The US Embassy in Islamabad has suspended all immigrant and non-immigrant visa interviews scheduled for 9–13 March 2026, citing “security and operational considerations.” Applicants will receive e-mails with re-scheduling instructions, while emergency and routine citizen-services remain available. Consular operations at the Karachi and Lahore posts have been closed since January, so Islamabad had been absorbing most visa traffic. The move strands thousands of Pakistani business travellers, students and H-1B applicants who had timed trips around the spring break lull. Corporate mobility teams must now decide whether to book scarce slots at third-country posts such as Abu Dhabi or Bangkok—an expensive option that also requires transit visas—or wait for fresh Islamabad capacity that could slip further if regional tensions escalate. Because Pakistan is one of the top ten source-countries for US‐bound F-1 and H-1B talent, a week-long freeze creates ripple effects for universities and IT outsourcers racing against the 90-day H-1B filing window that closes 1 July. Legal advisers recommend that employers pre-load duplicate DS-160 applications so that they can seize new dates the moment the embassy restores its calendar. At this point, many travelers turn to facilitation platforms like VisaHQ, which can track appointment availability at U.S. consulates worldwide, flag sudden openings, and help prepare compliant application packets; learn more at https://www.visahq.com/united-states/ Security-driven stoppages are becoming more frequent worldwide: the State Department logged 47 full or partial shutdowns of visa units in 2025—more than triple the pre-pandemic annual average. Mobility managers should build contingency budgets and keep employees on ESTA-eligible passports where possible. While the embassy did not specify threats, analysts note that Islamabad issued similar pauses during protests in 2022 and 2024. Travellers should monitor @usembislamabad on X for the next update expected by 12 March.
