With US set to issue 100,000 visas every month, Indians’ visa woes may soon be history
With news coming out from US Consulates that visa wait times are likely to go down by mid 2023, many Indians with families in the US have heaved a sigh of relief.
Mumbai based Bhauguna family says that they can finally hope to see their extended family in the US. Navya Bhauguna, a marketing professional says, “My sister is settled in the US and it likely looks that I would be able to meet my nieces finally.
Read: US opens 100,000 work visa appointment slots for Indians (October 15, 2022)
“With the visa waits going up to 12 months it looked as if a US trip would be a distant possibility. Now we can safely say that the fall 2023 trip to the US can be worked around.”
India was probably the worst affected country when travel resumed post Covid. As soon as the flights resumed and people began looking at the possibility of travel, there was a shock awaiting Indians as there were hardly any slots available for both work as well as visitor visas.
Nitin Patel, a software professional based in Atlanta says, “Before Covid my parents would come visit us during summer months but then their visas expired and it looked impossible to get an extension. We are hopeful that things look brighter in the coming year.”
According to reports the waiting period for American visas is expected to see a significant fall by summer of 2023 and the number of visa applications is projected to reach around 1.2 million, according to media reports citing a senior official of the US embassy in New Delhi.
Read: Things to keep in mind when buying travel insurance for US (June 4, 2022)
With things easing out for visit visa, many students looking at spring and fall semesters in the US, are also hopeful of easy travel to the US.
Drish Dham, a student of broadcast journalism in Delhi says, “My elder sister’s friends travelled to the US as they secured admissions in Universities in California but they had a nightmarish situation looking for slots. Hopefully when I begin applying for colleges, I will be saved from a similar situation.”
With reports suggesting that consulates are planning to release up to 100,000 visas every month, Indians are positive that those days of visa woes will soon be history.