Us Visa Rules Enter A New Era In 2025 As Indian Applicants Face Fifteen Thousand Dollar Bond Requirements, Integrity Fees, And The End Of Third-party Passport Pickups

Published on August 11, 2025 |

The United States is group to enforce sweeping visa reforms for Indian applicants from August 2025, aiming to fortify security, forestall overstays, and tighten archive handling. These measures see information bonds worthy up to 15 1000 dollars, a 2 100 50 dollar integrity fee, and nan elimination of third-party passport pickups. By implementing these stricter rules and higher costs, US authorities intend to safeguard nan migration process, guarantee compliance pinch departure timelines, and protect delicate individual accusation from imaginable misuse.

Travelling to nan United States from India successful 2025 comes pinch a caller group of rules. US visa applicants should hole for important changes, arsenic nan US Embassy has discontinued third-party passport collection, raised exertion fees, and tightened regulations for students, tourists, and minors.

The US Embassy successful India has rolled retired sweeping updates to its visa process, reshaping nan acquisition for Indian tourists, students, and moving professionals. Effective August 1, 2025, third-party passport pickup will nary longer beryllium permitted, requiring each applicant to cod their ain passport successful person.

This move is portion of stricter information protocols aimed astatine safeguarding individual documents. Previously, authorised representatives could retrieve passports connected behalf of applicants, but that action has now been eliminated. The only objection applies to minors, wherever a genitor aliases ineligible guardian must look successful personification and coming an original consent missive signed by some parents—digital scans aliases emailed copies will not beryllium accepted.

Passport Collection Methods successful India

• Collect successful person – Retrieve your passport straight from nan assigned pickup centre erstwhile visa processing is complete.
• Premium courier service – Have your passport delivered to your location aliases workplace for ₹1,200 by booking nan work done your ustraveldocs.com account.

For immoderate method problems, applicants should usage nan “Feedback/Requests” characteristic connected nan charismatic website alternatively than contacting nan helpline.

Documents Needed for Passport Collection

For Adults

• Original, valid Indian government-issued photograph ID that includes your address
• Photocopy of nan aforesaid ID
• Copy of nan assignment missive (optional but helps velocity up nan process)

For Minors

• Birth certificate aliases valid schoolhouse ID card
• Original and photocopy of a genitor aliases ineligible guardian’s Indian government-issued photograph ID pinch address
• Original consent missive signed by some parents
• Photocopies of some parents’ IDs showing address

Accepted IDs – Passport bio-data page, elector ID, driving licence, Aadhaar card
Not Accepted – Employment ID cards, elder national cards, PAN cards

Key US Visa Policy Shifts for 2025

The United States has unveiled a bid of awesome migration and visa reforms nether President Donald Trump’s latest directives, bringing notable changes for Indian tourists, students, and professionals.

Visa Bonds for Certain Countries
Visitors applying for tourer aliases business visas from circumstantial “high-risk” nations whitethorn now beryllium required to deposit a enslaved ranging from USD 5,000 to USD 15,000 to discourage overstays. This argumentation will initially impact travellers from Zambia and Malawi but whitethorn later beryllium extended to different countries.

Introduction of a USD 250 Visa Integrity Fee
Beginning successful 2026, holders of non-immigrant visas—such arsenic B-1/B-2, F, M, H-1B, and J categories—must salary a refundable USD 250 “Visa Integrity Fee.” This magnitude will beryllium returned only if nan traveller departs nan US wrong nan authorised play aliases legally adjusts their migration status.

Tighter Marriage-Based Green Card Rules
Applicants seeking a marriage-based Green Card will now look heightened scrutiny, including mandatory in-person interviews, stricter verification of narration authenticity, and a deeper reappraisal of anterior migration records.

Additional Travel-Related Charges

• USD 24 I-94 interest for each non-immigrant visa holders
• USD 13 ESTA complaint for travellers utilizing nan Visa Waiver Program
• USD 30 EVUS registration interest for Chinese nationals pinch 10-year B-1/B-2 visas

Rollback of Interview Waivers
From September 2, 2025, astir applicants—including children nether 14 and seniors supra 79—will request to be in-person visa interviews, ending galore existing exemptions.

Impact connected Indian Applicants
For Indian travellers, these changes could importantly summation nan wide costs of a US tourer aliases business visa. What presently costs USD 185 (around ₹15,855) whitethorn emergence to astir USD 472 (about ₹40,456) erstwhile factoring successful nan Visa Integrity Fee, I-94 fee, and different caller surcharges.