Applicants affected by the suspension on 9-13 March, will receive email instructions on rescheduling their appointment
Security personnel stand guard outside the US consulate in Karachi on March 1, 2026. PHOTO: AFP
The US Embassy in Islamabad has suspended visa services from March 9 to 13, but says it will continue to provide routine and emergency services to US citizens as tensions rise in the Middle East.
“All immigrant and nonimmigrant visa appointments are canceled for March 9-13,” the embassy said in a statement on X, adding that visa applicants affected by the suspension will receive instructions via email on how to reschedule their appointments.
The US Embassy in Islamabad will continue to serve US citizens in need of routine and emergency services. All immigrant and non-immigrant visa agreements are canceled on the 9th-13th. March. Visa applicants will receive instructions by email about rescheduling their appointments. All… pic.twitter.com/8ATavoIum5
— US Embassy Islamabad (@usembislamabad) March 8, 2026
“The US Embassy in Islamabad will continue to serve US citizens in need of routine and emergency services,” the statement said.
Meanwhile, all consular services at the US consulates general in Karachi and Lahore remain suspended, the embassy said.
The development comes as US-Israeli attacks on Iran and retaliatory strikes by the Islamic Republic continue across the region. Iranian strikes also targeted US military bases, while drones hit targets in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, officials in both countries said early Sunday.
Read: Two Israeli soldiers killed as it attacks Iranian leaders in Beirut
The governments of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates reported Iranian drone strikes on Saturday and early Sunday that caused varying degrees of damage. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards also targeted US forces at a base in Bahrain, according to Iranian state media.
As tensions grow across the region, the United States earlier this week ordered non-emergency personnel and eligible family members to leave its consulates in Lahore and Karachi, the State Department said in an updated travel advisory.
In its latest travel advisory for Pakistan, which remains at level 3 – meaning travelers should reconsider travel – the State Department said the move was made due to security risks following heightened regional tensions.
