The C-2 visa is a non-immigrant

visa Visa most commonly refers to: *Visa Inc., a US multinational financial and payment cards company ** Visa Debit card issued by the above company ** Visa Electron, a debit card ** Visa Plus, an interbank network *Travel visa, a document that allows ...

which allows individuals to travel to

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

for the purpose of immediate and continuous transit to or from the

headquarters of the United Nations zh, 联合国总部大楼french: Siège des Nations uniesrussian: Штаб-квартира Организации Объединённых Наций es, Sede de las Naciones Unidas , image = Midtown Manhattan Skyline 004.jpg , im ...

, or for United Nations officials transiting the US to another foreign nation. The holders of such a visa are considered "geographically restricted nonimmigrants".

United Nations Headquarters District

The travel area for recipients of a C-2 visa is limited to a 25-mile radius of

Columbus Circle Columbus Circle is a traffic circle and heavily trafficked intersection in the New York City borough of Manhattan, located at the intersection of Eighth Avenue, Broadway, Central Park South ( West 59th Street), and Central Park West, at the so ...

, which is

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

's equivalent of the

zero mile marker In many countries, kilometre zero (also written ''km 0'') or similar terms in other languages (also known as zero mile marker, zero milepost, control stations or control points) denote a particular location (usually in the nation's capital cit ...

— the area of this circle is known in the U.S. Code, Title 22 as the "United Nations Headquarters District". The visa is valid for the duration of the individual's stay at the United Nations. This is most relevant for countries that do not have good relations with the United States. The office of the

Permanent Representative of Iran to the United Nations The Ambassador of Iran to the United Nations is the leader of the delegation of Iran to the United Nations. The position is more formally known as the "Permanent Representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the United Nations”, with the r ...

commissioned an informal survey with

Hagstrom Map Hagstrom Map, based in Maspeth, Queens, was the best-selling brand of road maps in the New York City metropolitan area from the mid-20th to early 21st century. ''The New York Times'' in 2002 described Hagstrom's ''Five Borough Atlas'' as New York ...

determining that the covered area had boundaries at Parsippany, New Jersey, the

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

border, and Exit 40 of the

Long Island Expressway Long may refer to: Measurement * Long, characteristic of something of great duration * Long, characteristic of something of great length * Longitude (abbreviation: long.), a geographic coordinate * Longa (music), note value in early music mensur ...

References

External links

8 CFR 214.2 (m)
Link to Title 8, Code of Federal Regulations.
Visa wait times
Visa wait times at consulates around the world United States visas by type United States immigration law Geography of New York City Headquarters of the United Nations {{US-law-stub