Kolkata: The United States seems to have changed eligibility rules for Visa Interview Waiver, which could pave the way for a longer wait for those seeking visa to visit the US as tourists and for work on H1B. This facility of interview waiver is popularly often referred to as dropbox facility. The new rules are believed to have already come into effect and according to the new rule, visa applicants can use the facility if they are applying for renewing a visa in the same nonimmigrant category which expired in past 12 months in place of the 48 months that was being followed in the past few years.
Simply put, the new rules are drastically reducing the time window by one-fourth and would adversely impact nonimmigrant visa holders including H-1B and applicants for B1/B2 category. However, according to reports, no formal announcement has been made so far. The National law Review has said that Visa Application Centers are already declining applicants who fail to meet the new criteria.
Long queues for US visa
The shrinking of the dropbox window has come at a time when the appointment period in different visa centres of the US are unusually lengthy. The wait is more than 400 days everywhere — more than 440 days in New Delhi and Mumbai, 436 days in Chennai, 429 days in Hyderabad and 415 days in Kolkata which is the shortest. Incidentally, the US government stretched the dropbox facility to 48 months in 2022, when the waiting period for B1/B2 visa interview rose to more 1,000 days.
What changed and what applicants can do
According to the post 2022 practice, if any applicant had a visa that expired in the past 48 months could try to renew visa through dropbox facility without personal interview. But now only those who visa has expired in the past 12 months can do so. This would mean longer personal interview queues. Experts are saying that one should plan for delays and longer time for visa processing. H-1B visa holders could perhaps attempt premium processing for extensions.
A tweak in the US visa interview waiver rules is paving the way for a longer, and presumably more frustrating, wait for those seeking tourist visa and H1B visa for the US. It also marks a return to visa rules in the pre-pandemic era. Biz News Business News – Personal Finance News, Share Market News, BSE/NSE News, Stock Exchange News Today
