Caption
Visa application process for Indian students to be simplified: US embassy
The students who have previously held a US visa, will now have the luxury to skip the interview round for the US visa.
(US Embassy is trying to make the visa process easier for Indian students.)
The United States (USA) Embassy is taking several steps to simplify the visa application process for Indian students. One of those measures is waiving the round of interviews for those who previously held US visas, said Patricia Lacina, chargé d'affaires at the US embassy. This announcement was made to coincide with Student Visa Day.
“The United States values international students and their rich contributions to our academic institutions, campuses, and communities. This is especially true for India; In fact, Indians represent the second-largest group of international students in the US. Student mobility and the people-to-people connections it creates have been a cornerstone of US-India relations for the past 75 years and remain so today. The Best Proof of the Importance of Academic Exchanges How the US Mission to India continues to prioritize students for visa interviews. Our consular staff work hard to interview student visa applicants across India. Despite the Covid-19 pandemic, Mission India issued more student visas in 2021 than ever before,” said Lacina.
“This summer time season we're looking forward to any other document breaking scholar season. We have opened tens of hundreds of visa appointments and elevated our interview waiver alternatives for college students. Under new visa guidelines, college students who've formerly held any US visa can practice the use of the drop field carrier to pass the in-character interview. This is simply one of the many steps we're taking,” she added.
Don Heflin, the Minister Counselor for Consular Affairs in India additionally addressed the media concerning the nice reaction withinside the variety of scholar programs this summer time season. “We will interview greater candidates for scholar visas this summer time season, than we ever have before. We wish very an awful lot to exceed final year’s document of 62,000 visa issuances to Indian college students. We will interview over 3000 college students nowadays throughout consulates in India. In New Delhi, we can interview 1300 college students, 1300 in Mumbai and different 3 consulates — Hyderabad, Chennai and Kolkata — will push us over to 3000 in total,” Heflin said.
On the Embassy’s preparedness to ensure that application process remains seamless keeping the pandemic in mind Heflin said that all necessary precautions are being observed. “All Applicants are required to wear masks. The intake personnel taking them in are also wearing masks, as are our other officials,” he said.
When asked about the impact of the pandemic on the visa application process this summer, Heflin said: "Last year we had the right number of applicants compared to the pre-Covid years. But we're seeing an increase in interest this year," he added. The increase in student visa applications is a combination of factors including the state of the Indian economy and the pent-up demand in 2020-2021.
You must be logged in to post a comment.