US State Secretary Antony Blinked Affirms Plan to Address Indians Visa Application Backlogs

In a discussion with the Indian foreign minister, US State Secretary Antony Blinken declares that the US has plans to address Indian concerns about US visas and that they will be enacted in the coming days

In his statement on Tuesday, US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, blamed the COVID-19 pandemic for the visa application backlog from Indian nationals and affirmed that the United States had a strategy to address the issue. The comments were made as he met with Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyan Jaishankar. The two officials discussed the challenges Indians face in receiving visas to work and live in the United States.

The US visa services are still trying to clear a backlog after Washington halted almost every visa processing worldwide in March 2020 due to the pandemic. Although other nationalities are also affected, Indians make up many recipients of H-18 and other work visas granted to talented foreign workers, many in the tech industry. Blinken did not disclose the details of their plan but asserted that it would come into practice shortly.

In addition, US visa applicants in India witness long wait times for appointments, sometimes extending even to a year or more. The US embassy in India stated that while visa appointments were open for all categories, there was a significant increase in wait times due to high demand. The visa backlog has affected many families, separating them for extended periods, with few using social media to express their situation and issues.

While briefing the conditions with Blinken, Jaishankar noted that mobility visas are crucial as they play a central role in education, business, technology, and family reunions. He also added that he had expressed the challenges of late to Secretary Blinken and his team and believes they will scrutinize these problems seriously and positively.

On the other hand, Blinken opined that he was susceptible to the issue. The US capacity to distribute visas dropped drastically during the pandemic outbreak, and the demand for visas fell, visa fees increased, and the whole system suffered adversely.