Fresh US State Department data released on 18 June but analysed on 2 July show visitor-visa interview wait times at Mumbai and Hyderabad consulates have crept up to 290 days—among the longest globally. New Delhi applicants face 225 days, while Chennai averages 165 days. Kolkata is the outlier at 120 days. The surge comes despite expanded staffing and weekend interview drives earlier this year. Travel consultancies are advising Indian executives to plan US trips at least a year out, or explore National Interest Waivers and conference-waiver categories where applicable. Family travellers are booking “visa-first, ticket-later,” reversing the traditional planning sequence. Employers relocating staff on L-1 or H-1B petitions are largely unaffected, but business visitors attending training or due-diligence meetings face serious hurdles. Some multinational firms now reroute short-term meetings to Dubai or Singapore to avoid US delays. The US Embassy reminds applicants that interview-waiver programmes exist for renewals within 48 months of expiry, yet appointment slots for drop-box submissions also fill quickly in metro locations. The queue spike raises pressure on the planned $750 premium-interview pilot scheme slated for later this year, which would allow fee-paying applicants to access unreleased appointment batches.
Source: Indian Eagle Travel Diary
