Mexican nationals were granted over 2.3 million visas last year, representing 22.3 percent of all visas issued for the year.
According to the Bureau of Consular Affairs of the Department of State, 10.4 million visas were issued in 2023, with the majority of those being granted to nationals in the North American Continent and 2.3 million in South America, VisaGuide.World reports.
The number of visas issued in 2023 was 53.1 per cent higher than in 2022 when 6.8 million applications for visas were approved.
What Are the Top 10 Nationalities With Most Visas Granted?
With Mexicans holding the first position for most visas issued in 2023, Indians follow next with 1.3 million visas and Brazilians are the third nationality, receiving nearly 1.1 million visas.
The US authorities issued 4.7 million visas to these three nationalities alone, accounting for 47.8 percent of all visas issued for the year.
The list of top ten countries of origin for visa candidates in 2023 is further concluded with Colombia and China, ranking fourth and fifth respectively, but with considerably fewer visas issued to nationals of these countries, compared to the top three.
A total of 476,293 visas were issued to Colombians in 2023, close to 417,008 issued to Chinese nationals.
Less than half of visas issued to Colombians were issued to Argentinians (291,892), Filipinos (285,860) and Ecuadorians (274,788). Israelis and Vietnamese represent the eighth and ninth nationality groups that were granted most visas by US authorities in 2023, receiving 190,415 and 133,781 visas, respectively.
As per countries that received fewer visas, those include Palau (13), North Korea (16), Monaco and Vatican City (25 each). The main reason for the relatively low number of visas issued to these countries can be related to the low demand, as these countries (excluding North Korea) have a small population – less than 40,000.
Visa Applications From Countries in North America Surpassed Pre-Pandemic Levels
The COVID-19 situation has impacted visa applicants from around the world, as there were travel restrictions in place that hindered movement.
Visa issuance rates have yet to reach pre-pandemic levels when 8.7 million visas were issued by the American government. However, countries in the North American continent have surpassed the pre-pandemic levels, with visa applications in 2019 being at just a little over two million. In 2023, more than three million visas were issued to nationals of this region, which includes countries like Mexico, Jamaica, Cuba, Haiti and Panama, among others.