India Raises Concerns With US Over H-1B Visa Delays, Cancellations
India urgently demands US fix massive visa delays and cancellations.
India has formally raised serious concerns with the United States over prolonged delays, abrupt cancellations, and significant difficulties in scheduling appointments for H-1B visas, a development that has adversely affected thousands of Indian professionals and their families who rely on these visas for employment in specialized fields across American industries.
Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal stated on Friday that the Indian government has received a substantial number of representations from citizens facing these challenges, prompting diplomatic interventions with U.S. authorities in both New Delhi and Washington to highlight the plight of affected nationals, while respectfully noting that visa administration remains a sovereign matter for the United States.
The current wave of disruptions originates from a series of recent policy adjustments implemented by Washington, notably the imposition of a steep $100,000 application fee for first-time H-1B petitioners and the replacement of the longstanding random lottery selection process with a new framework that prioritizes applicants demonstrating higher levels of skills and qualifications, alterations designed to streamline and refine the visa distribution mechanism.
Also Read: PM Modi Declares Gen Z Will Drive India to Developed Nation Status by 2047
Further exacerbating the situation, the U.S. authorities introduced expanded social media screening protocols effective December 15, applicable to all applicants for both H-1B professional visas and H-4 dependent visas, leading to a cascade of appointment cancellations and forced rescheduling that now extends several months into the future, creating widespread uncertainty and hardship.
As India persists in its active diplomatic engagement with American counterparts to pursue workable solutions, emerging reports underscore the scale of the impact, with thousands of Indian nationals—including many who specifically returned to India for visa renewal purposes—now stranded and unable to resume their professional commitments in critical sectors such as technology, engineering, and medicine that heavily depend on this visa category.
