Data & Visualizations
VisaWatch is building a comparative public dataset on global visa governance — making refusal rates, fee structures, and outsourcing arrangements accessible for researchers, policymakers, and journalists.
The VisaWatch Data Platform
The platform will provide open access to refusal rate data across major destination countries and applicant nationalities; application volumes and processing times; fee structures including base application fees, outsourcing charges, and premium service pricing; and indicators of bilateral policy relationships.
Priority datasets cover the US, UK, and Schengen area from 2010 to the present. Coverage will expand to additional destination countries and regions as the platform grows.
VisaWatch is also developing a repository of historical visa policy documents — fee schedules, outsourcing contracts, and bilateral agreements — to support comparative research and public accountability.
Register below to be notified when the platform launches and new datasets are released.
A Preview of What’s Coming
The data already tells a consistent story. Across the US, UK, and Schengen area, visa refusal rates are significantly higher for applicants from lower-income countries — and that gap has been widening since 2013.
© Moses O Ogutu / VisaWatch. All rights reserved.
The cost burden compounds the problem. For a Nigerian applicant, the expected total cost of successfully obtaining a US visa rose from $488 in 2019 to $812 by 2025.
© Moses O Ogutu / VisaWatch. All rights reserved.
Our Data Sources
VisaWatch draws on official government data sources — European Commission Article 46 Visa Code Statistics for the Schengen area; UK Home Office Immigration Statistics (Vis_D02) for the United Kingdom; and US Bureau of Consular Affairs Adjusted B-Visa Refusal Rate Series for the United States.
Fee data is drawn from official government fee schedules, outsourcing contractor published rate cards, and primary document research including Freedom of Information disclosures and parliamentary records.
All data is cleaned, documented, and made available with full source attribution. Methodology notes accompany each dataset on release.
Stay Informed
Register to be notified when the VisaWatch data platform launches and new datasets are released. For data collaboration or methodology inquiries, get in touch directly.