'Flagged Concerns To US': MEA On Indians Facing H-1B Visa Delays
Randhir Jaiswal said the government of India remains "actively engaged with the US side to minimise the disruptions caused to our nationals".
The government has flagged issues regarding delay in processing of H-1B visas for Indian nationals with the United States, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Friday.
As per reports, pre-scheduled interviews of thousands of H-1B visa applicants scheduled for later this month in India have been abruptly postponed by several months.
Moreover, the US has announced that it is expanding the online presence reviews to all H-1B and H-4 applicants as part of its standard visa screening, and the social media vetting is being conducted globally for "all applicants of all nationalities" for the two visa categories.
"The government of India has received several representations from Indian nationals who are facing problems with their rescheduling of their visa appointments," MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told reporters in New Delhi.
"Visa related issues pertain to the sovereign domain of any country, we have flagged these issues and our concerns to the US side, both here in New Delhi and in Washington, DC," he said.
Noting that many Indian professionals and their families have faced hardships due to the visa process, Jaiswal said the government of India remains "actively engaged with the US side to minimise the disruptions caused to our nationals".
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The H-1B visa programme is used extensively by US technology companies to employ foreign workers. Indians form the largest group of H-1B visa holders.
The Trump administration has cracked down on both legal and illegal immigration since the President's return to office in January.
Thousands of Indian immigrants are experiencing significant visa delays following new US policy changes. All applicants with interviews originally scheduled from Dec. 15 onward are being rescheduled, causing widespread disruption.
The mass cancellation of H-1B visa interviews, prompted by enhanced vetting measures, is expected to create major delays for workers returning to the US. Many applicants who had already traveled to India now find themselves unable to return, as they lack a valid H-1B visa for re-entry.
For instance, candidates with interviews set for Dec. 15 received emails postponing their appointments to March, while those scheduled for Dec. 19 were given new dates in late May.
