Business Visits Rise But 30% Student Slump Drags Down India-US Travel In 2025

A sharp drop in student travel dragged down overall visits from India to the United States in 2025, even as business travel hit a record high. Total visits fell nearly six per cent to 20.60 lakh from 21.90 lakh in 2024, with student numbers declining by almost 30 per cent to 2.16 lakh—the lowest since 2021.

Records from the International Trade Administration (ITA), part of the US Department of Commerce, show student visits to the US peaked at 3.13 lakh in 2023 before falling to 2.16 lakh in 2025. The analysis of official data shows that the decline began in the first quarter (January to March) of 2025 and widened over the next two quarters, continuing through the year.

The slowdown appears to be continuing in 2026. Only 74,091 students visited

the US in the first quarter, compared with more than one lakh in the same period in each of the previous two years. Travel during the period was also affected by heightened tensions in West Asia since late February, which triggered flight disruptions, airspace closures and cancellations on some routes from India, including to the US.

Student Visa Issue

Student travel, which had remained largely stable between 2023 and 2024, saw a sharp decline in 2025 after the US Department of State announced expanded screening and vetting for visa applicants in June.

The DOS said it is using all available information, including online presence, in visa screening and vetting to identify applicants who are inadmissible to the United States, including those who pose a threat to national security.

The Ministry of External Affairs said in July that it had received several representations from Indian students and their families’ flagging difficulties in obtaining student visa appointments.

Business Visits on Rise

Business visits from India to the US remain lower than tourism and student travel but have risen sharply in the last two years.

In 2025, business was the only travel category to register growth, rising to 4.65 lakh from 4.41 lakh in 2024. In 2019, only 2.87 lakh people visited the US from India for business. After the Covid-19 disruption, visits rose consistently from 48,784 in 2021 to 1.26 lakh in 2022 and 2.63 lakh in 2023.

The impact of this rise is also visible in age groups. ITA data shows that while most age groups peaked in 2024 and declined in 2025, older cohorts bucked the trend. Travellers aged 45-54 (2.55 lakh) and 55-64 (3.20 lakh) recorded their highest levels in 2025.

In the age-wise grouping, the 25-34 age group remained the primary driver of visits to the US from India. The cohort grew from 2.49 lakh visits in 2015 to 6.15 lakh in 2025, after peaking at 6.76 lakh in 2024, consistently accounting for the largest share of travellers across the period.

Tourism Peaked in 2024

Visits to the US for pleasure and tourism also fell by about five per cent to 13.78 lakh in 2025 from 14.46 lakh in 2024, though tourism continues to account for the largest share of Indian travel to the US. In 2024, tourism accounted for about 67 per cent of total visits. Except for 2021 (55 per cent) and 2022 (70 per cent), the share of tourists in total visits has remained between 65 per cent and 68 per cent.

India’s rank among visit-generating countries improved to fourth in 2025 from fifth and sixth in previous years, an improvement from 11th rank globally in 2015 and 2016. In 2026, India ranked fifth in the January-March quarter, with 3.70 lakh visits to the US, the lowest in three years compared with 4.41 lakh in 2025 and 4.44 lakh in 2024.