New Delhi: Indians who have applied for an H-1B visa are facing a struggle with their appointments being delayed or rescheduled.
According to reports, slots for appointment in January have now been pushed to September, resulting in an extremely uncertain situation for applicants of a US visa who are supposed to go there for work. Immigration lawyer Rajiv Khanna, as per a report by the Economic Times, has said that H-1B visa appointments for India, which were supposed to happen in January, have been pushed to September.
The distress of common people
The delays in H-1B visa appointments are taking a toll on those applicants who need visa stamping at US consulates in India. It includes both those applying for their first time and those renewing their visas after travel.
The appointments of many H-1B and H-4 visa applicants, scheduled for mid- to late-December 2025, have been pushed to March 2026. Moreover, from December 15, there has been a new online presence review process for H-1B and H-4 applicants.
What does that entail?
It means that the social accounts of applicants and their dependents should be public for review, as the US authorities are checking backgrounds. As a result, consular posts have reduced interviews conducted per day, due to which appointments have been cancelled or pushed back to another date.
Khanna reportedly said, “There isn’t much that can be done because this administration has created a systemic problem that appears deliberate. What was the extreme emergency that led to the social media vetting policy being changed and people’s lives being upended overnight? This has become a universal problem for H-1B employees applying in India.”
He added, “Note also, the Trump administration had earlier announced a policy that you can only apply for a visa from your country of nationality or residence. This edict, combined with the current delay fiasco, has built a ‘wall’ for employers and employees who are already in the process of stamping. This has also been disastrous for US businesses. Most small businesses do not have the luxury of a vast workforce.”
Can applicants stuck in India continue work?
According to Khanna, yes, they can. He added, “Just be aware of the local tax filings, that is, do you become subject to Indian taxes if you’re working from India? But continuing to work from India while getting paid the H-1B wages is a definite choice if the employer permits it.”
