Brand USA president Fred Dixon told reporters in Bengaluru on 22 January that India is now the United States’ second-largest overseas source market, with visitor arrivals up 40 percent compared with 2019 (economictimes.indiatimes.com). More than two million Indians travelled to the U.S. in 2025, displacing the United Kingdom from the number-two slot for the first time.
The surge is driven by rising disposable incomes, the popularity of long-stay self-drive holidays and anticipation of hallmark events such as the 2026 FIFA World Cup and America’s 250th Independence anniversary. Indian travellers are also venturing beyond traditional gateways like New York and San Francisco to secondary cities in the Midwest and mountain states, spurred by expanded air services and aggressive destination marketing.
For corporate mobility planners, the trend means tighter competition for business-class seats on non-stop India–U.S. routes during peak seasons, as leisure demand crowds premium cabins. Companies may need to lock in tickets earlier or route via Europe or the Gulf. U.S. hotels in tech hubs such as Austin and Raleigh are reporting double-digit growth in Indian corporate spend, suggesting firms should renegotiate volume-based rates.
The numbers come even as visa wait-times remain lengthy, highlighting a paradox: demand rises despite consular bottlenecks. U.S. Travel Association analysts argue that if interview backlogs were cut to under 60 days, Indian arrivals could exceed three million by 2027, delivering an extra $4 billion in export revenue to the U.S.
Amid these constraints, digital visa facilitation platforms such as VisaHQ can lighten the administrative load for both leisure and corporate travellers. Through its India-dedicated portal (https://www.visahq.com/india/), VisaHQ offers real-time tracking of U.S. appointment slots, document pre-screening and group-application management, enabling travellers and mobility managers to snag last-minute openings and reduce costly errors.
Indian outbound-travel bodies welcomed the milestone but urged Washington to restore domestic-renewal options for H-1B and B-1/B-2 visas to sustain momentum. In the interim, travel managers should monitor visa-appointment lead times in Mumbai and Hyderabad and consider filing for expedited slots tied to conference invitations or critical project kick-offs.
