Moving to the USA from Egypt: Visas, Green Cards and Where to Apply

Egypt is not among the 39 countries restricted by Proclamation 10998, which took effect on January 1, 2026. Egyptians can still apply for all types of US visas.

Immigrant visas, however, have been hit by two separate pauses:

• Egypt was also on the list of 75 countries whose immigrant visas were paused starting January 21, 2026. A federal court vacated that pause on August 21, 2026 (CLINIC v. Rubio), and the government has appealed, so the situation can still change.
• Since August 25, 2026, the State Department has paused immigrant visa interviews at US embassies and consulates worldwide while consular officers are trained on public charge reviews. Scheduled interviews were moved to later dates, and no restart date has been announced as of September 2026. Visitor, student, and temporary work visas are not part of this pause. Details: immigrant visa pause.

Visitor, student, E-2, and work visa interviews in Cairo are not part of these pauses.

For an overview of every route, see our guide to US immigration and how US immigration works.

Yes. Egypt is not in the Visa Waiver Program, so you need a B-2 tourist visa or B-1 business visa. You submit the DS-160 online, pay the fee, and attend an interview at the embassy in Cairo. You must show your trip is temporary and that you have ties to Egypt. The State Department's guidance is to apply for a visitor or other temporary visa at the US embassy or consulate in the country where you live. Applying elsewhere is possible but can make it harder to show you qualify.

E-2 investor visa. Egypt's bilateral investment treaty with the US entered into force in 1992, so Egyptian nationals qualify for the E-2 (not the E-1 trader visa). You must invest a substantial amount in a real, operating US business that you control and that does more than support your family. The State Department's reciprocity table for Egypt sets a short validity for Egyptian E-2 visas, so expect to renew more often than investors from some other countries.

H-1B. Since February 27, 2026, the H-1B lottery gives more entries to higher wage levels. A separate $100,000 fee on some new H-1B petitions (from a September 2025 proclamation) is being fought in court, with judges split as of September 2026. See H-1B $100k fee.

Study. Egyptian students often come for graduate engineering, sciences, and medical research. Since September 15, 2026, new F-1 students are admitted until a fixed date instead of for "duration of status", so you may need to file for an extension if your program runs longer. See F-1 fixed admission period.

Doctors. Egyptian physicians usually enter US residency programs on a J-1 (sponsored by ECFMG) or an H-1B. The J-1 carries a two-year home residence rule unless waived.

Family. US citizens can sponsor spouses, unmarried children under 21, and parents with no annual cap. Siblings (F4) and married children (F3) wait many years. Egyptians use rest-of-world dates in the Visa Bulletin.

Employment. EB-2 and EB-3 use rest-of-world dates. The EB-2 NIW is popular with Egyptian researchers and engineers because no job offer is needed.

Diversity Visa. Egypt is one of the most active DV countries; in DV-2025 the State Department announced that Egypt had reached the 7 percent per-country cap. Egyptians were eligible for DV-2026. The Diversity Visa (DV) lottery is paused: visa issuance stopped on December 23, 2025, and DV-2027 registration never opened. See DV lottery paused.

The US Embassy in Cairo handles all visa categories for Egypt. Book appointments and check wait times on the embassy's website. See our visa interview guide. If your case is held for extra checks after the interview, read about 221(g) administrative processing.

For immigrant visas, the State Department's Egypt page lists:

• Police certificate: a Criminal Status Record (criminal records certificate) from a police station in Egypt, applied for with your national ID card. If you live abroad, you can apply through the consular section of an Egyptian embassy, but the State Department warns this usually takes a long time. The certificate is valid for three months, so time it close to your interview.
• Birth certificate: a birth certificate from the Civil Status Organization (Ministry of Interior).
• Marriage and divorce records: from the Civil Status Organization or the relevant court or religious authority.

Arabic documents need certified English translations.

The largest Egyptian American communities are in northern New Jersey (Jersey City and Bayonne) and New York (Astoria in Queens and Bay Ridge in Brooklyn). There are also large communities in Southern California (Los Angeles and Orange County), Houston, Chicago, and the Washington, DC area. Coptic Orthodox churches and mosques are central gathering points and often help newcomers settle.