Bipartisan senators seek insight on visa processing delays

U.S. Sens. Jerry Moran (R-KS) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), co-chairs of the Senate Travel and Tourism Caucus, recently forwarded correspondence to Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs Rena Bitter, seeking insight regarding visa processing delays.

Moran and Klobuchar joined U.S. Sens. Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), John Cornyn (R-TX), and Cory Booker (D-NJ) in sending the letter to request the Biden administration address the delays.

According to the lawmakers, the average U.S. consulate wait time for a visitor visa appointment is 25 weeks, noting times vary by consulate, with some waiting periods extending beyond 200 days.

“As an important aspect of screening potential travelers to the United States, we write to inquire about steps that the Bureau of Consular Affairs is taking to address delays in visa processing,” the legislators wrote. “These delays impact industries, businesses, universities, and families across the United States. Businesses that rely on tourism suffer when would-be customers cannot get a visa appointment in a timely manner.”

The lawmakers cited U.S. Travel Association statistics maintaining the average overseas visitor spends approximately $3,700 when they visit the United States and stays an average of 17 nights.

“In addition, processing delays make the United States a less attractive place for companies to do business,” the legislators concluded. “These delays have reportedly hindered companies from bringing key employees to the United States on L-1 and H-1B visas, and even from building out new operations that these employees would have supported.”

The lawmakers have requested Bitter respond to a series of questions by March 10, 2023, regarding steps the Bureau of Consular Affairs has taken to expedite consular processing times across all visa categories experiencing backlogs.