The US Announces New Time Slots In India For B1/B2 Visa Categories

Since long plenty of candidates were waiting for updates from the US Embassy regarding interview time slots, and appointment availability. However, last month on 23 November the news came that US Visa interview time goes up to almost 1000 days for the B1 and B2 visa applicants due to the lack of staff shortage in India.

On the other side, the US consulate come again on 29 November with the solution. As per the recent announcement, the USA embassy is opening more visa slots for Indian applicants who wish to apply for the B1/B2 visa categories. This good news is for those candidates who are eligible for interview waivers. The US Embassy in India tweeted the last Monday about the same.

Previous Time Slots

As per the US State Department’s website, the below given time slots were available previously.

Updated Time Slots

The new time slots are available at the given below embassies. And the updated appointment waiting time is as per below.

Highlights of the Update

• The time slots are about to open for the applicants who are eligible for the interview waiver in the upcoming months.
• The change applies to the candidates who have applied for the visa renewal within 48 months of expiration.
• As per the global average waiting for the time for the B1 (Business visa) and B2 (Tourist visa) appointments is 2 months from November 2022.
• Candidates who are first-time applicants for the Business – B-1 and Tourist – B-2 visas need to wait for at least three years. Moreover, these candidates are not applicable for an interview waiver.
• On the other end, as per the US State Department, the global median wait time for both visa categories the Business – B-1 and Tourist – B-2 visas are limited to under two months from this month.
• As the backlog of applications is growing the country has made more and more applicants get the benefit of an interview waiver. On the other end, the authorities are sending the drop box cases abroad for adjudication. Also, the extra temporary staff hiring is going as well.
• Students are no doubt getting the higher priority due to admission season. Second priority is given to the skilled workers, repeat B1/B2 visa seekers and crew.