New Delhi: The US State Division has surprised international travellers with a significant change in visa course of. On September 18, it issued a brand new directive titled ‘Interview Waiver Replace’ that overrides the July 25, 2025. The brand new guidelines take away nearly all of the comfort beforehand accessible for a lot of vacationers, together with overseas employees, college students and senior residents.
Candidates should now apply of their nation of nationality or traditional residence to even be thought of for an interview waiver.
What’s Altering
From October 1, 2025, most visa candidates will lose the power to skip the in-person interview. Solely a slim class of travellers can nonetheless use the Interview Waiver. These embody accredited officers, diplomats, B1/B2 vacationers and enterprise travellers renewing visas inside 12 months of expiration, supplied the prior visa was issued for full validity and the applicant was at the least 18 years previous.
A small addition permits H-2A visa renewals beneath related situations to qualify. The H-2A programme permits U.S. employers to carry overseas nationals for non permanent agricultural jobs. Past these classes, everybody else might want to seem in individual.
Youngsters beneath 14 and adults over 79 had already misplaced the waiver profit in July 2025. Now, worldwide college students on F-1 visas, and professionals on H-1B and L-1 visas, should schedule interviews in individual at US consulates.
Influence On College students, Staff
Consultants warn that it will dramatically enhance consulate backlogs. Indian college students planning to affix US universities this fall could face delays in admission resulting from appointment shortages. The Congress has already raised considerations, asking the State Division the way it intends to deal with the mounting visa backlog.
College students and overseas employees ought to put together for cancellations, rescheduling or full in-person interviews. The comfort of the Dropbox system, which allowed visa holders to resume with out stepping right into a consulate, is now gone for many.
What Travellers Want To Know
- Efficient October 1, all nonimmigrant visa candidates, together with youngsters beneath 14 and seniors over 79, should attend in-person interviews.
- B1/B2 vacationers, enterprise vacationers and sure H-2A employees stay eligible for waivers solely beneath strict situations.
- These with earlier H-1B, L-1 or F-1 visas might want to attend interviews no matter previous approvals.
The US visa system’s long-standing comfort for expert employees, college students and frequent travellers has ended. Candidates are suggested to verify consulate schedules instantly, anticipate delays and put together for a return to full in-person interviews.
The State Division’s determination marks one of the essential visa coverage reversals in recent times, basically altering how tens of millions of overseas employees, college students and households plan their journey to america.