US Visa for Serbs now valid for ten years

The US visa increase applies only to business and tourism visas, and US visas in other categories will still be issued to a maximum three years.

US Ambassador to Serbia, Mary Warlick, said described the move on Thursday as "an important milestone in relations between the United States and Serbia, and a symbol of our deepening friendship."

Relations between the two countries have been strained in the past because of the US-led NATO bombing of Serbia in 1999 and their support for the independence of Kosovo.

Warlick said there had been "significant progress" in relations in the past year.

The American Visa Bureau is an independent consulting company specialising in helping people make US immigration applications to the US Embassy.