Can I interview here as a third-country national?

Many nonimmigrant visas (including O-1) can be applied for as a TCN - a third-country national - but booking and slot availability depend on the post and current policy. This is a common community scenario; always verify on ustraveldocs and travel.state.gov.

Why is the interview split across two days?

That is how the process works at some posts: document intake and the interview are separate visits. Plan at least two working days and do not book a return ticket for the intake day.

What is the difference between the O-1 and EB-1 interview?

O-1 is a nonimmigrant visa: you file DS-160 and attend a consular-section interview. EB-1 is immigrant: after the I-140 is approved the case goes to the NVC, you file DS-260 and attend an immigrant-visa interview (or adjust status inside the US via I-485, without a consulate).

Paris: the O-1 / EB-1 talent-visa interview

US mission, Paris

France O-1 (DS-160) · EB-1 (DS-260 / I-485)

The US Embassy in Paris handles immigrant and nonimmigrant interviews and is available to applicants lawfully present in France.

Who uses this consulate

from Russia

How the consular process works

O-1 is a nonimmigrant visa: after the I-129 petition is approved you file DS-160, pay the fee and book a consular-section interview. EB-1 is the immigrant path: after the I-140 is approved the case either goes through the NVC to an immigrant-visa interview (DS-260), or you adjust status inside the US (I-485) with no consulate at all. Some applicants file as third-country nationals (TCN) - outside their country of citizenship.

Prepare for the interview

What the community reports

In Paris, by member reports, the interview runs over two visits: documents on day one, the interview itself on day two. That is the post’s standard procedure, not a sign of trouble with the case.

This is community-chat experience, not official data. Verify booking availability and post status on travel.state.gov and ustraveldocs.com.

This embassy's official visas page: fr.usembassy.gov/visas/ - interview booking follows your own post's instructions.

Current appointment wait times for every post are in the official State Department table: Global Visa Wait Times.

Procedures that are the same at every post (CEAC statuses, the passport during the check, officers’ manner): the consulates reference.

Official State Department numbers for this post

Next available interview appointment, by table update

Table of	B1/B2	F, M, J	H, L, O, P, Q
Sep 17, 2026	< 0.5 mo	< 0.5 mo	< 0.5 mo
Jun 18, 2026*	1.5 mo	1.5 mo	< 0.5 mo
May 18, 2026*	< 0.5 mo	< 0.5 mo	< 0.5 mo
Apr 15, 2026*	< 0.5 mo	< 0.5 mo	< 0.5 mo
Mar 27, 2026*	< 0.5 mo	< 0.5 mo	< 0.5 mo
Jan 14, 2026*	4.5 mo	1 mo	2 mo
Dec 12, 2025*	4 mo	< 0.5 mo	1 mo
Nov 20, 2025*	3.5 mo	1 mo	1 mo
Oct 22, 2025*	4 mo	1 mo	1 mo
Sep 17, 2025*	7 mo	1 mo	1 mo
Aug 18, 2025*	10 mo	1 mo	3 mo
May 25, 2025*	0 mo	1 mo	1 mo
Apr 25, 2025*	5 mo	1 mo	1.5 mo

Source: Global Visa Wait Times (travel.state.gov), "next available appointment" as printed at each monthly update; until mid-2025 the table gave calendar days, later months. * - read from a Wayback Machine (web.archive.org) copy of the same page. We re-read the table every month; next check about Oct 20, 2026.

Mar 2025 - Feb 2026: the post issued 66,210 nonimmigrant and 1,648 immigrant visas.

Nonimmigrant visas issued, by month
Month	Total	B1/B2	F-1	J-1	H-1B	L-1	O-1
Feb 2026	4,381	2,376	141	468	32	174	59
Jan 2026	5,294	2,510	370	680	70	186	117
Dec 2025	5,847	2,288	856	998	128	285	66
Nov 2025	4,487	2,461	317	617	36	110	50
Oct 2025	5,102	2,864	244	491	87	171	82
Sep 2025	5,413	2,631	388	786	96	200	90
Aug 2025	5,258	1,554	793	643	175	312	115
Jul 2025	6,451	878	1,554	1,687	131	353	74
Jun 2025	7,069	1,281	1,298	1,701	118	374	84
May 2025	5,866	2,060	749	1,478	66	184	71
Apr 2025	5,145	2,512	221	701	52	197	74
Mar 2025	5,897	3,625	158	653	39	151	64

Immigrant visas issued, by month
Month	Total	Family	EB-1	EB-2	EB-3	DV
Feb 2026	77	37	18	18	2	0
Jan 2026	84	77	2	4	0	0
Dec 2025	155	101	22	17	2	7
Nov 2025	86	50	2	14	0	6
Oct 2025	196	92	35	20	5	2
Sep 2025	125	87	6	0	1	18
Aug 2025	150	69	3	13	4	13
Jul 2025	153	85	15	13	1	20
Jun 2025	219	113	15	23	3	15
May 2025	128	75	6	18	9	7
Apr 2025	98	47	11	9	2	8
Mar 2025	177	72	18	6	10	20

Columns: the main classes; "Total" includes all others (dependants, crew, diplomatic and other classes). Immigrant: Family = IR, CR and F categories, EB-1/2/3 = employment preferences (EB-3 incl. EW), DV = diversity lottery. Each month links to its State Department report (Excel). Sources: Monthly Nonimmigrant Visa Issuance Statistics, Monthly Immigrant Visa Issuance Statistics (travel.state.gov).

FAQ

Can I interview here as a third-country national?: Many nonimmigrant visas (including O-1) can be applied for as a TCN - a third-country national - but booking and slot availability depend on the post and current policy. This is a common community scenario; always verify on ustraveldocs and travel.state.gov.
Why is the interview split across two days?: That is how the process works at some posts: document intake and the interview are separate visits. Plan at least two working days and do not book a return ticket for the intake day.
What is the difference between the O-1 and EB-1 interview?: O-1 is a nonimmigrant visa: you file DS-160 and attend a consular-section interview. EB-1 is immigrant: after the I-140 is approved the case goes to the NVC, you file DS-260 and attend an immigrant-visa interview (or adjust status inside the US via I-485, without a consulate).

From community practice

Field chats advise gathering evidence for a specific criterion from the start, rather than bolting it onto the petition at the last moment.
The community reminds that the same piece of evidence cannot be counted under several criteria at once - the officer expects separate evidence for each.
Premium processing speeds up adjudication but does not raise the chance of approval - the community repeats this constantly: evidence quality decides, not speed.

Distilled from public community chats - observations, not legal advice.

From community discussions

«My lawyer told me that at the figure skating World Championships a pair won a medal, but EB-1 was approved for only one person, because collective awards don't count.»
Maksim · from public community chats
«Ask them to send all the documents BEFORE they're sent to USCIS. I had errors in the draft: instead of my receipt number there was a different number and person. They apologized and fixed it without any problem. But ask them to check everything before sending - paralegals can screw up, that's a fact.»
Anna · from public community chats
«I recommend using completely different wording, fonts, and formatting in the recommendation letters. Each person writes and formats in their own way: Dear USCIS officer, To whom it may concern, Dear Sir/Madam. The closings are different too, the header too - sometimes on the right, sometimes on the left, sometimes a company letterhead.»
Anastasia · from public community chats

Personal opinions of community members from public discussions, not legal advice.