Washington: Australians have been caught up in a sudden and chaotic change to US visa rules by the Trump administration that saw several people turned away from scheduled appointments before a change of heart.

The State Department issued a directive over the weekend stating all applicants for non-immigrant visas to the US should schedule their interview appointments at the embassy or consulate in their country of nationality or residence.

For Australians in the US on a visa, such as the popular E3 work visa only available to Australians, it is common to travel to a nearby US embassy or consulate in Canada, the Bahamas or the United Kingdom for a renewal or extension appointment, rather than making the trip to Australia, where there are sometimes long waits.

But the new ruling appeare

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