The American Dream: Over 14,600 US student visas issued this year, record intake expected

The US Consulate maintains it will see a record intake of Indian students this year. According to data accessed by TOI, 14,694 student visas ( F1 visas) were issued between January and May 14 this year across the five consulates in India.

While the highest number of visas were issued from New Delhi (8,021), this figure was followed by Mumbai (2,589) and Hyderabad (1,947).

In 2019, in the same time frame between January and May, 5,663 student visas were issued.


The highest issuance then was from Mumbai (1,514) followed by New Delhi (1,465) and Chennai (1,290). The figures indicate an increase of fresh student visas by almost three times.

“Despite Covid-19 disruptions, the US Embassy and Consulates in India processed over 1.2 lakh student visa applications in 2021. There has not been a reduction in slots. In fact, we are expecting another record-breaking student visa season, so we have opened thousands of additional visa appointments and expanded interview waiver programs for students,” said a US Consulate spokesperson.

The Consulate notes that numbers will rise especially for Hyderabad.

“In spite of those challenging circumstances (during the pandemic), the US Consulate General in Hyderabad did not close for even one day. Over time, we will return to pre-pandemic staffing and, plan to increase staffing after we will move to the new consulate building next year,” a spokesperson said.