With effect from today, June 18, 2013, the U.S. consular exchange rate has been adjusted to INR 58 to one US$. Previously, the consular exchange rate was INR 57 to one US$. This revision in the exchange rate will affect the INR equivalent for all application fees paid on or after June 18, 2013, for…

U.S. nonimmigrant visa applicants, applying from a U.S. Embassy / Consulate abroad, will have to complete the nonimmigrant visa application (Form DS-160) by visiting https://ceac.state.gov/. After entering all required information, and until the applicant uses the “sign and submit” option, s/he generally will be able to retrieve the draft application from the CEAC website. A…

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 (formerly Bangalore), to help U.S. citizens. The next outreach program at Bengaluru is scheduled for June 11, 12, and 13, 2013. More information on the services offered and procedure to schedule…

U.S. nonimmigrant visa applicants, applying from India, may be aware that the online scheduling system for visa interviews – using http://www.ustraveldocs.com/in/index.html – only permits applicants to choose a document pickup location for return of documents/passport from the Consulate, following the interview. However, the U.S. Embassy and Consulates in India provide a special counter where the…

Regular readers of MurthyIndiaBulletin and MurthyIndiaDotCom are aware that a new visa application procedure has been in place in India since September 26, 2012. Under the new procedure, applicants requiring a personal interview must schedule two appointments – one with the Offsite Facilitating Centre (OFC) to complete biometrics, the other with the U.S. Embassy /…

We at Murthy Immigration Services often are asked who may accompany visa applicant(s) for the visa interview. The answer is found on the instructions page of every visa appointment letter, clearly stating that a responsible adult may accompany a minor applicant who is younger than age 16. Similarly, applicants over 60, who have a physical…

Regular readers of MurthyIndiaBulletin, and visitors to MurthyIndiaDOTCom, may be aware that the U.S. Embassy, and most U.S. Consulates in India, once provided Stars and Stripes Lounge services at their Visa Facilitation Services (VFS) locations. However, when the U.S. Embassy/Consulates partnered with ustraveldocs in September 2012, this facility was no-longer available. Visa applicants in Mumbai…

The U.S. Visa Application Center in India has launched a new feature for travel coordinators who need to schedule appointments for multiple travelers. Regular readers of MurthyIndiaDotCom and MurthyIndiaBulletin may be aware that, under the new visa application system introduced in September 2012, applicants must create a profile at https://www.ustraveldocs.com/in in order to schedule an…

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 (formerly Bangalore), to help U.S. citizens. The next outreach program at Bengaluru is scheduled for March 19, 20, and 21, 2013. U.S. citizens can avail themselves of the following services with…

Both U.S. immigrant and nonimmigrant visa applicants can now check the status of their applications online at the Consular Electronic Application Center (CEAC) website (https://ceac.state.gov/CEAC/). The hyperlink to verify the status of application(s) was available when the new visa application system was introduced in 2012, but this particular feature was not functional until recently. We expect this…