The US student visa season is off to a slow start for Indians, with the number of F-1 visas issued from March to May falling to the lowest level for these months since the pandemic, recording a 27% drop compared to the corresponding period last year, according to the latest available data from the US State Department.
The months from March to July typically mark a busy visa season for students preparing to begin their studies in the Fall semester (August/ September).
From March to May this year, Indian students were issued 9,906 F-1 (academic) visas even lower than the corresponding period in 2022 (10,894), when international travel had just resumed post-Covid (see chart). A total of 14,987 F-1 visas were issued in these months in 2023, and 13,478 in 2024.
The dip comes amid the Trump administration’s crackdown on international students, including visa revocations for several students — some of them Indian — linked to pro-Palestine protests or interactions with law enforcement, as well as a two-week pause (May 27 to June 18) on fresh applications to implement stricter vetting of applicants’ social media activity.
The visa revocations have triggered multiple lawsuits, even as American universities face funding cuts and growing scrutiny of international enrolments.
In May, Politico reported that the Trump administration had directed US embassies and consular sections to halt the scheduling of new interviews for student visa applicants, as it considered making social media vetting mandatory for prospective foreign students. By June, the US Embassy in New Delhi had advised applicants for F, M, and J category visas to make their social media accounts public to facilitate the screening process. (The F-1 visa is for academic studies, the M category for vocational or non-academic programmes, and the J visa for exchange programmes that include study or research.)
These months lead up to the start of the academic year in US universities, which typically begin in August or September.
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This year’s slow start follows an overall decline in student visa issuances in 2024 — a trend now compounded by the Trump administration’s hardening stance on international enrolments. As reported by The Indian Express in December last year, after an initial post-pandemic surge, student visa approvals for Indian nationals fell sharply in 2024. From January to September 2024, only 64,008 F-1 visas were issued to Indian students – down from 1.03 lakh during the same period in 2023 and 93,181 in 2022.
Still, the overall growth in the number of Indian students in the US over the past few years has been striking. In the 2023–24 academic year, Indians overtook Chinese students to become the largest group of international students in the country, according to Open Doors 2024 data.
Asked about the reason behind the drop in visa issuances this year, if student visa applications have decreased or rejections seen an uptick, and whether student visa applicant interviews are currently being scheduled, a US Embassy spokesperson said: “The adjudication of visa applications is critically important to the national security and public safety of the US. We encourage applicants to apply as early as they can and to anticipate additional processing time for these visa categories. Our overseas posts have resumed scheduling F non-immigrant visa applications. Applicants should check the relevant embassy or consulate website for appointment availability.”
“Consular sections constantly adjust their schedules to allow for sufficient time to fully vet the cases to ensure our visa operations around the world meet the highest standards. We’re working every day to fully vet visa applicants to ensure they do not intend to harm America or our interests, and that they credibly establish their eligibility for the visa sought, including that they intend to engage in activities consistent with the terms of their admission,” the Embassy spokesperson said.
