**GAO-07-847**                      Published: Jul 13, 2007. Publicly Released: Aug 02, 2007.                  

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## Highlights

After the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Congress and the Department of State (State) initiated changes to the visa process to increase security, but these changes also increased the amount of time needed to adjudicate a visa. Although maintaining security is of paramount importance, State has acknowledged that long waits for visas may discourage legitimate travel to the United States, potentially costing the country billions of dollars in economic benefits over time, and adversely influencing foreign citizens' opinions of our nation. GAO testified in 2006 that a number of consular posts had long visa interview wait times. This report examines (1) State's data on visa interview wait times, (2) actions State has taken to address wait times, and (3) State's strategy for dealing with projected growth in visa demand.

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## Topics

Government Operations

Border securityConsulatesEmbassiesPolicy evaluationStaff utilizationStrategic planningTravelVisasHuman resources managementEmbassy security