USCIS Reports Significant Drop in H-1B Visa Lottery Bids
The US Consulate General of Hyderabad has announced the commencement of visa appointments for Indian students, marking a pivotal step in facilitating educational journeys to the United States. Scheduled for late May, the first set of appointments heralds hope for aspirants, with additional slots for June, July, and August expected to follow suit in the coming weeks.
This development comes amidst a significant downturn in global visa applications, particularly noticeable in the skilled worker segment. USCIS revealed a sharp decline of nearly 40 percent in H-1B visa bids, attributing the decrease to stringent measures aimed at combating fraudulent practices. The latest lottery saw only 470,342 bids, a substantial drop from the previous year’s 758,994.
As the US continues to refine its visa processes, prospective students are encouraged to leverage resources
The USCIS attributed this decline to revamped procedures designed to ensure fairness in the selection process. By implementing beneficiary-centric protocols, the agency aims to mitigate unfair advantages that some entities previously exploited. This overhaul aims to foster equity and transparency, deterring practices where multiple bids were submitted for the same applicant by collaborating firms.
“This year, USCIS took measures to secure the H-1B registration process. Our initial data suggests that there were far fewer attempts than last year to gain an unfair advantage owing in large measure to the implementation of the beneficiary-centric selection process,” stated the agency in a recent report.
As the US continues to refine its visa processes, prospective students are encouraged to leverage resources provided by organizations like @educationusa to ensure preparedness for their applications.
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