U.S. Embassy UAE Cancels July 13–15 Appointments, Routine Visa Services Remain Suspended

The U.S. Embassy UAE and the U.S. Consulate General in Dubai cancelled consular appointments scheduled from July 13–15 because of the regional security situation. People affected by the cancellation should not travel to either diplomatic mission.

The U.S. Mission said it would contact affected individuals with rescheduling instructions. It has not announced a replacement date for the cancelled appointments.

The separate suspension of routine visa services in the UAE remains in effect. The cancelled appointments therefore do not establish July 16 as a reopening date for ordinary visa interviews or processing.

The disruption reaches beyond visitor visas. It may affect student, exchange, employment, dependent, fiancé or fiancée, family-sponsored, employment-based, immigrant and diversity visa cases assigned to Abu Dhabi, including applications filed by people using the UAE as a third-country processing location.

The three-day cancellation does not create a July 16 reopening

The latest security notice covers consular appointments at both the embassy in Abu Dhabi and the consulate in Dubai. It applies to appointments scheduled from Monday, July 13, through Wednesday, July 15, 2026.

Applicants should wait. They should not appear at either location unless the U.S. Mission sends a specific contrary direction.

The notice does not provide a date for resuming ordinary visa services, a timetable for new interview appointments, or an assurance that cancelled appointments will move to the next available day. It also does not authorize applicants to appear without a new appointment confirmation.

A person who travels to Abu Dhabi or Dubai based only on an assumption about reopening could face hotel, flight and local transportation costs without being admitted for an interview. The suspension covers B-1/B-2 business and tourist visas, F-1 and M-1 student visas, J-1 exchange visitor visas, and employment categories including H-1B, L-1 and O-1.

Dependent cases such as H-4 and L-2 may also be affected. So may K fiancé or fiancée visas, family-sponsored and employment-based immigrant visas, and diversity visa cases assigned to Abu Dhabi.

A withdrawn appointment does not by itself cancel a petition, a DS-160 form, an immigrant visa case or underlying immigration eligibility. The notice also does not announce a blanket cancellation of approved USCIS petitions or a general revocation of existing U.S. visas.

Cancelled applicants should preserve records and wait for the mission

Affected applicants should keep their original appointment confirmation, DS-160 confirmation page where applicable, visa fee receipts and appointment-service emails. Courier receipts, document-submission records, immigrant visa medical examination records and any cancellation or postponement notice may also be needed.

The mission said it would contact affected people. Applicants should monitor the email address used for the appointment, including spam and junk folders, their official visa appointment account, and official embassy communications.

They should avoid repeatedly cancelling and recreating appointments unless the appointment platform or the mission specifically instructs them to do so. Self-directed changes can complicate a cancelled booking, particularly when the National Visa Center or Kentucky Consular Center assigned an immigrant visa appointment.

The U.S. Mission’s Visa Navigator is the official starting point for immigrant and nonimmigrant visa assistance in Abu Dhabi or Dubai. U.S. citizens seeking passport, notarial or other citizen services should use the American Citizen Services Navigator instead.

Applicants should be wary of anyone offering a “guaranteed emergency slot.” Private agents cannot compel a diplomatic mission to reopen ordinary services or guarantee expedited processing.

Students and workers must review dates with their institutions and employers

Students with approaching program start dates should contact their school’s designated school official when the delay becomes material. They should ask about the final permitted arrival date, late-arrival authorization, admission deferral and whether a revised Form I-20 will be required.

Housing, orientation and tuition deadlines may also need review. An issued Form I-20 or payment of the SEVIS fee does not let a student board a flight or enter the United States without the required visa, unless a separate rule exempts that person from the visa requirement.

Students should not buy non-refundable travel because they expect operations to resume after July 15.

Workers awaiting H-1B, L-1, O-1 or another visa stamping should promptly notify their employer and immigration counsel. The review may include the employment start date, the petition approval’s validity period, the worker’s current immigration status and location, and whether remote work remains legally and operationally possible.

The parties may also examine whether another consular post could accept the application and whether the worker should remain in the UAE or return to the country of nationality or residence. Applicants should not transfer a case informally or travel to another country merely because appointments appear online.

A different U.S. embassy may limit applications from people who are neither citizens nor residents of that country. State Department guidance generally directs nonimmigrant visa applicants to apply in their country of nationality or residence and warns that applications elsewhere may face substantially longer waits.

Immigrant visa cases carry additional document and deadline risks

Immigrant visa applicants should check the validity of medical examinations, police certificates and passports while waiting. They should also review a child’s eligibility under age-related immigration rules, diversity visa fiscal-year deadlines, visa-number availability and planned resignation, property sale or relocation arrangements.

Applicants should not automatically repeat a medical examination or replace documents until the mission or qualified immigration counsel confirms that action is required. A cancelled interview does not automatically transfer an immigrant visa case to another embassy.

Cases scheduled through the National Visa Center normally require a formal process before another post assumes responsibility. That makes an informal move based on an online appointment especially risky.

Ordered departure limits routine consular capacity

The embassy and consulate remain under ordered-departure status. Non-emergency U.S. government personnel and eligible family members have been relocated outside the UAE, reducing the personnel available for routine consular services.

The State Department ordered the departure on March 2, 2026, because of the threat of armed conflict. Its current UAE advisory is Level 3: Reconsider Travel, citing the risks of armed conflict and terrorism.

Only limited consular assistance is available to U.S. citizens. People needing emergency passport or other urgent assistance should use the U.S. Citizen Services Navigator and select their preferred service location. The consular team will respond by email with instructions.

Immediate emergencies in the UAE can be reported to local emergency services by dialling 999. The official contacts are:

• U.S. Embassy Abu Dhabi: +971 2 414 2200
• U.S. Consulate General Dubai: +971 4 309 4000
• State Department from outside the United States: +1 202 501 4444
• State Department from the United States or Canada: +1 888 407 4747

Emergency channels are intended for genuine urgent circumstances, not requests for an earlier ordinary visa appointment.

Existing valid visas are not revoked by the appointment notice

The security notice does not state that previously issued and otherwise valid U.S. visas have been cancelled. It concerns the delivery of ordinary visa services in the UAE, including interviews and processing of new applications.

Travelers who already hold visas must still confirm that the visa remains valid for the proposed purpose, that the passport remains valid, and that they have received no individual cancellation or revocation notice. They should also check flight operations and continue to meet admission requirements at the U.S. port of entry.

A visa permits a traveler to seek admission. U.S. Customs and Border Protection makes the final admission decision after inspection.

The next meaningful notice would address the resumption of nonimmigrant interviews, immigrant visa processing, new appointment availability, cancelled-case rescheduling, routine U.S. citizen services, ordered-departure status or the UAE travel advisory. Until then, applicants should wait for direct communication or a new notice through an official U.S. government channel before making irreversible travel, employment or financial decisions.