US issues record-breaking 140,000 visas to Indian students in a year

DOGRA HERALD BUREAU
NEW DELHI, Nov 29
In the past one year from October 2022 to September 2023, the US Embassy and its consulate in India have issued record-high visas to over 140,000 students.
“Our embassy and consulates in India issued an all-time record of more than 140,000 student visas,” the US State Department announced on Tuesday.
“From October 2022 through September 2023 (the 2023 federal fiscal year), the Department of State issued a near-record level of nonimmigrant visas of more than 10 million globally,” The US State Department said.
The department said that it issued nearly eight million visitor visas for business and tourism purposes, adding that issuance was more than in any fiscal year since 2015. Notably, half of the US embassies and consulates adjudicated an unprecedented volume of nonimmigrant visas.
According to reports, the US embassy and consulates issued “more than 600,000 student visas, the highest in any year since Fiscal Year 2017”.
According to the US State Department, one of the reasons behind the high number of visa issues, was the expansion of interview waiver authorities, which ensure frequent travellers adhering to national security standards get their visas renewed without embassy or consulate visit.
“Looking to the future, we are exploring new technologies to assess opportunities to streamline operations, such as the option of domestic renewal in select visa categories,” it added.
In the previous month, the US Mission to India not only achieved but exceeded its target for processing one million non-immigrant visa applications in 2023.
According to a statement from the US Embassy and Consulates in India, more than 1.2 million Indians visited the US last year, establishing it as one of the strongest travel relationships globally.
“Indians now represent over 10 per cent of all visa applicants worldwide, including 20 per cent of all student visa applicants and 65 per cent of all H&L-category (employment) visa applicants. The United States welcomes this growth,” the statement said.
Earlier this month, US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti visited the US mission in the national capital to oversee the “unprecedented demand” for US visitor visas among the Indians.
The US Embassy said that Garcetti was the special guest helping the extra visa applicants on “Super Saturday”.