US Opens Up More Appointment Slots For Some Visa Applicants

“We’ve opened a number of B1/B2 interview waiver appointments for the coming month in Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai,” the U.S. Embassy India said in a tweet on Monday.
ReutersThe United States has announced the opening of new slots for B1/B2 visa applicants, who are eligible for interview waivers.

“We’ve opened a number of B1/B2 interview waiver appointments for the coming month in Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai,” the U.S. Embassy India said in a tweet on Monday.

> Looking for a B1/B2 interview waiver (dropbox) visa appointment? Good news! We’ve opened a number of B1/B2 intervie… /E6hVlFHWg7

— U.S. Embassy India (@USAndIndia) The current wait time for an appointment for B1/B2 interview waiver appointments is 233 days in Delhi, 297 in Mumbai and 171 days in Chennai.

Applicants an opt for the interview waiver program if they are renewing any visa (including B1/B2 visas) within 48 months of expiration.

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For first-time applicants for the US’ business (B-1) and tourist (B-2) visas, wait time has touched almost three years, for those not applicable for interview waivers.

The US State Department on Tuesday said the “the global median wait time for a tourist visa (B1/B2) interview appointment is under two months as of this month.”

To address the growing backlog, the US has made more applicants eligible for interview waiver, sending drop box cases abroad for adjudication and getting temporary staffers.

While students get top priority in admission season, next on the list is expediting drop box cases for skilled workers, repeat B1/B2 visa seekers (whose visas expired within four years of application that now makes them eligible for interview waiver) and crew. It could possibly be several months before the interview wait time for B1/B2 starts dropping.

The United States expects the processing times to rebound faster than projected and expects it to reach pre-pandemic levels in Fiscal Year 2023.

ET Online
( Originally published on Nov 28, 2022 )

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