State department suspends interview waiver eligibility for certain nationalities.

On August 7, 2025, the State Department announced that nationals and citizens from certain countries who are renewing or previously held a nonimmigrant visa would no longer be eligible to waive their in-person interview at the consulate. The excluded countries are:  Afghanistan, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Bhutan, Burkina Faso, Burma, Burundi, Cabo Verde, Cambodia, Cameroon, Chad, Cote D’Ivoire, Cuba, Republic of Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Dominica, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, The Gambia, Ghana, Haiti, Iran, Kyrgyz Republic, Laos, Liberia, Libya, Malawi, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Sao Tome and Principe, Sierra Leone, Senegal, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Togo, Tonga, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Uganda, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Yemen, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. 

See the announcement here.