An F-1 visa applicant recently revealed how their agent tried to scam them. The applicant said on Reddit that the agent demanded an extra ₹20,000 to book an “early” appointment slot.
The student already had an approved I-20 and DS-160 forms for starting school in August of this year. However, they had been unable to get an interview slot at the US Embassy, and had to defer their admission to January 2027.
Their agent then claimed that they found an October slot, and demanded ₹20,000 to book it. When the applicant refused, the agent cancelled this supposed slot, and the applicant even received a cancellation mail.
They currently have no available slots to book, and their I-20 still shows a start date of August 2026.
Experts have strongly advised the applicant to ditch their agent. Such agents often charge many times the actual visa fee to extract as much money as possible.
It is completely feasible for an applicant to manage their applications and appointments by themselves. Many agents even use automated scripts to get slots, which can lead to account suspension.
While long wait times has made paying agents common, the visa process can be easily done alone. The applicant was advised to contact their DSO and have a new I-20 form issued for a January 2027 start date.
In that time, they can complete the process on their own and monitor for open slots without a high agent fee.
