Number of Indian visitors to US increases by 6.5%: figures

The number of Indians visiting the US in 2017 increased by 6.5 per cent compared with the previous year, according to latest figures released by the US National Travel and Tourism Office.

The US Department of Commerce's National Travel and Tourism Office (NTTO) released the data last week which stated that a total of 1,285,466 Indians travelled to the US in 2017, up from 1,206,771 the year before.

The NTTO's data are based on the number of individuals who passed through US ports of entry, including airports.

Reports of a decline in the number of visitors were incorrectly based on forecast numbers that are outdated and inaccurate, the US embassy in New Delhi said in a statement.

Earlier, there were reports that the number of Indians travelling to the US had dropped "significantly" in the first six months of 2017, with experts attributing the dip to important policy changes especially at home.

In 2016, a total of 1.17 million travellers from India visited the US, contributing USD 13.6 million toward the US economy, which was a 14 per cent increase over the year prior.