Do I need a transit visa for 1 hour transit at San Francisco airport?

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Accepted answer

Yes. Malaysian citizens need a US visa to transit the United States. You will need to apply for one at a US Consulate, which generally requires an application (and the visa fee), appointment, and interview.

You should check to see how long the Consulate near you is taking to process visas and when appointments are available. This information is generally on their website. If there is not sufficient time to get a visa, or you do not wish to apply for one, you'll need to get your company to change your flights to a routing that does not cross the United States, which will likely involve the payment of a change fee and the difference in fare.

If you already hold another type of US visa (such as a B-1/B-2 visitors visa), that may be sufficient for your transit. Let us know what you have in the comments if this is the case.

As a sidenote, assuming you get the visa and do transit the US, you will still have to pick up your checked luggage in US Customs and drop them off again at the transfer desks so they can be loaded on to your next flight. 1:25 is not a ton of time for this--it is doable if there are no lines, but it would be a good idea to allow more time, as non-stop flights to Singapore may only run once a day (just United flight #1 right now, though Singapore Airlines is restarting a flight soon), and if you miss it, you'll have to wait.

Upvote:0

All people flying through the USA need entry documents into the USA. Unlike airports with sterile international transit lounges, all USA airports require passengers enter into the USA to change planes. So yes you need a transit visa or B1/B2 visa and your 1:25 transfer time will be tight.

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