From September 2, US visa interview waiver only in special cases

The US has additional tightened its non-immigrant visa norms, together with situations for interview waivers. From Sept 2, all non-immigrant visa candidates, together with candidates underneath 14 and people over 79, “will generally require an in-person interview with a consular officer”, barring a couple of exceptions, the US state dept mentioned in a July 25 replace.One exception consists of “applicants renewing a full validity B-1, B-2, B1/B2 visa… within 12 months of the prior visa’s expiration, and who were at least 18 years old at the time of the prior visa’s issuance”. “To be eligible for an interview waiver (applicants renewing a full validity B-1, B-2, B1/B2 visa), applicants must also meet certain criteria, including that they (a) apply in their country of nationality or residence, (b) have never been refused a visa (unless such refusal was overcome or waived), and have no apparent or potential ineligibility,” the replace says.In-person interviews should still be held on a case-by-case foundation: US “Consular officers may still require in-person interviews on a case-by-case basis for any reason,” the US state division replace says.Soon into President Donald Trump’s second time period in workplace, the US had this Feb reverted to the pre-Covid interview waiver situation of a identical class visa expiring inside 12 months of making use of for a similar.In Nov 2022, when the wait time for B1/B2 (enterprise and tourism visa) interview in India had crossed 999 days (touching virtually three years), the US had elevated the eligibility for identical class drop field visa renewal – which doesn’t require an interview – from 12 months to 48 months.As of now, the state dept web site exhibits the B1/B2 common interview wait time is 14 months in Chennai, 9.5 months in Mumbai; 8 months in Delhi, and 6 months in Kolkata. “Applicants should check embassy and consulate websites for more detailed information about visa application requirements and procedures, and to learn more about the embassy or consulate’s operating status and services,” the July 25 replace provides.