Visa Delays : During the summer, Indians have positioned themselves as the second-largest group of foreign tourists in the United States, despite facing lengthy visa interview waits and elevated airfares.
The U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Travel and Tourism Office (NTTO) recently published its “Inbound Survey of International Air Travelers (SIAT)” for the second quarter of 2023 (April-June).
Visa Delays Exemption for Indians
The survey disclosed that Canada held the top spot as the primary source of U.S. visitors, with 2.6 million individuals arriving. Among the leading countries of origin for international tourists were the United Kingdom, India. Mexico, which, like Canada, shares a land border with the U.S., witnessed 720,000 citizens arriving by air during the summer.
As a result, Indians secured the third position in terms of summer arrivals in the U.S. Nevertheless, Canada and Mexico continue to dominate as the top two source markets for visitors arriving through various means, encompassing air and land travel. In the overall rankings, India claimed the fourth position, trailing the UK.
Experts in the travel industry suggest that the number of Indian tourists in the U.S. could have been higher were it not for visa processing delays. The waiting period for B1/B2 visitor visa applicants in India remains at approximately 1.5 years, although this has improved from the nearly three-year wait experienced during the previous winter.
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