What is an adjusted refusal rate (ARR)?  So that your head doesn’t end up spinning, here’s the short version. An applicant is counted only once and is assigned the status in which s/he ended the year, issued or refused, regardless if previous applications were refused.  Simple, right?

The formula is as follows:  ARR equals: [refusals minus overcomes] divided by [issuances plus refusals minus overcomes).

Example:

Determination of B Visa Adjusted Refusal Rate for Country X:
Country X, worldwide, had 305,024 B visa applicants end the fiscal year in the “issuance” status; 20,548 end in “refused” status; and 88 end in “overcome” status.

Refusals minus Overcomes = 20,548 -88 = 20,460
Issuances plus Refusals minus Overcomes = 305,024 + 20,548 -88 = 325,484
20,460 divided by 325,484 = 6.3 percent (Adjusted Refusal Rate)

OK, maybe your head is spinning now but you get the idea.

As I mentioned in this February 2014 post, there have been significant decreases in the last couple of years in the B (business/tourist) visa refusal rate in Vietnam.  That trend continued in 2014 in which the ARR was an impressive 14.3% (!).  Worded differently, nearly 86% of all business and tourist visa applications were approved!  Below are the stats from 2006-2013.

Follow this link to see ADJUSTED REFUSAL RATES – B-VISAS ONLY BY NATIONALITY FISCAL YEAR 2014 (PDF download).

MAA