B1 B2 Visa Family Appointment Group Scheduling

You've got two parents, one interview you're trying to get them both into, and a scheduling portal that keeps throwing around the words "dependent" and "group" as if they mean the same thing. They don't. Not even close.

This is the mix-up that eats up weeks for families. Someone adds Dad as a dependent on their own profile and assumes that's the group request. Someone else files a group appointment request for four relatives and waits, confused, when it gets rejected. The portal doesn't explain the difference, and most of what's written about it online skips straight past the part families actually need.

So let's separate the two, then walk through the whole thing in order.

Family scheduling vs. group scheduling: two different things on the visa portal

There are two journeys here, and they only look alike.

The first is family scheduling. One person creates a profile on the new U.S. visa scheduling portal, and if the option is available at that post, attaches a parent or relative as a *dependent* so they can be booked alongside them. It's a setting inside your own account.

The second is a group appointment request. This is a formal ask sent to the consular post — usually by a coordinator speaking for an organized group — to have several applicants interviewed together on one date. The post reviews it and either approves or turns it down.

Different tools. Different outcomes. And here's the line that trips up nearly every family searching this: official guidance states that family members of a group applicant who want to schedule an interview appointment together are not eligible for group appointment requests.

Read that again, slowly. It means the group request page is not the family reunion button people think it is. If your parent is the spouse, child, or relative of someone applying as part of a group, and their whole goal is to sit in the same room at the same time, the group request route doesn't cover them.

So you have a decision to make before you book anything:

• Same post, same visa type, portal offers dependents? Try the dependent route first. It's the simplest fit for two parents applying together.
• A genuine organized group with a coordinator? The group request is built for that.
• A family that just wants the same day and nothing else fits? Book separate slots and line up the dates yourself.

One DS-160 per traveler — there is no family DS-160

There's no such thing as a family DS-160. Every person fills out their own form, gets their own barcode number, and submits it individually. Two parents means two complete forms and two confirmation pages — that's exactly what one applicant in the forum threads described doing for their parents applying from India.

Keep them straight from day one:

• Save each confirmation page as a separate file, named for the person.
• Write down each barcode number somewhere you can find it fast.
• Double-check names and passport numbers against the actual passports before you submit.

The DS-160 is also where a lot of later scheduling pain starts. If you type a passport number wrong, or fat-finger a birth date, the profile you build later won't line up with the form, and the portal will just refuse to book.

Creating a profile for each applicant on the new U.S. visa scheduling portal

Booking a nonimmigrant visa appointment means creating profiles on the Department of State's scheduling site first. No profile, no appointment.

Make one profile per applicant. Not one profile with everyone stacked underneath it. You'll need each person's passport details, their DS-160 confirmation number, and current contact information. If a pickup location is part of your post's flow, decide that now too.

Two practical notes:

If you're the adult child doing all the clicking, you're still creating *their* profiles, not yours — unless you're applying too, in which case you need your own.

And don't build the profiles months early and leave them sitting there. Treat this step as something you do when you're close to actually booking, so nothing goes stale on you.

Adding a parent or relative as a dependent: when it helps and when it doesn't

The dependent option is exactly what people are hunting for when they ask how to add dependents in U.S. visa scheduling. It lets you attach a family member to your own appointment attempt instead of starting the whole booking flow over for them.

It tends to help when: everyone is applying at the same consular post, in the same visa category, at roughly the same time, and the post's version of the portal actually shows the dependent option.

It tends to fall short when: people are applying at different posts, in different categories, or need different dates. Some portals also expose the dependent feature differently depending on location.

That last part matters, so here's the honest version: the guidance available doesn't confirm the dependent option behaves identically at every post. Check it inside the new scheduling portal for your specific location before you build your whole plan around it. If it's not there, book each person separately and work on matching the dates.

One more thing — adding a dependent is not a group request. It doesn't guarantee a same-day interview, and it doesn't get reviewed by anyone at the consulate. It's just a scheduling shortcut.

Requesting a group appointment: who qualifies and who gets turned down

Group appointment requests exist for organized groups — the kind that have someone acting as coordinator and speaking for everyone as a unit. Think a company sending staff, a delegation, a team, a tour travelling together for a shared purpose. The process assumes a coordinator, a defined list, and one point of contact.

