When applying to travel or stay abroad, two terms often cause confusion: entry visa and visa status. They are connected but mean very different things. Understanding both will help you avoid mistakes with your application or travel plans.
What Is an Entry Visa?
An entry visa is a document placed in your passport by a country’s embassy or consulate. It gives you permission to travel to the country’s border or airport and ask to be admitted.
- Who issues it: Embassy or consulate abroad
- What it does: Lets you travel to the country and request entry
- How long it lasts: Until the expiration date listed, sometimes for one entry, sometimes for multiple entries
- Important to know: Having an entry visa does not guarantee you will be admitted. Immigration officers at the border make the final decision.
Example:
 Maria, a traveler from India, applies for a U.S. tourist visa (B1/B2) at the U.S. embassy in New Delhi. The visa is approved, and a 10-year multiple-entry visa is stamped in her passport. This stamp is her entry visa. It allows her to board a plane and ask for entry each time she visits the United States.
What Is a Visa Status?
Your visa status is your legal condition inside the country after you are admitted. It sets the rules for how long you can stay and what activities you are allowed to do, such as study, work, or tourism.0
- Who grants it: Immigration officers when you arrive, or the immigration agency if you apply to change or extend your stay inside the country
- What it does: Defines your rights and responsibilities while in the country
- How long it lasts: Based on entry records or official approval, such as the I-94 record in the United States
- Important to know: You can stay legally even if your entry visa expires, as long as your status is still valid. But if you leave and want to return, you will need a new entry visa.
Example:
 When Maria arrives at a U.S. airport, a Customs and Border Protection officer admits her as a B2 visitor and issues an I-94 record allowing her to stay for six months. This six-month period is her visa status. It controls how long she may remain and what she can do, which is tourism only. If she stays longer than six months without approval, she will be out of status, even though her visa stamp is valid for years.
Quick Comparison
Aspect | Entry Visa | Visa Status |
Meaning | Permission to travel to the border and ask to enter | Legal condition after entry |
Issued by | Embassy or consulate abroad | Immigration officer or agency inside the country |
Purpose | Lets you approach the border | Decides what you can do and how long you can stay |
Expires | On the date printed on the visa | On the date listed in your entry record or approval |
Key Point | Needed to enter the country | Needed to stay legally inside the country |
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*Figures are drawn from the cited third-party publications and government datasets and were current as of the publication date. While we strive for accuracy, please independently verify any numbers that are material to your decisions.
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Sources:
- U.S. Department of State – Visitor Visa
 https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/tourism-visit/visitor.html - U.S. Department of State – Visa Expiration Date
 https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/visa-information-resources/visa-expiration-date.html - U.S. Department of State – Visa Glossary
 https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/visa-information-resources/glossary.html - U.S. Customs and Border Protection – Form I-94
 https://i94.cbp.dhs.gov/I94/#/home
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