US visa appointment rules changed for Indians

Despite efforts to reduce the backlog for US visas in India, the waiting period for an appointment is still more than 500 days. The US Embassy in India on Sunday said that Indians travelling abroad can make a visa appointment at the US Embassy or Consulate on the spot. For example, if an Indian is currently in Thailand, he can take an appointment with the US Embassy there for US B1 and B2 visas (travel and business).
The US recently launched new initiatives to reduce delays in the visa process. This includes setting up special interviews for first-time visa applicants and increasing the number of consular staff. The US Embassy in Delhi and the US Consulates in Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata and Hyderabad also held special Saturday interview days on January 21. The US State Department has also implemented an interview waiver process for applicants who have already taken a US visa.
The US Mission in India released more than 250,000 additional B1/B2 appointments two weeks ago. A senior US visa official recently told the news agency PTI that the US is going all out to eliminate long visa wait times in India. This includes sending a cadre of consular officers to the country and also opening US embassies in distant countries like Germany, and Thailand to Indian visa applicants.
India is one of the very few countries that saw a major jump in applications for US visas after travel restrictions related to the coronavirus was lifted. There are growing concerns in India about long wait times for first-time visa applicants under the B1 (business) and B2 (tourist) categories. The wait for first-time B1/B2 visa applicants in India was close to three years in October 2022.