visa
Americannoun
-
visas
plural
verb (used with object)
-
to give a visa to; approve a visa for.
-
to put a visa on (a passport).
noun
-
an endorsement in a passport or similar document, signifying that the document is in order and permitting its bearer to travel into or through the country of the government issuing it
-
any sign or signature of approval
verb
-
to enter a visa into (a passport)
-
to endorse or ratify
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of visa
1830–40; < French, short for Latin carta vīsa “the document (has been) seen”; vīsa, feminine past participle of vidēre “to see, look at”
Explanation
A visa is a permit to enter a specific country. Without a visa, you might not be able to travel where you want. While you may know Visa as the name of a credit card company, a visa is a little different: it's an official authorization to enter a country. This is different from a passport, which is a type of identification geared toward international travel. A visa is a more specific form of authorization, allowing you to travel to a certain country. A visa may only last for a certain amount of time, and different countries have different standards for granting a visa.
Vocabulary lists containing visa
"Maus II: And Here My Troubles Began" by Art Spiegelman
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Greetings, World Traveler! — List 3
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Viewing Current Refugee Crisis Through an Anne Frank Lens
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
International students, so-called "visa hoppers" and backpackers will be targeted under stricter rules announced by Australia on Thursday in a bid to curb immigration.
From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026
Australia would return to a policy of a decade earlier in which visa overstayers were given two weeks to leave the country or face detention and deportation, he said.
From Barron's ● Sep. 17, 2026
A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security said Galeano was detained because he overstayed his tourist visa, which gave him permission to remain in the U.S. only through 2019, and encouraged Galeano to self-deport.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2026
Under the new regime, visa holders who need more time will have to file formal applications with the federal government, subjecting themselves to additional background checks, biometric vetting, and other bureaucratic hurdles.
From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026
Farmer was supposed to be there as well, but he was stuck in Paris due to a delay in getting a visa.
From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French
Russia issued more than 36,000 visas to North Koreans last year, four times the 2024 total, according to Russian consular data.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
It also paused applications for working holiday visas from 24 countries, not including the UK.
From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026
One recent initiative of this type relates to the visas held by international students, researchers and scholars, and journalists.
From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026
Guterres continues to urge the United States, as the host country, "to ensure that visas are issued to all delegations in accordance with its obligations," the spokesman said.
From Barron's
“You know we couldn’t go to the funeral because we couldn’t get visas, and then the money, of course. Que lástima. We were all very sad. We wanted to be there for the family.”
From "I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter" by Erika L. Sánchez
It would have taken him two weeks, every time, to get his passport visaed.
From Time Magazine Archive
His cautious employers had merely supplied him expense money and instructions to have his passport visaed for England, France and Germany.
From Time Magazine Archive
Hereafter peasants who may wish to move in from the country to Rovigno must apply for a permit 15 days in advance and have it visaed by the Chief of Police.
From Time Magazine Archive
The chamber needed two more copies of the original bill, which also had to be registered at the registration office and visaed by the price control office.
From Time Magazine Archive
Mr. Fogg and his servant went ashore at Aden to have the passport again visaed; Fix, unobserved, followed them.
From Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