Now the carve-out. Family members of a group applicant who want to interview together are not eligible for group appointment requests. So if the actual group member is your parent, and your other parent or a sibling wants to be interviewed alongside them, that request is going to be refused. Not because anyone did anything wrong — the route simply isn't open to that situation.

The practical takeaway: if you're a family that wants to sit together and no organized group is involved, don't burn time on a group request. Go the dependent route where it's offered, or book individually and aim for the same day.

What happens after the consular post approves your group request

Approval is not a booked appointment. This is the part people miss.

Once a post approves a group scheduling request, the coordinator gets only a limited window to actually schedule the interview. If that window closes with nobody booked, the approval is gone and you're back at the start.

So before the approval lands:

• Have every DS-160 confirmation number and passport number collected in one place.
• Agree on who's clicking the booking button — one person, not five.
• Agree on which dates work, in advance.

Then book the same day the approval arrives. Sorting out "which Tuesday suits everyone" in a group chat while a clock is ticking is how windows get missed.

Booking interview slots for parents applying together at the same post

When you're actually in the calendar, a few things help.

Look for slots in the same block rather than the identical minute. Two parents back to back is usually fine and far easier to find than one shared time. If only a single slot appears, take it. Book the other parent separately and adjust later. A held appointment beats a perfect one you never grabbed.

Everyone still has to attend their own interview. One parent can't answer for the other, and one appointment can't be stretched to cover two people.

And both applicants must be at the same consular post. If your parents are applying at different consulates, there's no way to schedule them together — that's not a portal limitation, it's just how it works.

Appointment wait times, expedited requests, and changing the interview date

There is no single wait time for a B1/B2 visa. Wait times vary by consular post, and the official scheduling pages publish them per location rather than one global figure. Check the wait times page for the specific embassy or consulate you're dealing with before you commit to anything, because that number is what your planning actually hangs on.

Expedited appointment requests are a separate step again. You file one, explain why, and the post decides. If you think you might qualify, look at what your specific post lists as acceptable reasons — don't assume, and don't file one just to jump the line.

If you end up with separate slots and can't get everyone into the same one, you've got two options: keep the booked dates and accept the same day at different times, or move one person's appointment to match the other. Changing dates happens inside each applicant's own profile, and posts vary on how much shuffling they'll tolerate. Check your post's rules before you start moving things around.

Mistakes that break family scheduling

These are the ones that actually stall families:

Mismatched DS-160 numbers. If a form gets re-submitted, it gets a new barcode. The profile still holds the old one. The two have to match or the booking won't go through. Fix it before you try to book, not during.

Thinking dependent equals group request. They're separate features with separate rules, and only one of them gets reviewed by a human at the post.

Assuming a group request covers the family. Official guidance says family members of a group applicant who want to interview together aren't eligible.

One DS-160 for two people. Doesn't exist. One form per traveler, every time.

Dormant profiles. Build them early and abandon them, and you'll come back to re-verify details or start over.

Different posts. Nothing lines up if the applicants aren't at the same consulate.

Waiting for full agreement before booking. Slots vanish while you're deciding.

Questions people keep asking

How do we schedule a U.S. visa appointment for family together?

Each person needs their own DS-160 and their own profile on the scheduling portal. From there, you either add the relative as a dependent where the portal allows it, or submit a group appointment request. Keep in mind the official note that family members of a group applicant who want to interview together aren't eligible for group requests — so the group route isn't a guarantee of sitting together.

What's the current wait time for a B1/B2 visa?

There isn't one number. It varies by consular post, and the official pages publish wait times per location. Check the page for your specific embassy or consulate before you lock in dates.

Can I file one DS-160 for the whole family?

No. The DS-160 is completed per traveler — the forum example here had an applicant filling out two separate forms for two parents. Any grouping happens later, at the appointment stage.

How do I add dependents in U.S. visa scheduling?

The scheduling site has a dependent option, and that's what people mean when they want to attach a parent to their own appointment instead of booking separately. The sources out there don't confirm it works the same way at every post, so check the dependent option inside the portal for your location before you count on it.

Before you touch a single DS-160, look up two things for your specific consular post: whether group appointment requests are even something they handle, and what their current wait times look like. That five minutes decides which scheduling route you take — and picking the right one at the start saves you from redoing profiles, forms, and dates later.