Mon Sep 08 07:43:20 UTC 2025: **US Tightens Visa Rules, Requiring Applicants to Apply in Home Country**

Washington D.C. – The U.S. State Department has implemented a new policy effective immediately, requiring all non-immigrant visa (NIV) applicants, including Indian citizens, to schedule visa interview appointments at a U.S. embassy or consulate within their country of citizenship or legal residence. This move effectively ends the practice of applicants seeking faster interview slots in neighboring countries.

The State Department released a statement Saturday announcing the global implementation of the new directive. The rule aims to streamline the application process and address backlogs exacerbated by the pandemic.

Previously, applicants, especially those from India, would travel to countries like Singapore, Thailand, or Germany to secure earlier interview appointments for B1 (business) or B2 (tourism) visas. This workaround is now restricted, except in limited circumstances where the U.S. government doesn’t conduct routine NIV operations, such as in Afghanistan, Cuba, Chad, Russia, and Iran. Nationals of those countries, or those residing there, can apply at designated embassies or consulates.

Industry experts predict the new policy may worsen existing visa backlogs within India. Wait times for interviews in India currently range from 3.5 months in Hyderabad and Mumbai to as long as nine months in Chennai. The surge in applications following the COVID-19 pandemic, combined with the recent termination of the Interview Waiver Program (Dropbox) on September 2nd, which now requires in-person interviews for most NIV categories (including H, L, F, M, J, E, and O visas, even for those over 79 and under 14), is expected to put further strain on the system. The old rules allowed Indian tourists, in particular, to bypass lengthy domestic delays by arranging interviews in other countries. During the COVID-19 pandemic the waiting period reached three years.

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