US Visa Update: Embassy Releases Over 100,000 H and L Visa Appointments
The US embassy released over 100,000 appointments for H and L work visa categories and for their family members, the US embassy said in a tweet on Friday.
The release of the appointments was among the key assurances that the US mission in India gave after Union minister for external affairs S Jaishankar raised the visa delay issue with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in September.
“In response to the high demand for employment-based visas, the US Mission to India recently released over 100,000 appointments for H&L workers and their families,” the US Embassy said.
“Thousands of applicants have already booked their appointments and the wait time for both interview waiver and first-time appointments has been cut in half throughout Mission India. This bulk appointment opening reflects our ongoing commitment to H and L workers,” the embassy further added.
“In the first nine months of 2022, the U.S. Mission to India had already processed over 160,000 H&L visas and we will continue to prioritise H and L workers for visa appointments as resources allow,” the embassy said.
According to a report by ANI, consular officer are authorised at a temporary basis through December 31, 2022 who will waive in-person interviews for certain individual petition-based nonimmigrant work visas and their qualifying derivatives in the following categories: Persons in Specialty Occupations (H-1B visas), Trainee or Special Education Visitors (H-3 visas), Intracompany Transferees (L visas), Individuals with Extraordinary Ability or Achievement (O visas), Athletes, Artists, and Entertainers (P visas), and Participants in International Cultural Exchange Programs (Q visas), citing an US State Department release.
It said that US secretary of state Antony Blinken extended consular officers’ ability to waive the in-person interview, through December 31 this year. It has been waived for: Temporary Agricultural and Non-agricultural Workers (H-2 visas), Students (F and M visas), and Student Exchange Visitors (Academic J visas).
The release further said: “We recognize the many contributions of international visitors to our communities and campuses. Lastly, the authorization to waive the in-person interview for applicants renewing a visa in the same visa class within 48 months of the prior visa’s expiration has been extended indefinitely.”
