Last year, the US issued over 1,40,000 student visas to Indian students as part of the Biden administration's effort to foster people-to-people links with India. The US is also adopting other measures to decrease the wait duration for visa appointments.
The US missions in India were open all day, every day to ensure that students could be interviewed prior to the start of school, according to Julie Stufft, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Visa Services, who spoke with PTI.
The US made a significant effort this year to focus on demand from India, she said.
What we accomplished in India this year is something of which we are really proud. I believe this is the first time in history that we have ever planned to issue one million visas in India—and we have done it months in advance. That means the total will be substantially higher.
"There are record-setting numbers this year for workers, crew members and students applying in India to come to the United States," according to her.
According to Stufft, they took extra precautions to ensure that no students from India were among those applying. Along with numerous other types of visas, India is currently the leading source country for international students studying in the US. For us, that is of the utmost importance. There have been numerous instances where the interview was waived, meaning that Indian travelers returning to the US from abroad do not need to undergo an interview.
According to her, last year, the United States granted more than 1,40,000 student visas to individuals from India.
Missions in India have been working around the clock to interview students in order to ensure that everyone may be interviewed before classes begin, which is the most important thing for students applying there. Visa procedures reflect the seriousness with which we approach the admission of Indian students to the United States. "Our goal is to guarantee that opportunity to all," she stated.
According to Stufft, the United States is now implementing a number of measures to alleviate the somewhat long wait times for visa appointments in India.
It is my sincere wish that it will be lowered this year, specifically our fiscal year. However, in order to control the wait time and dispatch cops as needed, we are deploying a large number of officers to India. "It has improved significantly, but it still needs to decrease significantly," she stated.
Not long ago, we went on a state visit. Building stronger connections between our two nations' citizens is a top priority for the entire administration, including the president, ambassador Garcetti, and the secretary of state. As part of the visa procedure, we are implementing it. Because of this, Stufft assured PTI that future developments will be more numerous and the process will be substantially faster.
The State Department official emphasized the urgency of applying for a US visa for anyone planning a trip to the US.
There is an other route you can take if your trip is strictly business-related. Business visas are also given priority through a specific method. As we work through this, I ask that you please be patient with us.
When compared to other countries, India stands out due to the sheer volume of visas it receives. Guests, students, and members of maritime crews are not the only ones who require highly skilled labor. There is, in fact, an enormous demand for our services worldwide. She emphasized that reducing wait times was their top aim.
According to Stufft, who spoke at a media round table with a group of international journalists hosted by the Foreign Press Centre, the United States has issued over 10.5 million visas this year—2 million more than expected and nearly reaching an all-time record at its foreign missions.
About half of our foreign embassies and consulates establish local standards for the processing of visa applications. In addition to setting records in certain other categories, we set records for visa adjudication, work visas, and student visas, she added.
According to Stufft, the United States is still putting a lot of effort on lowering wait times for 2024.
For one type of visa—one that requires an interview—in certain foreign countries, we still have extremely long wait times, sometimes surpassing a year. This category includes first-time visitors.
We are really interested in the first-time visitor interview wait times, as we have set records for visa production this year in many places where the wait times are still very high. All other categories have low wait times globally, but that is where our focus is. According to her, this simply means that demand is really high, and this year they intend to finally bring the five or six locations with the longest wait periods under control.
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