US Visa Progress in India Results in 50 Percent Reduction in Applicant Wait Times

by Mia Taylor
Last updated: 2:30 PM ET, Tue April 18, 2023

United States, State Department, US, visa, application, processing

The wait time to obtain a U.S. visitor visa for applicants in India has declined dramatically in recent weeks—from an average of 669 days to just 337 days as of early April.

This is important news because India represents a top source of visitors to the United States, according to the U.S. Travel Association. The news also comes at a time when the travel industry organization has been calling on the State Department to improve U.S. visitor visa processing in countries around the world.

“The results we’re seeing in India are proof that—with the right tools—State can make significant progress on this issue,” U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Geoff Freeman said in a statement. “However, there is clearly more work ahead to lower wait times worldwide.”

According to the U.S. Travel Association other important source markets for the United States continue to face significant visa wait times. This includes Brazil, Mexico and Columbia, where wait times are 511 days, 590 days and 752 days, respectively, as of April 14.

The U.S. Travel Association says the United States is losing its competitive edge as a result of the lengthy visa wait times. It points to a variety of data on this front. In particular, inbound travel was once the United States’ top services export, one that generated a trade surplus at its height in 2015 of $86 billion. Fast forward to 2022, and the travel’s surplus has declined to just $3 billion.

In addition, according to U.S. Travel Association, the United States continues to “put up barriers in the form of excessive visitor visa wait times.” This, in turn, results in travelers opting to visit more accessible destinations.

Among the top 10 inbound markets whose citizens require tourist visas to visit the U.S., six—Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Argentina, Israel and Venezuela—can travel visa-free to the European Union, five can travel without visas to the United Kingdom, and two can travel without visas to Canada.

The organization would like to see measures such as surging consulate staffing and expanded operating hours (to include Saturday hours) implemented in order to facilitate more timely visitor U.S. visa processing.

“No one will wait years for a visa to visit the U.S. when so many other countries welcome global travelers with open arms,” said Freeman. “The State Department must continue to make international visitors an economic priority before we lose them to other destinations.”

In March, the U.S. Travel Association worked with a bipartisan group of 44 mayors and officials representing American cities and counties to send a letter to the government asking for the reduction of visitor visa interview wait times. The group's joint letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that visitor visa interview wait times "persistently remain above 400 days for would-be travelers from key international inbound markets."

Among the letter signees were mayors of New York, Chicago, Phoenix, Philadelphia, Dallas, Las Vegas, Charlotte, San Francisco, Seattle, Nashville, New Orleans and Orlando. Los Angeles City Council also passed a motion recommending federal policy changes to reduce visitor visa interview wait times.

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