In an effort to reduce the unbelievably long visa wait times, the US has made more visa applicants eligible for interview waivers in some countries.
Persecondnews.com gathered that for the first time the US will send some of these “drop box” applications from countries like India abroad for adjudication.
Recently, the US mission in Nigeria launched the No-Interview Renewals process, a new visa application procedure aimed at expanding services to assist non-immigrant visa applicants in the country to qualify them for visa renewals.
According to a senior official at the US Embassy in India, anyone who has previously obtained a US visa will be eligible for a visa interview waiver for student, business, and tourist visas.
In addition, applicants with B1 and B2 visas that have expired within the last four years are eligible for a visa waiver.
This will allow the consulate staff in India, which is gradually being increased, to address the massive backlog, as the appointment waiting period for first-time B1 (business)/B2 (tourism) visa applicants in Mumbai is just under 1,000 days, at 975.
Aside from removing the requirement for in-person interviews for certain categories of applicants for student and other visas, the US embassy is increasing staff and sending dropbox cases to other locations to reduce wait times.
According to a US Embassy official, the wait time has already been reduced from 450 days to around nine months.
India is the third-largest country regarding the total number of US visas granted annually. Mexico and China are listed in the top two positions. In terms of the number of US visas, India is anticipated to overtake China and move up to the second spot. Nigeria is the number one in Africa.
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