US to issue one million visas to Indians this year

Almost a month after opening up visa slots for Indian citizens over the weekends, the United States has now announced that it will issue visas to one million Indians this year.

"The US Mission has already processed more than two lakh applications at our Embassy and Consulates in India and we're on track to hit our goal of processing more than one million non-immigrant visa applications in 2023," a spokesperson from the US Embassy in New Delhi told The Indian Express.

In 2022, the US Department of State processed around nine million non-immigrant visa applications worldwide, according to the Embassy.

The non-immigrant visa categories include those for business, travel, students visas and crew visas.

To achieve the target, the Embassy is adding more staff, expanding the scope of drop-box facilities and opening up interview slots over the weekend to smoothen the process for Indian citizens. The waiting time for visas has already decreased significantly.

In January, the US embassy opened up special interview slots on Saturdays for faster processing of visas for first-time applicants, in what it called a "multi-pronged initiative" to address the backlog in processing of visa applications due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The US mission, which has offices in Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata and Hyderabad besides the national capital, has also increased the strength of its consular staff, it said in a statement.

"The one million visa plan is an India-specific effort, to further strengthen the people-to-people ties between the two countries," says the Embassy spokesperson.

For Indian citizens seeking a US visa, the purview of the interview waiver was also expanded recently.

The drop-box facility, which is used to renew a US visa without having to go through the interview, is now applicable to various categories, including student visas, business and tourist visas, and skilled worker visas.

The department is also increasing the number of consular officers permanently assigned to the embassy and consulates.

"By the summer, the US mission in India will reach its full strength and we expect to process visas at pre-Covid levels," the department said.

While addressing the media in Washington a couple of weeks ago, Deputy Assistant Secretary for visa services in the Bureau of Consular Affairs, Julie Stufft, had said, "India is the number one priority now."

She added, "So far this year, we have issued 36 percent more visas than we did before the COVID-19 pandemic in India. And that is a huge percentage of progress."

Last month, the US Embassy in India said Indians who are travelling abroad can get a visa appointment at the US Embassy or consulate of their destination. It cited the example of Thailand, saying that the country has opened appointment capacity for B1 and B2 visas (business and travel) for Indians.