According to a diplomat, the US Embassy in the UAE is attempting to expedite the process, as appointments for US visas are only available after a year.
According to Ron Packowitz, the country consular coordinator, in an exclusive interview with Khaleej Times, “We are working to expand and improve to increase our capacity and expedite appointments.”
After the pandemic, Packowitz continued, “there is a high demand to travel to the US, not just from the UAE, but worldwide.”
The Khaleej Times previously reported on the extraordinary demand among UAE residents to visit the US, and the earliest date for an appointment in Dubai is October 18, 2024. The interview was conducted with professionals in the travel sector in the UAE. It won’t happen in Abu Dhabi until November 2024.
Packowitz expounded on the reasons behind the delay, stating that a backlog resulted from the epidemic restricting the interviewing of several candidates for the non-immigrant visa. We are mandated by law to interview those applying for visas. We were unable to bring them into our consular division for interviews because to the epidemic and certain restrictions imposed by the local governments. Many of them still wish to visit the United States, according to Packowitz.
“We have received more applications for non-immigrant visas during the outbreak than we did before. With the pandemic being finished, there is a huge global interest in traveling, according to Packowitz.
