The
U.S. embassy in the Venezuelan capital Caracas on Wednesday announced that it
is no longer taking new appointments for first-time business or tourist visa
applicants due to staff and resource shortages.
The
embassy stated that the Venezuelan Foreign Ministry has refused for months to
issue visas for U.S. embassy personnel, which has resulted in staff shortages
and an inability to repair the embassy’s computer systems.
“Once
the foreign ministry resumes issuing visas for U.S. diplomatic personnel, and
those staff members are able to start working, we will begin to restore full
visa services to the Venezuelan public,” the embassy stated. “We deeply regret
that it is impossible for us to maintain our previous high standard of service
to the hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan citizens who visit the U.S. embassy
in Caracas each year.”
The
embassy advised first-time applicants not to try to pay the application fee or
to make an appointment.
For
Venezuelans that have already paid an application fee for a business or tourist
visa, those fees will remain valid for up to one year. The embassy said it will
make limited numbers of appointments available exclusively for those who had paid the application fee on or before May 18, 2016.