Taking into consideration the growth scale of the novel Coronavirus- COVID-19 outbreak, several nations have issued visa and travel restrictions. Entry restrictions have been issued to international travelers by many governments including the United States of America and India.
The US Embassy in India has started to cancel all visa appointments (non-immigrant visas and immigrant visas) since the 16th of March 2020.
COVID-19 Helpline By Indian Consulate in New York
For any clarification or assistance, you can reach the following numbers to reach Consulate General of India, New York
- PRAMIT Helpline: +1-347-721-9243 (Voicemail 24×7)
- COVID-19 (Direct) Helpline: +1-212-774-0607 (available from 8:00 am to 10:00 pm EST)
- Website – https://www.indiainnewyork.gov.in/
Visa Freeze By US Embassy In India – Effect On IT Service Providers In India
Since the US Mission India has stopped issuing the non-immigrant and immigrant visas, the IT services industry in India could be adversely affected. Here is the highlight visa freeze by US embassy in India:
- Visa freeze by the US embassy in India will
prevent the IT service providers in India from sending their employees to the
US on sales and project calls - The US, as well as India, have imposed several
restrictions on international travels making it difficult for the organizations
in India to send their employees abroad - More than two-thirds of the revenue generated by
the IT industry in India depends on the Indian IT employees working in the US - The cancellation of US visa appointments will
prevent the Indian employees from joining their companies in the US by the
given date - The employers in the US will be forced to seek
other measures to fill in those vacant positions - The Coronavirus outbreak has already affected
the major industries like travel and tourism and aviation - As a result, the IT firms in India have been
expecting a slow growth-rate and trying out ways to deal with it - The H1B visa application process could also be
affected - The US had introduced the H-1B application
process this year where the employers must register all the prospective
applicants for H-1B visa online - Employees are chosen randomly using the method
of lottery - The employer can apply only if their employee’s
name has been short-listed
Both non-immigrant and immigrant visa appointments will remain canceled until the regular operations of the US Consulate resume. You can reschedule your appointments once the operations of the US Mission India resumes.