B1 and B2 visas, which are for business and tourism purposes, have experienced substantial backlogs in recent years. Waiting times in 2022-23 ranged from 800 to 1,000 days, prompting the US to offer visa appointments for Indian applicants even in Frankfurt and Bangkok.In 2022, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar raised concerns about the visa delays with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who attributed the backlog to the COVID-19 pandemic. Jaishankar reiterated these concerns in January this year during discussions with the second Trump administration.“If it takes 400-odd days to get a visa, I don’t think the relationship is well served by this,” Jaishankar said after his bilateral meeting with his US counterpart Marco Rubio.
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