On November 5, 2012, we had reported that H and L visas were included under the Interview Waiver Program (IWP), we had also indicated that for H visas, one of the primary criteria is that the applicant should  continue to work for the same petitioner / employer. A recent and significant change in this criteria…

The passport collection center in Pune (Sohrab Hall) is closed until further notice on account of a fire incident. An update on the official visa information website of the U.S. missions in India indicates that no passports or documents were damaged in the incident. Until this center is operational, a temporary passport collection / pass…

Effective September 1, 2015; Banks in India will remain closed on the 2nd and 4th Saturdays of each month. U.S. visa applicants will not be able to pay the visa application fee on these days, even using the online National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT) facility. However, the Banks will work full day on all odd…

Regular readers of MurthyIndiaDotCom are aware of the L-1 (“intracompany transferee”) nonimmigrant visa classification that permits certain multinational companies to transfer employees from their foreign operations to their operations in the United States. L-1A classification applies to transfers of employees in managerial and executive cadre and L-1B classification is for employees who possess “specialized knowledge”.…

Regular readers of MurthyIndiaDotCom are aware that the U.S. Citizenship Services Section of the U.S. Consulate General, Chennai, periodically provides outreach services at Bengaluru to help U.S. citizens submit applications for passport renewals for minors and first time adult passport for U.S. citizens. A recent update on their website indicates that U.S. Consulate General Chennai’s American Citizens…

With effect from Tuesday, September 1, 2015 the U.S. consular exchange rate is adjusted to ₹68 to one US$. The consular exchange rate was ₹66 to one US$ prior to this. This revision in the exchange rate will affect the Indian Rupee equivalent for all application fees paid on or after September 1, 2015. The…

Subscribers to our bulletin and readers of MurthyIndiaDotCom are aware of the recent technical issues that led to a world-wide stand still of the visa application process. Following this, we had reported that appointments scheduled for Friday, August 7 and Monday, August 10, 2015, were cancelled at all U.S. Missions in India. We understand that…

A recent update on the official visa information website of the U.S. Mission in India indicates that the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi and the U.S. consulates in India have to reschedule all non-immigrant and immigrant visa appointments scheduled for Friday, August 7, 2015 and Monday, August 10, 2015. Effectively, applicants will have to login…

In December 2014, we had written about the importance of the form DS160. In this article, we had also discussed about the importance of choosing the right consulate prior to submission of the form DS160. In line with this, recently, the consulates in India have indicated that they are unable to process an application for…

Readers of MurthyIndiaDotCom are aware that consular services worldwide were affected for some time on account of a technical glitch which prevented sensitive information from being transmitted. Following this, appointments were cancelled in several consular posts and in India, all non-immigrant visa interviews scheduled between June 22-26 were cancelled. The Bureau of Consular Affairs (U.S.…