The US Consulate in Frankfurt has taken measures to handle the rising backlog of visa functions from Indian nationals by allocating non-immigrant visa interview appointments particularly for Indian candidates. The transfer goals to alleviate the extended wait occasions which have been a explanation for concern for a lot of Indian travellers.
Currently, the wait occasions for visa interview appointments for guests pursuing enterprise (B1) and vacationer (B2) visas in India differ, starting from 15 to twenty months. This prolonged ready interval, exacerbated by a rising variety of candidates, has posed substantial challenges for Indian residents planning journeys to the United States for both enterprise or leisure functions.
Notably, the ready interval for a B1/B2 interview appointment varies by state inside India. In stark distinction, the US Consulate in Frankfurt, Germany, boasts an astonishingly brief wait time of solely three days.
In particular phrases, the ready interval in Kolkata stands at a staggering 607 days, adopted by 571 days in Mumbai, 486 days in Chennai, and 441 days in Hyderabad. The effectivity of the US Consulate in Frankfurt is clear with its mere three-day ready interval.
The main cause behind the prolonged wait occasions in India could be attributed to the hovering demand for US visas amongst Indian nationals. The United States stays a extremely sought-after vacation spot for Indian travellers, each for enterprise ventures and tourism. However, the variety of out there visa interview slots at US consulates and embassies throughout India stays restricted.
As a measure to alleviate the backlog, Indian candidates had been allowed to use for US visas at consulates overseas, reminiscent of Bangkok, final 12 months. The backlog has been regularly diminished by a collection of phases after experiencing a virtually threefold enhance in the course of the previous winter.
In addition to the backlog, Indian candidates have encountered challenges related to a brand new platform for scheduling non-immigrant visa interview appointments. A spokesperson from the US embassy assured that the federal government is diligently working to handle these points promptly.
The US mission in India has already granted over 3.3 lakh petition-based short-term employment visas because the starting of the fiscal 12 months, marking a exceptional 71 per cent enhance in comparison with the identical interval in 2019.
According to a US embassy official, the ready occasions for all non-immigrant visa classes in India are actually corresponding to pre-pandemic ranges. “We have significantly increased the number of visas issued across the board. Waiting times for travelers who do not require an interview are very low,” mentioned the official as quoted by Business Today.
Meanwhile, the US embassy is actively monitoring experiences of technical challenges related to the non-immigrant visa appointment web site and has pledged to resolve these points expeditiously.
Edited By:
Vadapalli Nithin Kumar
Published On:
Sep 17, 2023
