Ahmedabad/Rajkot: What began as a joyful homecoming has turned into a nightmare for a 27-year-old logistics manager from New York. The young professional came to Ahmedabad to spend time with his parents after two years apart, with a Dec 15 appointment for visa stamping on his passport by the US embassy here. Visa stamping is a mandatory official document allowing the visa holder to gain entry back into the US.Then came the email that changed everything. “On Dec 12, I received a message that the appointment has been rescheduled. I am spending sleepless nights wondering when I will get my next appointment, and whether I’ll still have my job and visa if this drags on.” Understanding the situation, his employer offered him a four-month work-from-home window. But company policy is clear: without a visa stamp, they can’t continue the arrangement. “I am not sure what I will do for a year,” he says.Across Gujarat, families are grappling with an unprecedented H-1B visa crisis. In the past six months, the US has altered its visa landscape by raising employer fees to $100,000 for hiring skilled foreign workers, disrupting H-4 spouse work authorisation extensions and triggering massive backlogs at consulates.However, what has hit the H-1B visa holders most is the sudden non-availability of visa stamping slots in India for which the date now extends till 2027.As a result, many Gujarat professionals in the US are deferring their plans to visit hometowns to meet their families or attend social events, fearing they might not be able to go back to the US. An Ahmedabad professional, employed with a tech giant in Silicon Valley on an H1B visa, says he cannot visit India to care for his ailing father. “My father is in the hospital, and as an only child, it is my responsibility to care for him. My employer has advised me not to leave the US. In a worst-case scenario, I will have to quit my job,” he says.An IT professional in Texas cancelled his plans to attend a wedding in Gandhinagar in early Feb. “My tickets were booked. I was ready to go in mid-Jan,” he explains. “When the appointment crisis hit, I informed the family I could not make it. If I cannot get visa stamping done, I will be stuck in India.”Another professional working in Boston has not been to India in two-and-a-half years. “I was planning to visit my parents at the end of 2025, but was told this is not the right time,” he says. “Without stamping, I will not be allowed to re-enter the US. And the earliest available date is in 2027.” Visa and immigration consultants in the city say the only option is to wait and watch.“Dec to Feb is typically NRI season, when many visit India,” says Ritesh Desai, an immigration consultant. “But this year, you will notice that there aren’t many NRIs from the US here, especially H-1B visa holders. Those who are here without new dates face a year-long wait. Companies are advising employees to stay put in the US.”“Once the golden ticket to the US and a pathway to permanent residence, H-1B is now a difficult category,” says Lalit Advani, another consultant. “Several US firms have issued advisories to H-1B employees, and online forums are tracking every rule change.”Some professionals previously travelled to Canada for visa stamping, but new regulations now require them to return to India. “We have numerous cases where professionals are deferring visits to their hometowns this year,” Advani adds.(Names withheld to protect respondents’ identities)
