US waives in-person interviews till December 31

Washington: The US has waived off in-person interview requirements for many visa applicants in the country through December 31 of this year. According to a senior American diplomat, the applicants eligible for the waiver are--students (F, M, and academic J visas), workers (H1, H2, H3, and individual L visas), Culture, and extraordinary ability (O, P, and Q visas).

"This is much-needed support to visa applicants. This would be very helpful to our friends and immediate family members and remove a lot of their concerns and remove inconveniences," Ajay Jain Bhutoria, South Asian Community Leader and US President Joe Biden's Advisor for Asian Americans said.

To be eligible for the expanded interview waiver programme, applicants seeking these visa classifications must have previously been issued any category of US visa; have never been refused a US visa, and do not indicate ineligibility or potential visa ineligibility. They also need to be a resident or national of the country in which they are applying; among others, the State Department said.

The US embassy in New Delhi and its consulates in Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, and Mumbai will release more than 20,000 additional waivers (dropbox) appointments for Spring 2022 to allow qualified applicants to make use of the new interview waiver authority.