On November 17, 2016, U.S. Ambassador to the Kyrgyz Republic Sheila Gwaltney presented the first immigrant visa issued at the U.S. Embassy in Bishkek to Kyrgyz citizen Aidana Bekturova. Ms. Bekturova acknowledged receiving her immigrant visa through the U.S. Diversity Visa Program, which makes available up to 55,000 diversity visas (DV) each year to persons from many countries around the world. Diversity visa recipients are randomly selected from those who enter the DV program following instructions available on the State Department’s website, travel.state.gov. Recipients must meet strict eligibility requirements and come from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States.
The U.S. Embassy in Bishkek began processing immigrant visa cases for residents of the Kyrgyz Republic on November 14, 2016. Beneficiaries of immigrant visa petitions and winners of the Diversity Visa Lottery who reside in the Kyrgyz Republic will no longer need to travel to Almaty for visa interviews and medical exams. Applicants can now complete all immigrant visa processing requirements at the U.S. Embassy in Bishkek and through Embassy-authorized panel physicians in Bishkek. In addition, beneficiaries interviewed in Bishkek will have the option of requesting interviews in English, Kyrgyz, or Russian.
Ambassador Gwaltney stated: “We are pleased to offer these services here in Bishkek to Kyrgyz citizens on the 25th anniversary of our bilateral relationship. This is a sign of our deepening people-to-people ties, and will strengthen our partnership, which is based on trust, equality and mutual respect.”
Applicants with questions regarding the immigrant visa process can email the Consular Section at BishkekIV@state.gov. Please see the Department of State’s website at travel.state.gov for more information on the immigrant visa process in general, and the Immigrant Visas page for more information about immigrant visa processing in Bishkek.
