Skift India Daily: U.S. Visa Wait Times in Some Indian Consulates Drop Below 1 Year
Photo Credit: India ranks sixth among the top source markets for the U.S. Unsplash / Chuttersnap
Skift Take
Brand USA's recent sales mission in India and the US Consulate's all-hands-on-deck approach to reduce visa wait times surely highlight the importance of India as a source market. But a waiting period of almost eight months for visas is still an incredible test of patience.
Reducing visa delays has been a priority for the U.S. consulates in India as wait times for visitor visas has gone down from more than 600 days to 247 days in New Delhi, 332 days in Mumbai, 357 days in Kolkata, while in Chennai the wait is still around 680 days. Skift had earlier reported about how the U.S. Consulate in India had been taking an all-hands-on-deck approach to reduce visa wait times. India ranks sixth among the top source markets for the U.S, said Jackie Ennis, vice president, global markets for Brand USA. A total of 1.25 million arrivals were registered from India in 2022. The latest figures in February revealed that 203,540 Indians travelled to the U.S. so far between January and February. In 2019, Indian travelers spent $16.5 billion in the U.S. The destination marketeer for the U.S. — Brand USA conducted its 2023 India Sales Mission in Mumbai and Delhi last week. Speaking at the event Ennis spoke about how the air connectivity between the two countries has been
