Wellington filing guide
Applying for an E-2 visa in Wellington
The submission process, document format and interview steps for applications filed through the U.S. Embassy Wellington.
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Your Wellington E-2 visa application at a glance
- Submission
- Online Portal
- Document format
- Standard PDF Binder
- File limit
- None published
- Page limit
- No published limit
- TCN policy
- Regularly processes TCN cases
- Interview location
- U.S. Embassy Wellington
Open the official application portal(opens the official site in a new tab)
Requirements reviewed September 2026 · Sources: U.S. Embassy Wellington(opens the official site in a new tab) and U.S. Department of State(opens the official site in a new tab)
On this page
Process
How to apply for an E-2 visa in Wellington
Read this as a sequence, not a menu. Each step depends on the one before it.
- 01
Complete the DS-160
Fill in the DS-160 nonimmigrant visa application online and keep the confirmation page. Every applicant needs their own, including dependants.
Consular Electronic Application Center(opens the official site in a new tab)
- 02
Create an account and pay the MRV fee
Set up an account on the visa appointment service and pay the machine-readable visa fee. This is where the registration is raised — you are not booking an interview yet.
Visa appointment service(opens the official site in a new tab)
- 03
Submit the supporting documents
Upload the complete evidence package electronically, following the instructions given after the fee is paid.
U.S. Embassy Wellington will not open a case for review until the DS-160, the fee and the documents are all in. Nothing is scheduled before that.
- 04
Wait for the review, then the invitation
The E-Visa Unit reviews cases against 9 FAM 402.9 in the order received, and may ask for more documents. When the review is finished you are emailed an invitation to book the interview.
Current review times and instructions(opens the official site in a new tab)
- 05
Attend the interview
Book through the appointment service once invited, and present your case at U.S. Embassy Wellington. Bring the printed DS-160 confirmation — its barcode must match the number on your appointment account.
Attend within 90 days of the invitation. Miss that window and the registration has to be submitted again from the beginning.
Documents
E-2 visa document requirements in Wellington
Upload your application through the online visa portal.
File requirements
- Format
- Single PDF
- Page limit
- No published limit
- File size
- None published
Important Wellington instructions
- After paying the fee you are routed to submit a Pre-Approval Request rather than booking an interview.
- The consulate emails your registered address when the pre-approval request is approved or rejected, and instructions follow approval.
- Documents are organised into nine tabs, lettered A to I or numbered 1 to 9.
- Each applicant and each dependent needs a working email address not previously used in the appointment system.
From Portunus
Turn your business case into a consular-ready plan
Assembling to U.S. Embassy Wellington's requirements is a formatting problem. Making the business case is the hard part — that is what we build.
- Business plan and five-year financials £99
- A FAM 402.9-aligned plan with projections, job-creation analysis and proportionality — the document the whole application rests on. Editable and regenerable as your plans change.
- Complete evidence-binder assembly £140
- Everything in the plan, plus your full evidence binder assembled, ordered, page-numbered and ready to file.
One-time payment, no subscription. Portunus is document-preparation software, not a law firm, and nothing here is legal advice.
Third-country nationals
Applying for an E-2 visa in Wellington as a third-country national
Wellington regularly processes E-2 applications from eligible third-country nationals, although acceptance and appointment availability can change.
A third-country national is someone who applies at a U.S. post outside their country of citizenship — for example, a treaty-country citizen who lives and works elsewhere. Consular practice now expects applicants to file where they hold citizenship or permanent residence, so filing elsewhere is the exception rather than the norm. Compare every post by how readily it takes outside applicants.
We rate this post 2 out of 3 for third-country processing, meaning it processes them as a matter of routine. That rating is our own reading of published guidance and applicant reports — it describes willingness to schedule an appointment, not your eligibility for approval, and it carries no official standing.
Policy at individual posts changes without much notice. Confirm the current position before you build a filing plan around it — U.S. Embassy Wellington(opens the official site in a new tab).
Questions
E-2 visa in Wellington: common questions
How do I submit my E-2 visa application to U.S. Embassy Wellington?
Documents first, interview second. You complete the DS-160, pay the MRV fee through the appointment service, then submit the full evidence package electronically. U.S. Embassy Wellington will not open the case for review until all three are done, and only invites you to book an interview once that review is complete. Employees of a company that is already registered are the exception — they book directly and submit nothing in advance.
Is there a page or file-size limit for E-2 visa applications at U.S. Embassy Wellington?
U.S. Embassy Wellington publishes no page or file-size limit for the E-2 package. Assemble it to the standard PDF binder structure with a table of contents and clearly labelled tabs, and keep it proportionate — a shorter, better-ordered package reads more easily than a long one.
Can third-country nationals apply for an E-2 visa at U.S. Embassy Wellington?
Yes. U.S. Embassy Wellington regularly processes E-2 applications from eligible third-country nationals. Acceptance and appointment availability change, so confirm the current position with the post before you build a filing plan around it.
How long does an E-2 visa take at U.S. Embassy Wellington?
We do not publish an estimate for U.S. Embassy Wellington, because a number invented for a page like this would be worse than none. travel.state.gov publishes current visa appointment wait times by post, and that is the figure to check. Total time is appointment availability plus any administrative processing after the interview. Book flights and shipping only once the visa is in your passport.
What should I bring to my E-2 visa interview at U.S. Embassy Wellington?
Bring your passport, the DS-160 confirmation page, the MRV fee receipt, your appointment confirmation, and the originals behind your evidence — financial statements, business registration, lease and purchase agreements. Bring a printed copy of the package you uploaded, so you can refer to it during the interview. Expect questions about how you found the business, where the money came from, and how you will run it.
Ready to prepare your Wellington E-2 application?
Portunus builds the FAM 402.9-aligned business plan and five-year financials your case rests on, and can assemble the complete evidence binder formatted to U.S. Embassy Wellington's requirements — so what you submit matches what the post asks for.
Preparing an E-2 case for a client? See our tools for immigration attorneys. Portunus is document-preparation software, not a law firm, and provides no legal advice.