You Can Now Renew US Work Visa Without Traveling To India
This significant decision will help thousands of Indian professionals working in the US as they can continue their jobs without the hassle of traveling overseas for the renewal of their H1B visas.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced during his highly anticipated address to the Indian diaspora at Washington’s Ronald Reagan Center that Indian-Americans will no longer need to leave America for the renewal of their H-1B visas.
“It has been decided that now, renewal of H1B Visa will not require one to move out of America. A pilot project in this regard will be started soon. This will help thousands of IT sector employees here,” said PM Modi while addressing the Indian diaspora at Ronald Reagan Center in Washington.
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VIDEOS | “It has been decided that now, renewal of H1B Visa will not require one to move out of America. A pilot project in this regard will be started soon. This will help thousands of IT sector employees here,” says PM Modi addressing the Indian diaspora at Ronald Reagan Center,… pic.twitter.com/uHtdLT5gBh
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) June 24, 2023
This significant decision will help thousands of Indian professionals working in the US as they can continue their jobs without the hassle of traveling overseas for the renewal of their H1B visas.
Recently, the US Department of State decided to launch a pilot to advocate domestic renewals of certain petition-based temporary work visas later this year.
Indian nationals will be included in this project, with the aim of implementing it for a larger group of H1B and L visa holders in 2024. The program will be expanded further to include other eligible categories.
US President Joe Biden and PM Modi emphasized that the mobility of professionals, skilled workers, students, investors, and business travelers between their countries plays a crucial role in strengthening bilateral economic and technological collaboration.
“While acknowledging the important steps taken to augment the processing of visa applications, they noted the pressing need to further expedite this process. The leaders also directed officials to identify additional mechanisms to facilitate travel for business, tourism, and professional and technical exchanges between the two countries,” read the joint statement.
This announcement by the Prime Minister received a standing ovation from the Indian diaspora, who warmly welcomed the decision.
What Are H-1B Visas?
These visas are issued for a duration of three years. When H-1B visa holders seek renewal, they are required to have their passports stamped with the new expiration dates if they plan to travel outside the United States and re-enter. Currently, restamping of this visa cannot be done within the United States.
Before 2004, H-1B visa holders had the option to renew their visas within the United States. However, this policy changed in 2004, making it mandatory that H-1B visa holders must travel outside the US to have their visas renewed. This change caused significant inconvenience, especially for those facing long wait times for visa renewal.
