For Indians settled in the USA

Bringing your parents to the USA from India

The American system is the opposite of what most families expect. There is no sponsor, no income test on you, and no document from the US side that the application requires. Your parents apply in their own right, and the decision is made across a counter in a short interview.

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The short answer

Your parents apply for a B-2 visitor visa (usually issued as a combined B1/B2). Visiting family is a recognised purpose. The government fee is USD 185 per person. An invitation letter or affidavit of support is not required — the officer is assessing your parents’ own purpose, ability to pay and intent to return to India.

B-2 visitor visa (B1/B2)

Parents visiting for a birth, a graduation, a wedding or a few months with the family.

Purpose: Tourism, family visit, medical treatment
Government fee: USD 185 per applicant; Paid locally through the embassy’s appointment provider, which sets the rupee amount.
Application: One DS-160 per person; Each parent completes and signs their own form — it cannot be a joint application.
Interview: Generally required at every age; The interview-waiver policy effective 1 October 2025 is narrow. Do not rely on the old age-based “dropbox” shortcuts.
Passport: Normally valid 6 months beyond the stay

Visa validity is not length of stay

The most misunderstood point in the whole process.

Visa validity for Indians: Up to 10 years, multiple entry; Per the State Department’s India reciprocity schedule — subject to the officer’s decision in each case.
How long they can stay: Decided at the airport; The border officer sets the permitted stay on each arrival, recorded on the electronic I-94. Check it after every entry.
Work or study: Not permitted; B status does not authorise ordinary work or credit-bearing study.

Government fees and rules as published by the authority, read on 19 September 2026. They change — the official pages are linked at the foot of this page.

The official rules

What the USA actually requires

An invitation letter is not required

The State Department’s visitor-visa guidance is explicit: an invitation letter or affidavit of support is not needed for an ordinary visitor application. If your parents carry one, it is supporting context — it is not what the officer decides on.

What the officer is actually assessing

Three things: the purpose of the trip, the ability to pay for it, and the intent to leave the United States afterwards. The guidance asks for credible evidence suited to the applicant’s employment, family and financial circumstances — there is no fixed list.

There is no published minimum bank balance

The reviewed State Department source specifies no universal minimum balance, no required bank-statement period and no property requirement. Anyone quoting you a “required” figure for a B-2 is quoting a rumour.

A 214(b) refusal cannot be appealed

A visitor refusal under section 214(b) has no appeal for that closed application. A new application — new form, new fee, new interview — may make sense after a meaningful change in circumstances or with new evidence, not simply after time has passed.

Two countries, one file

What you send, and what your parents prepare

You, in the USA

A short, factual invitation letter — helpful context, not a requirement
Proof of your US status (passport, green card or visa and I-94)
Your address, and the dates and reason for the visit
Evidence of funds only if you are genuinely paying for the trip

Your parents, in India

A DS-160 each, completed truthfully and signed by the applicant
Passports, photographs and the appointment confirmation
Their own evidence of income, property, pension and family in India
Attendance in person for biometrics and the consular interview

A typical file, not an official checklist — what is needed depends on your parents’ circumstances.

How we prepare the file

Our method — not a government requirement

We prepare your parents, not a pile of paper

Because the decision is made in a conversation of a few minutes, the file matters less than whether your parents can say, plainly and consistently, why they are going, for how long, who is paying, and what brings them home. We rehearse that in Punjabi or Hindi, in person, until the answers are their own — never scripted lines.

The DS-160 has to match what they will say

The officer reads the DS-160 before your parents reach the window. An income, a job title or a travel date that differs from what they say aloud is a common way for an interview to go wrong. We complete the form with them, line by line, so nothing in it surprises them later.

Your documents are background, used sparingly

Your status and income in the US explain who is hosting and paying. They do not show that your parents will return. We keep your side to a short, honest letter and proof of status, and put the weight on their life in India — home, land, pension, other children, a return to work or the farm.

After a refusal, change the facts before you change the date

Reapplying the following month with the same answers usually produces the same result and a second fee. We look at what was asked at the window and what was said, and tell you honestly whether anything material can change before it is worth paying again.

No consultancy can promise a visa — the decision belongs to the visa officer. What we control is whether the file is complete, consistent and honest.

Questions sponsors ask us

Which visa do my parents need to visit me in the USA?

A B-2 visitor visa, normally issued as a combined B1/B2. The State Department lists family visits among the purposes it covers, alongside tourism and medical treatment.

Do I need to send an invitation letter or an affidavit of support (Form I-134)?

No. State Department guidance says an invitation letter or affidavit of support is not required for an ordinary visitor application. A short letter can give helpful context, but the officer decides on your parents’ own purpose, means and intent to return.

How much does a US visitor visa cost for my parents?

The government application fee is USD 185 per applicant, paid locally through the embassy’s appointment provider, which sets the rupee amount. Our consultancy fee is separate.

My parents are over 80 — do they still need an interview?

Plan on it. Under the interview-waiver policy effective 1 October 2025, interviews are generally required at all ages, with narrow official exceptions. The old age-based waivers should not be assumed.

How much money should my parents show in their bank account?

The State Department publishes no minimum balance, no statement period and no property requirement for a B-2. What matters is that the evidence is credible and fits their real circumstances. A sudden large deposit that cannot be explained does more harm than a modest, steady balance.

If they get a 10-year visa, can they stay for 10 years?

No. Visa validity is the window in which they may travel to the US. How long they may stay is set by the border officer on each arrival and recorded on the electronic I-94 — always check it after entry.

My parents were refused under 214(b). Can we appeal?

There is no appeal for a 214(b) refusal. They can apply again with a new form, fee and interview, and that is worth doing after a meaningful change in circumstances or with new evidence. We will tell you honestly whether anything has changed enough.

Official sources

Last verified 19 September 2026 by the Lifeset Overseas team.

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