How to Apply for a US C1/D Visa in London

Bit of a niche post here, pals. And one that I’m only writing because I couldn’t find anything online which detailed how to apply for a US C1/D visa in London when I was applying. Let me tell you now: visa applications can be slightly overwhelming. (As I’m sure you’re aware, if you’ve stumbled across this post.)

*This site uses affiliate links, where I may earn a small commission at no cost to the reader.

---

---

As quite an anxious person when it comes to filling out basically any kind of official-looking paperwork, I scoured the internet high and low to find somebody else’s documented experience of applying for the C1/D visa in the London. Did I find anything? Aside from a few threads on Reddit, no, no I did not. If anything, what I really wanted was reassurance that I was doing everything correctly, and the application and interview process does vary from country to country. The C1/D visa is also quite different from your average visa, because it’s for crew only.

I hope, at the very least, that that’s what this post achieves for you, pals! It is in no way affiliated with the US government, and is simply my own experience of the application process with any nuggets of information that I think might be helpful.

What is a C1/D visa?

A C1/D visa is a visa specifically for crew members working in any position on ships or airplanes calling at ports or airports in the USA.

Technically, it’s a combination of two visas: the C1 is the transit part, and the D is specifically for crew members. And just to be clear, the C1/D visa is a nonimmigrant visa.

How to apply for a US C1/D visa in London: the process

Step 1: complete the DS-160 visa application form

First and foremost, if you type ‘C1/D application’ into Google, chances are that the top results will actually be agencies who will complete your application for you at an inflated price. They will also take longer to complete than if you did it yourself through the official website. It’s not exactly a scam, except that it kind of is; I know several people who have applied through these agencies without realising that they are in fact, applying through an agency.

The best way to complete your DS-160 form is to go directly to the US Department of State website.

Begin your DS-160 form here.

• You do not have to fill the form out all in one go- you can save it and come back to it.
• You’ll need to upload a digital copy of an ID photo as part of your application.
• Your passport must have at least six months left on it for the remainder of your planned time in the US, and you’ll need this at the time of your application, too.
• Make a note of your application ID. This is what you can use to log in and continue applying.
• At the time I applied (2025) the website was a tad glitchy. Save your application regularly while you’re filling out the form.
• Most cruise ship companies will provide their crew members with a guide to filling out the form. In addition to questions about your personal background and job on board, you’ll need to provide contacts and addresses from the cruise line and details of the specific ports you’ll dock at.

Once you’ve completed and sent the DS-160 form, you’ll be shown a confirmation page confirming that you’ve sent your application for review. You’ll need to print this to bring to the US embassy for your interview; at the time of my application I had some problems printing this page! There’s an option to email the confirmation page to yourself, however this didn’t work for me. The way I got around this was to click the ‘print’ button and then save the document to my files to print later.

You also won’t automatically receive any notification or updates regarding your application at this stage- so don’t panic if there’s nothing in your inbox!

Step 2: book an appointment at the US Embassy in London

Next, you need to head on over to the US Embassy in London’s official website to book your appointment- don’t wait for email confirmation to do this as there won’t be any. You’ll be waiting for a lifetime, pals.

This is the US Embassy in London page, where you can book and pay for your C1/D visa appointment.

• At this stage, you’ll need your application number from your DS-160 application form.
• Appointments for C1/D visas tend to be more readily available than general tourist visas; I was able to book an appointment only a week in advance (and could even have booked an earlier one), but for context the wait time for a tourist visa at that time was a couple of months.
• If there are no free slots showing up and you need an appointment ASAP, it’s worth contacting your agent or employer to see if they can help nudge things along.
• This is also the stage where you’ll pay for the Visa appointment. So have your card details at the ready.

It’s a pricey one, guys. I paid a grand total of £149.85 GBP for the C1/D visa, plus a £30 fee for them to deliver my passport to me after the visa was granted.

(I’ll get on to that later, but basically you’ll leave your passport with the embassy at the time of your interview. You could go and pick it up for free, but as I don’t live in London it made sense to pay for the visa delivery.)

After you’ve booked and paid for the appointment, you’ll receive confirmation of payment, and of your appointment date and time with instructions for the interview. On the ‘instructions’ email, there are two bar codes: one for your DS-160 form and one for your passport number.

You must print off the ‘instructions’ page, and your proof of payment, and bring both of these to the interview.

Step 2.5: get to the US Embassy!

The US embassy in London is super easy to find. It’s a ginormous cuboid building which appears to be covered in silverish geometric shapes (the description will make sense when you see it), very close to the river. The closest tube stations are Nine Elms on the Northern Line, or Vauxhall on the Victoria Line, both of which are a short walk away.

Here’s the exact location of the embassy on Google maps.

Thanks to my Ultimate Early Crack-of-Dawn Appointment Time (7.30am, but arriving at 7am), I had no choice but to stay at a hotel the night before the interview. The closest hotel to the US Embassy in London is the luxurious art’otel inside Battersea Power Station; the hotel with its incredible rooftop pool looks incredible, but alas- it was very much out of my price range, especially when I was only there to obtain a visa.

Instead, I opted for the Best Western Plus in Vauxhall. This is a great hotel near the US embassy in London, with the bonuses being that the price included breakfast, the staff were super friendly, and crucially they happily stored my bag for me while I was at the appointment.

Step 3: attend the interview at the US embassy

After the back-and-forth gallivanting between government websites, comes potentially the most stressful part- but I’m telling you now, pals, my experience was very quick, very simple, and the organisation at the embassy was downright brilliant. (Here’s the exterior of the building, so you know what you’re looking for.)

