Aiming to curtail the delays in visa processing, the US embassy in India today announced that Indians who are planning to travel abroad can now get a visa appointment at consulates in those respective countries.
Casting the example of Thailand, the embassy said that this island nation has opened B1/B2 appointment capacity for Indians who will be in the country in the coming months. It is pertinent to mention that the waiting period in Bangkok for B1/B2 interviews is just 14 days.
Do you have upcoming international travel? If so, you may be able to get a visa appointment at the U.S. Embassy or Consulate in your destination. For example, @USEmbassyBKK has opened B1/B2 appointment capacity for Indians who will be in Thailand in the coming months. pic.twitter.com/tjunlBqeYu
— U.S. Embassy India (@USAndIndia) February 3, 2023
The US embassy in one of its tweets said, "Do you have upcoming international travel? If so, you may be If so, you may be able to get a visa appointment at the U.S. Embassy or Consulate in your destination. For example, @USEmbassyBKK has opened B1/B2 appointment capacity for Indians who will be in Thailand in the coming months.”
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Last month itself the embassy launched a slew of new initiatives, including scheduling special interviews for first-time applicants and increasing the strength of consular staff, to curtail the visa processing delays. The mission also began conducting interviews on select Saturdays.
Apart from this, the US State Department has also implemented remote processing of interview waiver cases for applicants with previous visas.
The concerns are rising over long waiting periods for the applicants who are applying for visas for the first time. The waiting period for first-time B1/B2 visa applicants in India was close to three years in October last year.
While the wait time for a student visa (F-1) has stabilised to about 90 days, business and tourist visas (B-1, B-2) wait times remain high, reaching almost two years in most consulates around the country.