With effect from Tuesday, April 18, 2017, the consular exchange rate has been revised to ₹68 to one US$. This revision in exchange rate will affect the Indian rupee equivalent for all application fees paid on or after April 18, 2017. The revision is applicable across all non-immigrant and immigrant visa applications, and American Citizenship…

Certain non-immigrant U.S. visa applicants who previously held a visa of the same class may qualify to renew their visa under the interview waiver program. One of the criteria for eligible visa categories was that the previous visa should either be still valid or should have expired within 12 months from the date of current…

The U.S. Visa Application Centre for document and/or passport pick-up or drop-off located at Pune has been relocated to 4th Floor, E&F Core, Marvel Edge, Viman Nagar, Pune – 411014. This new facility commenced regular operations on February 27, 2017. Applicants who have selected Pune as their document delivery/passport pick-up location should collect their passports…

Jurisdiction of the USCIS Field Office, New Delhi The USCIS Field Office, New Delhi accepts certain petitions/applications from eligible U.S. citizens, immigrants, and nonimmigrants residing within the geographical limits of India. The services provided by the USCIS office can be found here. In addition to this, the USCIS field office also has jurisdiction over the…

On February 6, 2017, we provided an update on the Form DS 117. Following this, one of our Attorneys at Murthy Immigration Services recently sought clarification from the U.S. Consulate, Mumbai regarding the application form to be used by eligible SB-1 returning resident visa applicants. The Consular Information Unit, Mumbai has clarified that the eligible…

Regular visitors to MurthyIndiaDotCom and subscribers to our bulletin may be aware that any lawful permanent resident (LPR) who stayed outside the United States for a year or more will have to qualify as a returning resident (SB1) in the absence of a valid “re-entry permit.”  The form used to apply for this status is…

An affidavit of support (form I-134) is used to show that visa applicants have sponsorship and will not become public charges while in the United States. This form is provided in support of U.S. non-immigrant visa applicant(s) or a lawful permanent resident(s) who qualifies as a returning resident (SB1). A new version of form I-134…

Any beneficiary of a family- (I-130) or employment- (I-140) based immigrant application will have to visit the consulate for a personal interview if s/he has opted for consular process. Apart from this, certain U.S. citizens temporarily domiciled in India may be eligible to file I-130 at the USCIS field office in New Delhi for parents/spouse…

Following the demise of the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu Selvi. J. Jayalalitha, the U.S. Consulate will remain closed on Wednesday, December 7, 2016. The Consulate is expected to resume regular operations on Thursday, December 8, 2016. Applicants who were scheduled to attend an interview at the U.S. Consulate in Chennai on December 7,…

On account of the critical health condition of Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu and the related situation in Chennai, the Non-immigrant Visa Unit of the U.S. Consulate in Chennai has cancelled all interviews scheduled on Monday, December 5, 2016. Since all the applicants would have completed their biometrics already, they need to login to their…