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Indian man says his US visa for Florida holiday was rejected in less than a minute - INDEPENDENT
BY Rebecca Whittaker
An Indian man claimed his U.S. visa for a dream holiday to Florida was rejected in less than a minute after answering just three questions.
The man who was applying for a visa which is typically used for tourism or short business visits shared his ordeal on social media site Reddit, in hopes of finding out why he was rejected.
In his post, the man with the username "nobody01810" shared that he appeared for the visa interview at the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi.
"I had my B1/B2 visa interview at the U.S. Embassy recently, and I was rejected in less than a minute after just three questions. I'm trying to understand what went wrong and how I can improve for next time," he said.
He says he was asked by the interviewer: "Why do you want to travel to the US? Have you travelled outside of India? And do you have any family or friends in the US?"
The applicant said he answered all three questions honestly explaining he wanted a holiday in Florida, had no prior international travel experience and did have a girlfriend living in Florida.
But the US embassy officer apparently wasn't convinced, and his visa was said to have been denied in less than a minute.
Commenting on the incident he wrote: "What do you think triggered the quick rejection? Could I have answered differently while still being honest? Should I have avoided mentioning my girlfriend if my trip was meant to be for tourism? What steps would you recommend before reapplying?"
The user did not explain how or why he had a girlfriend living in Florida if he had no history of international travel.
Scores of comments followed the post in the USvisascheduling channel, discussing why he was rejected and what else he could have done.
It comes as Trump takes a tougher stance on visas which has seen him not only crackdown on illegal immigrants, but legal immigrants and tourists.
In March a French scientist was refused entry to the US after airport immigration officers found messages on his phone criticizing the Trump administration, according to the French government.
The space researcher had traveled to Texas for a conference near Houston, a source told AFP.
When he arrived in the US the researcher was subject to a random check, including a search of his work computer and his personal phone.
Officers had found messages discussing the Trump administration’s treatment of scientists, the source added.
The researcher was reportedly accused of writing messages “that reflect hatred toward Trump and can be described as terrorism,” and his equipment was confiscated before he was put on a plane back to Europe the following day.
