ACE and a group of other higher education associations have called on the U.S. Department of State to address significant delays in processing F-1 and J-1 visa applications at U.S. consulates in India. This issue has raised concerns as the number of Indian students enrolling in U.S. higher education institutions continues to grow.In a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken, ACE President Ted Mitchell highlighted the surge in Indian student enrollments, noting a 35 percent increase in the 2022-2023 academic year.
Anticipating continued growth for the 2024-2025 academic year, the groups are urging the State Department to ensure that the influx of visa applications does not lead to significant delays. Although U.S. embassies in India started interviews earlier this year, there are still reports of students having interviews scheduled 100-200 days into the future. Such delays could result in students missing the start of their academic programs in the fall.
“We ask that the State Department and U.S. embassies take further action in India as well as in other countries that may see a surge of applicants to prioritize student visa processing during the summer months,” Mitchell wrote.
The groups have requested a briefing on how embassies plan to handle the anticipated increase in visa applications this summer.