Getting a visitor’s visa to the US is turning out to be a mission impossible of sorts. The most affected are families whose children are settled abroad.
Raju Gadhvi’s son had travelled to the US for higher studies. After finishing his studies, he landed a job and also bought a house and a car. But the Gadhvis—56-year-old Raju and his 45-year-old wife, Dhara—are yet to celebrate. The couple has been trying for the last few years to get a visa appointment to visit their son in the US. But, in vain.
Earlier, the pandemic disrupted their plans for two years and now despite travel restrictions being lifted, the Gadhvis will have to wait long. The earliest visa appointment the couple has got is November 2024.
“We are desperate to go visit him but it seems like an impossible task. The whole world has normalised post-Covid. It is surprising how an advanced country like the US has not been able to cut through the backlog,” says Gadhvi.
City-resident Dhrumil Thaker (30), too, has got a US visitor’s visa appointment in November 2024. “My brother has settled in the US and we are yearning to get together. Travelling to the US seems to have suddenly become a Herculean task,” rued Thaker.In fact, visa consultants say that many are now getting appointments only in 2025. “Students faced problems but most were able to get dates within months. Waiting for two years for a travel visa date is unprecedented. We have stopped taking clients for visitor visas,” says Ritesh Desai, a visa consultant.
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