Feb 15, 2023
With an aim to curb the enormous backlog of USA visas, the US Embassy and Consulates in India are preparing to process a record number of visas for Indians in the year 2023. This is a piece of great news for all the USA Visa applicants who are waiting for their visas.
This latest declaration was announced a few days after the US launched new initiatives to cut delays in visa processing in India.
In a recent talk with the PTI, John Ballard the Mumbai Consular Chief said, “Last year, we adjudicated over 8,00,000 total visa adjudications and we are almost up to our pre-pandemic level, which we expect to surpass in 2023.”
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the wait time for a US Visa interview has hit a record high. This has left numerous Indians in a state of dilemma, especially the ones who were students or job seekers.
Working on the issue raised by the Ministry of External Affairs of India for visa delays, the US authorities are working to speed up the visa issuing for all categories.
For visa renewals, applicants can send their applications for visa renewal by email. To further speed up the visa processing, consulates in Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, and Hyderabad were open on the 3rd Saturday of January 2023, and this will continue on select Saturdays in February and March as well. This will open additional slots for interviews and help to curb the existing visa backlog, especially the ones that happened because of the pandemic. Many temporary consular officers from other embassies are expected to come to India between January and March 2023 to work on visa processing. |
Looking at the initiatives by the US Embassy and Consulates to reduce the backlogs, it is highly possible for them to surpass the previous visa processing records. So, if you are looking forward to study in the USA, now is the right time to initiate your university applications.
Reach out to the USA counselors at KC Overseas Education for further information and end-to-end assistance for application, admission, and visa processing.