In 2023, the United States Department received a total of 698,773 student visa (F1) applications.
Out of those, the US granted visas to 445,418 students. On the other hand, a record number of 253,355 applications were denied, VisaGuide.World reports.
Furthermore, visa statistics revealed by the US Department show that the number of refused visas in 2023 is higher compared to the previous years. Regarding this, the Cato Institute, a research organization in the US, noted that in 2015, although receiving more applications, the US denied fewer visas than in 2023.
It now appears that the higher denial rates, which shot up in 2016, may have dissuaded some applicants from applying, and the absolute number of total student visa applicants has declined, and student visa issuances have declined 31 percent from 2015 to 2023.
Before students can apply for an F1 visa, they must first be accepted into a government-approved university. The Cato Institute explained that the denial of these visas may cost the United States billions of dollars lost in economic benefits.
This means that the US Department of State turned down 253,355 students who would have likely paid roughly $30,000 per year or $7.6 billion per year in tuition and living expenses. Over four years that number rises to $30.4 billion in lost economic benefits to the United States.
Over 140,000 Indian Students Granted Student Visas by US Last Year
The most represented foreign students last year were Indian students. According to the US Embassy in India, the US issued over 140,000 visas to Indian students, surpassing all other countries globally and setting a new record for the third consecutive year.
Individually, Mumbai, New Delhi, Hyderabad, and Chennai currently rank as the top four student visa processing posts worldwide, as further revealed by the embassy.
As a result of these surging numbers, Indian students have become the largest group of international graduate students in the United States and make up more than a quarter of the over one million foreign students studying in the United States.
Overall, US Refused 2.48 Million Visas Last Year
Combining all types of visas, the US Department received nearly 14 million applications last year. Of those, over 10.4 million visas were issued by 230 US embassies and consulates around the world.
Out of those, over one million visas were granted in March of last year, marking the highest number of visas issued since 2017. On the other hand, the US authorities denied 2.48 million visa applications last year.