Summary:
- U.S. visa wait times for Indian applicants are falling, the State Department’s data showed.
- New Delhi and Chennai have the shortest appointments.
- Wait times are calculated in 30-day cycles, including weekends and holidays.
U.S. VISA APPOINTMENT wait times for Indian applicants are falling, according to data from the U.S. State Department’s Global Visa Wait Times portal. New Delhi and Chennai now show shorter waits for student, work and visitor visas.
Indian applicants traveling to the U.S. for study, work or tourism may face different wait times depending on the consulate they use, according to the Economic Times.
Appointment backlogs for student F, M and J visas; work H, L, O, P and Q visas; and visitor B1/B2 visas vary across major Indian cities, including New Delhi, Chennai, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Kolkata, with several locations reporting shorter waits than in previous months, the Times reported, citing the State Department’s portal.
New Delhi now shows next appointments for F, M and J visas at 0.5 months, down from two months earlier, the Times reported. H, L, O, P and Q visas have a one-month wait. B1/B2 applicants face a 3.5-month wait, down from 6.5 months.
Chennai also shows reduced delays, the Times reported. While the B1/B2 average wait is listed as “N/A,” interview-required visas have a next available slot at three months, an improvement from earlier backlogs.
Wait-time calculations use 30-day cycles and include weekends and holidays, according to the State Department. It said consulates release new appointment slots frequently and that applicants can move to an earlier date by checking the scheduling system. It also said average wait times reflect past applications and do not guarantee interview dates.
Meanwhile, U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, who is of Indian origin, recently reintroduced the HIRE Act to raise the H-1B cap to 130,000 amid new fraud allegations.
