Australian applying for U.S Visa from Dublin

Yes. The US does not have the same geographical requirements that many countries have, where applicants must apply at the consulate whose territory includes the applicant's place of residence. Even if they did, surely a global systems outage that lasts for several weeks would be sufficient ground for an exception.

They may want you to show that you are in Dublin legally; if so, that should be no problem for you.

Note, however, that the Dublin embassy's consular section is still unable to process visa applications, according to today's update (23 June 2015) on their web site (http://dublin.usembassy.gov/visas.html):

Non-Immigrant Visa Information

Message on Systems Issues from the Bureau of Consular Affairs:

Updated: June 23, 2015.

** Although 22 posts have been reconnected worldwide, Embassy Dublin is not currently one of these posts. **

The Bureau of Consular Affairs continues to experience technical problems with our visa systems.  Though some progress has been made, biometric data processing has not been fully restored.  This is a global issue and our team continues to work on this 24/7 to restore the systems to full functionality.

Once full operability is restored to our visa systems, U.S. Embassy Dublin’s Consular Section will extend its normal business hours, which we expect to include weekend hours, to accommodate all visa applicants affected by this recent outage. 

The problems stem from a hardware failure in a State Department facility in the United States on June 9. That failure is preventing the Department from processing and transmitting biometric data checks at visa-issuing embassies and consulates. We cannot bypass the legal requirements to screen visa applicants before we issue visas for travel.  Each visa decision is a national security decision, and we take our obligation to protect the United States seriously.

We regret the inconvenience to travelers and recognize that this is causing hardship to those waiting for visas, and in some cases, their family members or employers in the United States.  We will continue to post regular updates on our website, travel.state.gov.

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Applicants who have already appeared for an interview

Due to these technical issues, we are not currently able to print any visas for visa applicants who have already appeared for an interview.  As a standard practice, we advise people never to make non-refundable travel plans before receiving the necessary travel documents.  Given the nature of this significant technical issue and the timing of your planned travel, you will need to change your travel itinerary as we do not know when our systems will be restored.

If you require your passport back for other travel during this time, please let us know at and we will make those arrangements.

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Applicants requesting an appointment for an interview

We understand you have upcoming planned travel and would like to schedule your interview as soon as possible.  However, due to ongoing technical issues, we are not able to accept and process visa applications at this time.  For this reason, no appointments are currently available before July 7.

To schedule an appointment, applicants should log on to http://usvisa-info.com and follow the online instructions carefully.  Once you have scheduled an appointment, you will be able to select “Request Expedite”.   Once the technical problems have been resolved, these requests will be reviewed.  If there is an earlier time available, you will receive an email with a new appointment date and time.

Please remember, do not make non-refundable travel plans before receiving the necessary travel documents.