All You Need To Know About Cutting Down US Visa’s Waiting Period For Indians

Are you among those who are awaiting their US visa to come so that you can finally travel abroad? Then here’s some good news for you. The US embassy in India recently stated that Indians who are travelling overseas can seek a visa appointment at the US Embassy or Consulate. As we all know, the appointment waiting period for a US visa is still above 500 days in most of India, despite attempts of minimising the backlog.

Do you have upcoming international travel? If so, you may be able to get a visa appointment at the U.S. Embassy or Consulate in your destination. For example, @USEmbassyBKK has opened B1/B2 appointment capacity for Indians who will be in Thailand in the coming months. pic.twitter.com/tjunlBqeYu

— U.S. Embassy India (@USAndIndia) February 3, 2023

"Do you have upcoming international travel? If so, you may be able to get a visa appointment at the U.S. Embassy or Consulate in your destination. For example, @USEmbassyBKK has opened B1/B2 appointment capacity for Indians who will be in Thailand in the coming months," the US embassy in India tweeted.

Here Are The New Initiatives And Rules:-

1. To avoid delays in the processing of visas, the US embassy has taken additional measures, such as setting up special interviews for first-time applicants and increasing the strength of consular staff.

2. As part of a comprehensive plan to minimise the backlog of visas, the US embassies in Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, and Hyderabad also organised "special Saturday interview days" on January 21, 2023.

3. The US State Department has also implemented remote processing of interview waiver cases for applicants who have previously obtained US visas.

4. Those wishing to renew their US visa can use Dropbox to submit their application. They won't need to show up in person for another biometric evaluation since the US government already has its biometrics.

5. According to John Ballard, the consular chief at the US Consulate General in Mumbai, the US embassy and consulates anticipate receiving a record number of visa requests from Indian students this year and are thus working on a multi-pronged strategy to reduce the backlog.

6. Because there were few applicants during the Covid epidemic, several employees at US embassies had to be let go. One of the very few nations where applications for US visas increased significantly after travel restrictions relating to the coronavirus were lifted was India.

According to an official of the embassy, the US is "putting every ounce of its energy" into reducing the lengthy visa wait times in India. This includes sending a team of consular officers to the nation and making its other overseas embassies, including those in Thailand and Germany, accessible to Indian citizens seeking visas.

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