The State Department estimates that as of April of this year more than 840,000 applicants for the special visa program and their family members remain in Afghanistan, the report said. Not everyone who applies is accepted; the State Department noted that about 50% of applicants do not qualify when their applications are reviewed at a key stage early in the process.
The department also said that since the start of the Biden administration in January 2021 through August 1 of this year, it has issued nearly 34,000 visas for the applicants and their family members, which it said was a substantial increase from previous years.