There’s no official list of documents that you have to bring with you for a C1/D visa appointment, which is really the part that I found the most stressful. What I absolutely did not want, was to get all the way to the interview and realise I’d left something obvious at home. Mainly, you just need to prove that you have a home and a life in the UK that you’ll return to when you finish your contract. So, here’s what I brought with me:

• My Letter of Employment (Sometimes referred to as your LoE)
• A signed copy of my upcoming contract.
• My passport
• An ID photo which met the US ID photo requirements and size (51mm by 51mm, which is crucially a different size to UK photo size. I took this in a PhotoMe photo booth but selected US visa as the document I needed the photo for.)
• A printed copy of the instructions page which was emailed to me after booking and paying for my appointment.
• A printed copy of proof of payment. (I found this in my login area of the US Embassy in London)
• A printed copy of the DS-160 confirmation page featuring my photo and passport details.
• Bank statements which show proof of income and address
• Basic safety certificates which are mandatory for all crew members
• My decision in principle for a mortgage application.
• Past contracts from working for this particular cruise line.
• I took all of these in the branded folder which crew members are given to store their necessary documents on board!

In case you’re wondering, during the appointment I was only asked to show my passport, my letter of employment, and my DS-160 confirmation page. That’s not to say that this would be the case for every applicant, and I’m still extremely glad that I took everything that I did.

What’s the process of the interview at the embassy?

The US embassy in London is extremely well-organised, and although there was a lot of queuing involved, it was all very fast moving for me. Frankly, I was impressed.

• You need to arrive at least half an hour before your scheduled appointment time to join the queue, check in and get through security.
• You can bring a small bag in to the embassy with you. I brought a small handbag which contained my phone, a bottle of water (they made me sip from this at security), some snacks, and my hotel key, plus a folder containing my passport and relevant documents.
• Suitcases are definitely not allowed! Neither are laptops, cameras or ipads. If you bring any of these items to your appointment, you’ll be pointed in the direction of one of the local shops which offer paid bag storage.
• I dressed smartly but didn’t go for overkill on the business-casz vibes. (It’s not that deep, but it’s nice to feel presentable in these situations, isn’t it?)

And the entire process, step-by-step, goes something like this:

• Join the queue outside the building. There are two main entrances, but the entrance for visa services is very clearly signposted (you’ll also probably spot the line of people, which is a dead giveaway.)
• You’ll be asked for your passport and DS-160 confirmation page at the entrance to the building.
• Go through airport security style security screening to enter the building.
• Inside, you’ll queue to show your passport and DS-160 confirmation again, and staff will then give you a coloured ticket and direct you to the relevant floor.
• You’ll queue for step 1, which is where you’ll show your passport and DS-160 confirmation to someone sat behind a window, and they’ll also take your ID photo from you. (They used my uploaded ID photo instead of my physical copy, but if you turn up without a photo or the photo you submitted digitally isn’t suitable, there are booths at the embassy.) After this, you’ll exchange your colourful ticket for a different coloured ticket, and proceed to the next queue.
• Queue number 2 is where somebody will confirm your ID again and then take your fingerprints at a different window. After the fingerprinting you’ll swap your second colourful ticket for a third, different coloured ticket, to allow you to head to the third queue.
• The third queue is where you’re lining up for the actual interview stage of the appointment.
• When I made it to the front of the third queue, I was directed to a free window where I gave my final ticket to the agent.
• During the interview, I was asked for my Letter of Employment and the other documents I’d already shown, and then asked a few questions about my work on board. This extended to how long I’d worked for the company, what my position is and whether I enjoy it! I was also asked whether I’d previously been to the US before (I have, but never as a crew member.)

The interview part of the appointment lasted no longer than three minutes, at the end of which the agent told me that my visa had been approved. He kept hold of my passport, and having arrived at 6.45am, I was out of the building by 8.30am. I’d say that’s a success.

Step 4: await your passport!

Having paid the £30 fee to have my passport delivered to my house, the passport arrived three days later as promised. Surprisingly, they’d actually issued me with two visas: the C1/D and a normal tourist B1/B2 visa. Which is great: why have only visa when you could have two!?

I’m told that at some US embassies around the world, this tourist visa issuance is standard practice alongside the crew C1/D visa. I guess London is one of those locations?

My personal tip: make a day of it 🙂

I feel like London is one of those cities in which you can never run out of things to do, so knowing that I’d be there for 24 hours, I naturally decided to make the most out of the situation. I got last minute tickets to an incredible play the night before the appointment (Till the Stars Come Down, I highly recommend it, pals), because it made far more sense than just watching TV in my hotel room all evening.

And after I left the US embassy the next morning, I headed straight to Battersea Power Station to finally see the inside of that iconic landmark. The old power station is a short walk away from the embassy, and although it’s been filled with shops and restaurants, I was there for a trip in the Willy Wonka-style elevator of one of its towering chimneys. (If you fancy heading up Lift 109 after your visa appointment, it’s better to book the ticket in advance).

So there you have it, pals. I’m no expert, but that was my entire experience of applying for the C1/D visa in London, from start to finish. I really, really hope that it’s helpful for at least someone out there, as knowing what to expect would definitely have helped me when I applied. Let me know if it’s been helpful for you, pals! And happy sailing 🙂

---

What to pack when working on a cruise ship

---

Sign up here to get newsletters from time to time, delivered straight to your inbox.

I consent to receiving emails and personalised ads.

Leave this field empty if you’re human:

---