The United States Government Accountability Office is recommending that the State Department “reassess” how it allocates resources to its consular offices so it can shorten visa-processing delays.
In a report the GAO issued in April, the GAO said that although it hasn’t attempted to measure the impact of these delays, education, scientific, and business organizations are worried about the effect excessive wait times have on their areas of concern. According to the GAO study, during a six-month period In 2005-2006, 97 of the State Department’s 211 visa-issuing posts reported wait times of 30 or more days during at least one month of that the six-month period. The longest wait times were found in consular offices in India, Mexico, Cuba, Haiti, Brazil, and Paris.
For more on the GAO report, see the June issue of Corporate Meetings & Incentives.