U.S. CONSUL GENERAL HOSTS OPEN HOUSE, ANNOUNCES CALL CENTER

United States Consul General Landon Taylor hosted an open house for members of the press today, giving them a chance to see U.S. consular operations first hand. The event included a tour of the facilities and a press conference at which Mr. Taylor announced a major improvement to the US visa operations to Ukraine – the launching of a call center to disseminate visa information and schedule appointments. The call center will begin operations on March 22.

In his statement to the press, Consul General Taylor stressed that the call center will make the US visa process more user-friendly and accessible to Ukrainians without Internet connections. The new service will provide additional information to the public over the telephone so they are better prepared for their visa interview. The U.S. Embassy in Ukraine will join those in Poland, Hungary, Romania, Serbia, and Austria in using a consular call center.

Consul General Taylor explained that for a nominal fee of $12 USD, payable at a bank or via credit card, a visa applicant will be able to telephone the call center using a local number and speak with a live operator in Ukrainian, Russian or English for up to eight minutes. The operators will be able to answer visa questions and schedule appointments with the consular section. After March 21, all non-immigrant and most immigrant visa appointments will only be scheduled through the call center.