Visitor visas have an estimated 400-day wait time for first-time U.S. visitors from some of the highest volumes of inbound countries. Grouping some of the top sourcing countries – India, Brazil, and Mexico – the visitor visa wait time is over 600 days with a list of over 300,000 individuals waiting. Many of these individuals say they are not willing to wait. Rather, they will choose other countries instead. This clearly reduces the number of individuals, and their spending, that enter the U.S., thereby hurting the U.S. economy.

According to a U.S. Travel analysis, the estimated cost to the U.S. economy is $12 Billion for the next year. The domestic travel industry returned to pre-COVID levels, as you likely know if you traveled over the Thanksgiving holiday. In fact, domestic travel for 2022 is estimated to exceed 2019 levels. However, international travel remains suppressed and is estimated to finish 2022 at less than 80% of 2019 levels.

The overall U.S. economy continues to face serious issues, including a recession. Addressing visa delays can help the U.S. economy. The Biden administration set a goal of 90 million international visitors per year by 2027. At this level of visitors, an estimated $279 Billion in additional economic activity is estimated to be added to the U.S. economy.

Visa processing is seeing some recovery, continuing to battle through backlogs caused by the COVID pandemic and a lack of staff. However, visitor visas are seemingly not prioritized. A similar situation was experienced under the Obama administration. President Obama enacted an Executive Order to complete visitor visa processing within 21 days of receipt. Some of the recommended processes to achieve this goal include processing visas 7 days a week, potentially using online video meetings rather than in-person interviews when appropriate, reassigning existing staff to the countries most impacted by the delays, and the extension of the option to waive interviews through 2024.

If you have questions about a travel visa or any other immigration-related issue, contact us anytime at ILBSG. We work with our clients in their specific situations to ensure they get the right advice.

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