An Indian entrepreneur has revealed that his US visa was denied, with the consulate citing “insufficient ties to home country” as the reason. Swapnil Srivastav expressed surprise at the reason behind the rejection, noting that he has built a successful business in India, employs over 100 people, and has family in the country too.
“Got denied a US visa today,” the founder of kidswear brand Kidbea said in an X post this afternoon.
(Also read: Bengaluru tech founder says his US visa was rejected after question on salary)
Reason for the rejection
Delhi NCR-based Swapnil Srivastav, who had applied for a visitor visa, said that the reason given to him was “Not enough ties to home country.”
“I built a Series A company from scratch, employ 100+ people, have backing from top VCs and investors, and serve millions of Indian families through our brand,” he revealed in his X post. “Apparently, that’s not enough ties,” he added sarcastically.
According to Tracxn, Kidbea is valued at ₹137 crore. The series A company, based in Noida, was founded by Swapnil Srivastav, Mohammad Hussain, Aman Kumar Mahto and Ankita Rani in 2021.
Srivastav said that he will reapply for a visa soon. “Founders are used to hearing ‘no’. Will reapply after some time,” he said. He ended his post by asking others who have been in a similar position to advise him on the best way forward.
X users share experiences
“Have seen this trick working in most of the cases. Book any Event ticket happening in USA, that should be your purpose of visit. This eliminates the number of questions and makes the process smooth. As it makes sure once event is done, you’ll fly back to your home country,” X user Reeya suggested.
“This is unfortunate, a friend of mine spent 4 years in the US got O1 Visa and when she went back to India she was denied on similar grounds,” another replied.
One X user revealed that their US visa was denied five times. “Wish you luck for your next application. I was rejected 5 times before I got US stamp on my passport. They don’t care what you have worked on. They only want fixed and cash assets reasonable enough for you to return. Rest all is useless according to them,” the user said.
(Also read: Indian CEO’s US visa denied, he says ‘Train your consulate teams better’)
“Building a company that employs 100+ people sounds like a strong tie to India. But visa officers aren’t judging success. They’re judging the probability of you returning,” one person said in the comments section, to which Srivastav replied: “I have a company to run here in India that I’ve been giving pretty much 24 hours a day for the last 5 years. On top of that, I have my parents and family, with whom I love spending time. Trust me, I have plenty of reasons to come back home!”
