Amid growing concerns of surging COVID-19 cases, the US has announced that it will waive the in-person interview requirement for a range of visa applicants during the entire year in 2022, including for H-1B workers and students, many of whom are from India. The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise. Technology companies depend on it to hire tens of thousands of employees each year from countries like India and China.
In a huge relief for H-1B visa holders, a White House-backed bipartisan deal has been unveiled under which automatic work authorisation would be granted to about 100,000 H-4 visa holders, who are spouses and children of a certain category of H-1B visa holders. The National Security Agreement that was announced on Sunday after long negotiations between the Republican and the Democratic leadership in the US Senate also provides a solution to about 250,000 aged-out children of H-1B visa holders. The move comes as good news for hundreds and thousands of Indian technology professionals who are waiting in a painstakingly long wait for a Green Card, in the absence of which their spouses cannot work and their aged-out children face the threat of deportation.
Vice Consuls from the US Consulate General, Mumbai hosted a chat on July 10, 2009. For those of you who missed the chat, here's the unedited transcript.
Florida Atlantic University in the United States has received widespread criticism after an error in filing visa applications for 16 Indian school teachers, in the country on a cultural exchange programme, which could have led to their deportation. The university has also come under fire from the State Department for paying the experienced teachers, what they call, 'poverty' wages.
The 30-day visa-free entry is also currently enjoyed by eight ASEAN countries for the purpose of social visits, tourism and business.
US Consular Officers hosted a chat with readers to address their queries and doubts. The transcript.
Some foreign guest workers in the US will be able to re-submit their applications for the H1-B visa, the most sought-after non-immigrant visa among Indian IT professionals, if their petition was solely rejected because it was based on the initial registration period, according to a federal agency. According to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), such re-submission of applications is for those whose applications have been rejected or administratively closed solely because the requested start date was after October 1, 2020. The H-1B visa allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise.
The United States has revised the non-immigrant Machine Readable Visa (MRV) fee from $100 to $131 from January 1, 2008.
Separately, China is also processing requests of thousands of Indian students studying in Chinese universities who have conveyed their interest to re-join their colleges and universities.
A Canadian high commission spokesperson on Friday said the slashing of the size of the Indian staff was necessary given the reduction of Canadian staff in the country.
Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit has called up Anupam Kher and offered him a visa to travel to that country if he has applied for the same but the Bollywood actor declined the offer, saying he has already taken up other assignments on the scheduled dates.
The Indian High Commission in Islamabad on Monday granted visas for visiting India to two relatives of Pakistani prisoner Sanaullah Ranjay, critically injured in a scuffle with another inmate in a Jammu jail.
Under the new visa application procdure, a 96-hour visa will cost Rs 1,980.
The British High Commission in India has introduced new improved visa application facilities and procedures for applicants of Western India from February 24 with new centres at Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Pune.\n\n\n\n
Dr Arun Vakil, US visa specialist, discusses VFS web site and how to secure your dream US visa.
Visa would be dispatched within five working days, including the day of receipt and dispatch.
Visa norms for travel between India and Pakistan are expected to be made simpler within three months, a senior Pakistani official has said.The new visa policy, under discussion between the two countries, entails easier documentation process and extended validity period for both individual and group visa applicants.
David Tyler, visa chief at the consulate, said the number of applications for tourist, business and education visas had reached the pre-September 2008 level and they were likely to issue 200,000 visas this year.
The new rules will apply to those within categories of B1, B2, C and D.
United States visa officials were expecting to process 600,000 applications in India this year, a top embassy official said.
The Indian High Commission issued visas to the nine Pakistani players bound for the inaugural Hockey India League, starting next week, officials said.
The move may result in a short-term cost impact for IT Indian companies, according to experts, despite the firms ramping up their local hiring and offshoring projects elsewhere to overcome visa-related issues.
The Indian IT companies, which account for a large number of H-1B applications, are likely to face the additional financial burden because of this proposed increase in H-1B filing fees.
'We used to get 400-500 applications for Canada on a yearly basis until last year, but this has gone down to just 70 this year.'
Complete authoritative information on the subject of visa application was available at the website www.newdelhi.usembassy.gov.
US visa expert Dr Arun Vakil explains how to apply for a US work visa.
In a move that will benefit a significantly large number of Indian technology professionals, the US is set to begin a pilot programme for domestic renewal of certain categories of H-1B visas in December. The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise. Technology companies depend on it to hire tens of thousands of employees each year from countries like India and China.
He said the number of visa appointment slots was being increased in a bid to streamline the US visa application process and to reduce the long-waiting time for applicants.
The 70-year-old artiste, who was to perform at the Royal Festival Hall next month, had said that he was "shocked and appalled" at the rejection of his visa application.
The 30-member team includes 15 doctors and eye specialists.
As a result, about 1,80,000 would be eligible to work in the US.
Pakistan qualified for the 2025 Junior Hockey World Cup event after finishing runners-up in the Asia Cup held in Oman recently. They had lost the continental final to India 3-5.
Unsatisfied with BLS International Services, a visa outsourcing company, the Indian Embassy in the United States has announced for a new bid on February 5.
Britain today announced a targetted interview system for student visa applicants from India and other non-EU countries to prevent abuse and to ensure that they are refused visas if immigration officials have doubts about their genuineness as students.
The proposed increase is almost double from the present fee.
The Australian government will put in place from March 1, 2004 new arrangements to make it easier to apply for business or tourist visa from India.
Experts from the UK Border Agency and Visa Services, British High Commission, New Delhi, hosted a chat with GA readers on November 10. The transcript.
Getting a US visa can be a relatively simple process. But there always are a few queries pertaining to the basic procedure. We answer them here.
There have been instances where forged letterheads of well-known Indian companies have been submitted along with Chinese visa applications.
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