What Do Experts Say About the Wait Times for Student Visas?

Despite the fact that many students have been successful in realizing their dreams of studying abroad, a much larger number of people are having trouble getting visas.

Despite the difficulties, obtaining a visa is a huge relief for people who want to travel abroad for a specific reason, such as business, tourism, education, or just a casual visit. For many students, however, who cannot afford to delay their education due to visa concerns, that may not be the case.

Students who want to study in Canada or Australia must make difficult decisions because no visa decision can be made quickly.

Despite the IRCC's (Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada) 12-week maximum wait period for a study permit, we have been waiting for our visa results since January. Furthermore, our files weren't reviewed, " claimed Akashdeep Singh,"  a Punjabi national hoping to pursue a degree in Canada. Many of us have already rescheduled our intakes because our files have been backed up in the line for months. Akashdeep continued by saying that in order to enroll in St. Clair College Windsor for the fall semester, he only has 15 days to confirm his study permit application. If we cannot get the visa in time, we will have to defer once more or withdraw entirely.

Akashdeep's argument is persuasive to both students who are studying in Canada and those who are looking for academic opportunities abroad.

Sunny Patel, an applicant from Ahmedabad for the July intake at Flinders University, is also waiting for his subclass 500 visa. However, it doesn't appear that the problems are getting any better.

We have been waiting for our subclass student visa awards along with 150 other international students from India. We all submitted applications to Flinders University for the July intake this year, according to Sunny, an engineer. The Australian Department of Home Affairs has not yet approved our application, despite the fact that our classes start on July 25. Sunny continued, "The outcome of the visa application is highly unpredictable. Sunny wants to obtain an engineering master's degree.

If a person is enrolled full-time in school, they are permitted to stay in Australia for up to five years under the terms of their student visa (subclass 500). The A A A student visa enables students to enroll in a recognized course of study and apply for a visa that includes family members. Once their studies have begun, students are also permitted to work up to 40 hours every two weeks.

Iranian students traveling together

The Iranian maritime neighbor of India, is also impacted by the visa situation. The hashtag #helpIranianstudents is also widely used by Iranian students.

Mohammad Hossein Esmaeli, a student in Tehran's capital, is equally irritated as his Indian classmates are. I received a scholarship from the Australian University of Queensland more than two years ago. My student visa has been in the works for about two years. Throughout this time, I twice used the deferment option to keep my scholarships, but I recently lost them. I'm very unhappy since I put my entire life on hold to be able to finish my studies, but in the end, I found myself exhausted," said Mohammad, who submitted his application in November 2020.

The prevalence of backlogs is much higher among students who already have them. Despite the fact that many students have been successful in realizing their dreams of studying abroad, a much larger number of people are having trouble getting visas. "60 to 70 percent of Indian students are currently impacted by the visa backlog issue."

The pandemic phase, a lack of processing officers, and a high volume of applications, according to Ajay Sharma, president and founder of Abhinav Immigration Services, have caused a significant visa backlog in all significant international education destinations.

Every country deals with a distinct set of issues.

Mr. Sharma claims that each of the well-known study locations has unique problems. Canada has a backlog of 2.7 million cases as a result of the pandemic and the establishment of an interim pathway for refugees and asylum seekers from conflict-torn Ukraine.

UK immigration authorities are now requiring applicants to submit their applications six months before the intended departure date due to a significant backlog in visa applications. Australia has also been impacted by the two-year border closure and is currently dealing with an unexpected spike in visa requests. Sharma also pointed out that the USA is still feeling the effects of the recent pandemic, staff attrition, and restrictions on immigrant visas put in place by the Trump administration.

The situation in the US is better compared to countries like the UK.

Others, including international education consultant Kunal Mehra of Crimson Education India, think the problem is more widespread outside of the US. Students traveling to the UK have suffered more as a result of visa processing delays than students traveling to the US. As you can see, US consulates are working quickly to issue visas, enabling an increasing number of students to travel and reach their destinations in time for classes.

Students in the UK, where offers are contingent on receiving a particular percentage, are finding it more difficult. Mr. Mehra claims that because of delays in Indian examinations across many boards, many students have been unable to take advantage of offers from particular UK universities. While they awaited their visas, he advised students to get academic support directly from universities.

A major issue is the lack of staff in embassies.

According to Visa Consultants in Kurali (PUNJAB), the Embassy's internal problems have had an impact on both commercial and tourist visits as well as student travel. Embassy of India There is a staffing shortage here. Before the epidemic, there were ten employees; now there are only five. Aseem Sharma, a visa adviser with Jetsave, claims that although more applications are being submitted, fewer are actually being completed as a result. Mr. Aseem believes that more nations need to switch to on-arrival visas as a replacement because it may currently be difficult to obtain visas for the majority of European nations. He claimed that before COVID, plans could be made in a matter of days, but this is no longer possible, he claimed.