians applying for visas to the US, which exceeded the increased resources allocated for faster processing.

Despite acknowledging that increased travel between the two countries will strengthen people-to-people ties, the US mission is facing challenges due to the tripling of visa applications since 2019, resulting in a growing backlog.

These comments came at a time when the US Embassy was preparing to transition all visa applications to a new system, which commenced on August 16 2024.

During a roundtable discussion at the US Embassy in Accra, American Consul General Elliot Fertik highlighted that the high demand was flattering for the US, as it suggested a strong interest among Ghanaians in visiting the United States temporarily.

“I’ve said before that if you look at the number of people who paid the visa application fee in 2019 before the pandemic and compare it to the number of people who did so in 2023, the number in 2023 is triple what it was in 2019. So certainly, we hope this new system will provide some additional enhancements and will be more efficient” Mr Fertik noted.

He added “We’re seeing it’s not just non-immigrant visas on the immigrant visa side. Diversity visa. Again, the numbers are through the roof. And, you know, we want to encourage as much legitimate travel between the United States and Ghana as we can. It is incredibly important to us. We want to encourage qualified students to study in the United States. And that’s why, as I said, that’s why we’ve had to bring more resources to doing interviews. Unfortunately, the demand is outstripping even the increased resources we’ve had and we’re going to continue increasing our resources”.

The U.S. Embassy, Accra transitioned to a new visa services provider on August 26, 2024, causing the previous provider’s website and services to become unavailable after August 16, 2024.

From August 16 to August 26, 2024, the U.S. Embassy in Accra’s visa services provider was inaccessible as the transition to a new provider took effect. During that period, applicants could not schedule, cancel, or modify visa appointments, but existing non-immigrant visa appointments were still honoured.

Ghana Scholarships Secretariat (GSS) announced interviews for 2025/2026 Commonwealth Applicants also took place on Monday, 8 December 2025 as well as Tuesday, 9 December 2025.

According to a letter signed by the registrar of scholarships, Alex Kwaku Asafo-Agyei, the interview starts at 9:30 a.m. at the Conference Room of the Ghana Scholarships Secretariat.

"The Ghana Scholarship’s Secretariat (GSS) wishes to inform all applicants of the review of applications for the Commonwealth Scholarship tenable in the United Kingdom for 2025/2026 Academic year and is in the process of inviting applicants to attend an interview which will be a crucial step in assessing the suitability of applicants for the scholarship. The interview is scheduled for Monday 8th & Tuesday 9th December, 2025 at 9.30 a.m. at the Conference Room of the Secretariat," the letter read.

The letter also urged applicants who applied online but failed to submit hard copies of their applications to the secretariat to come along with the documents and other relevant academic certificates as indicated in "our earlier advertisement in the national daily (Ghanaian Times)."

It added that all services offered by the Secretariat are free, urging applicants to beware of fraudsters.

The U.S. Embassy encourages all applicants to take necessary actions before the transition to avoid any disruptions in their visa application process.