Outbound travel demand from India to the US is experiencing overwhelming growth. However, extended waiting times for visa appointments are hindering this momentum, according to industry stakeholders.
“As a DMC, we have been organising roadshows in different Indian cities including tier-II and tier-III markets. The outbound demand for the US from segments like families, students and MICE groups is growing across the country but visa appointments are not readily available. So, we are also noticing travel plans getting postponed to next year,” shared Veena Robinson, vice president – India sales, Discover Destinations.
Indian travellers presently have to wait six months to a year just for visa appointments
Harvinder Singh, director Middle East & India, United Airlines said that three key segments of air travel – business, students and leisure – are leading the demand.
“We are also noticing that a lot of small and medium-sized enterprises from non-metro Indian cities are travelling to the US to explore business opportunities,” added Singh.
According to some Indian travel agents, visa appointment wait-times currently range from a minimum of six months to a year. These lengthy delays have also led some agents to resort to unfair practices to secure appointments for their clients. An agent, speaking on condition of anonymity, revealed that their company collaborates with a B2B partner who provides quicker visa appointments in exchange for a fee. “We are able to secure visa appointments for our clients in as little as a week. Clients are willing to shell out money for the ‘convenience’,” the agent remarked.
Rajesh Magow, co-founder and group CEO of MakeMyTrip, believes that to address visa challenges, innovations like the introduction of short-term tourist visas is needed.
“The demand for the US is only going to rise so there is a strong business case of increasing capacity and offering more and more visas. Short-term tourist visas could be an innovation to address the challenge,” added Magow.
Robinson also agreed that introducing short-term, tourist-centric visas could help companies like hers avoid losing business.
In 2023, the US Embassy and Consulates in India processed a record 1.4 million US visas. Presently, the US offers Indian travellers visas valid for 10 years.
Outbound travel demand from India to the US is experiencing overwhelming growth. However, extended waiting times for visa appointments are hindering this momentum, according to industry stakeholders.
“As a DMC, we have been organising roadshows in different Indian cities including tier-II and tier-III markets. The outbound demand for the US from segments like families, students and MICE groups is growing across the country but visa appointments are not readily available. So, we are also noticing travel plans getting postponed to next year,” shared Veena Robinson, vice president – India sales, Discover Destinations.
Harvinder Singh, director Middle East & India, United Airlines said that three key segments of air travel – business, students and leisure – are leading the demand.
“We are also noticing that a lot of small and medium-sized enterprises from non-metro Indian cities are travelling to the US to explore business opportunities,” added Singh.
According to some Indian travel agents, visa appointment wait-times currently range from a minimum of six months to a year. These lengthy delays have also led some agents to resort to unfair practices to secure appointments for their clients. An agent, speaking on condition of anonymity, revealed that their company collaborates with a B2B partner who provides quicker visa appointments in exchange for a fee. “We are able to secure visa appointments for our clients in as little as a week. Clients are willing to shell out money for the ‘convenience’,” the agent remarked.
Rajesh Magow, co-founder and group CEO of MakeMyTrip, believes that to address visa challenges, innovations like the introduction of short-term tourist visas is needed.
“The demand for the US is only going to rise so there is a strong business case of increasing capacity and offering more and more visas. Short-term tourist visas could be an innovation to address the challenge,” added Magow.
Robinson also agreed that introducing short-term, tourist-centric visas could help companies like hers avoid losing business.
In 2023, the US Embassy and Consulates in India processed a record 1.4 million US visas. Presently, the US offers Indian travellers visas valid for 10 years.