US on track to issue more than a million visas to Indians this year: Official

The US is on track to issue more than a million visas to Indians this year a senior official has said assuring that the Biden administration is committed this summer to make sure it processes all of the student visas for Indians whose school starts this fallUS Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Donald Lu also told PTI in an interview this week that they are also prioritising work visas H1Bs and L visas the most soughtafter by IT professionals from IndiaThe H1B visa is a nonimmigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertiseTechnology companies depend on it to hire tens of thousands of employees each year from countries like India and ChinaWe are on track to issue more than a million visas this year This is a record for us along with a record number of student visas and immigrant visas Lu saidLu said the US is committed this summer to make sure it processes all of the student visas for Indians whose school starts this fallThere have been growing concerns in India over the long waiting period for firsttime visa applicants especially for those applying under B1 business and B2 tourist categoriesAlso Read Joe Biden was paid USD 1 million a year to teach but never taught a single classIndia is now number two in the world in terms of international students coming to the United StatesWeve also been prioritising work visas H1Bs and L visas Wait times at some of our consular sections in India for these visas are now below 60 days We will continue to make sure that we prioritise visas for workers as this is vital for both the American and the Indian economy Lu saidFor certain petitionbased nonimmigrant work of visa categories we plan to restart domestic visa renewal for applicants who meet certain requirements including being physically present in the United States We plan to have a pilot up and running later this year This would eliminate the need for these applicants to travel abroad to renew their visas he saidResponding to a question on those Indian IT professionals who are on H1B visas and have lost their jobs Lu noted that the Department of Homeland Security recently put out some new information specifically on the point of what these workers ought to do who want to readjust their statusIndiaUS relationship enjoys bipartisan support in the US he saidI think part of the answer you can find in a really strong diaspora community in the US For 30 years or more our relationship is in part driven by Indian Americans who have lived here for decades but still keep a very strong tie with India he saidOver a million people fly back and forth between the two countriesThats an amazing number given that were not close at all Its very expensive to fly back and forth But those ties of people who moved here or maybe their parents come from India those ties remain They havent been cut by immigration he saidIn fact we now know that over 100000 Americans are living in India as well This relationship is very much to weigh and benefits both of us Yeah So I think thats true for political parties as it is for families in the US Growing up I had many Indian American friends I think thats just part of the fabric of the United States Lu saidThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever