One out of every five US student visas in 2022 issued in India, says US envoy Eric Garcetti 

Garcetti said that more Indians come to the United States as students than from any other country in the world and that they will be making more visa appointments available for students this year than ever.

"In the coming weeks, we will be releasing tens of thousands of student visa appointments for July and August,” he added.

According to the figures shared by the embassy, the US Mission in India issued more than 1,25,000 student visas, which is a record-breaking number. In 2022, the Indians were issued the highest numbers of H&L employment visas (65 percent) and F1 student visas (17.5 percent) worldwide.

Last year, more than 1.2 million people from India visited the US, making Indians one of the largest groups of international visitors to the US.

"Last year, India became number 1 and I don’t see that changing ahead in the future. I see that relationship at the very top of how we articulate our values of welcoming not just Americans to higher education but to opening that door to people worldwide," the US envoy said highlighting the relations between two countries.

Indian students comprise more than 21 percent of the total population of international students in the US. During the 2021-22 academic year, nearly two lakh Indian students were studying in the US.

The embassy said that in the past one year, they have matched their pre-pandemic wait time for more than 20 visa categories. Their attention is focussed on reducing the wait time for tourist visa applicants who require an interview.

The in-person tourist visa appointment wait time is down 60 percent since the beginning of this year.

The ambassador congratulated visa recipients as they prepare to join Indian students studying in the US. 

"I first came to India as a young student, and I’ve seen in my own life how transformative these experiences can be,” he said, adding, "Student exchange is at the heart of US-India relations, and with good reason. A US education provides students a world-class education and access to a global network of knowledge, laying the foundation for a lifetime of understanding. That’s why we are here today, to encourage these opportunities for as many Indian students as possible."