'Student visas can be isued 365 days in advance' - US expands application window to clear backlog

The United States government has revealed that it granted Nigerians and Ghanaians the highest number of student visas in 2022 than at any other time in history.

The US Department of State disclosed this via the Canadian educational organisation ApplyBoard.

Part of the report reads: “Nigeria and Ghana will be particularly interesting to watch over the next couple of years — both were issued the most student visas in their histories in 2022.

“As the US grows in popularity among African and Indian students, the short-term trade-off may be slightly lower approval rates. But the long-term benefits could help fast-track the recovery of the US international education sector.”

Breakdown of visas issued

As reported by the Voice of America, the number of visas granted to African students in 2022 surpassed 30,700, which marked a significant increase from the 23,229 visas issued in the previous fiscal year.

The report also highlighted that in 2018 at least 21,037 visas were awarded to African students. However, due to the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak, the issuance of student visas to Africa dropped to 7,333 in 2020, a notable decline from the 20,165 visas granted in 2019.

In 2022, the United States issued over 411,000 student visas, representing a 15% rise from the 2021 figure of 357,839.