Hi,
I applied for a H1B visa and got a green slip asking to submit a new passport along with the green slip. However, it fails to mention the reason why they need a new passport, which is a bit mysterious as my passport is valid for 18 months and their eligibility criteria is at least 6 month’s validity. Also, I can’t renew my passport right now as Indian Govt requires passports to be valid for less than a year for renewal. I assumed that US Consulated meant reissue the passport instead(probably they think it’s damaged for some reason?) and went to PSK to get the new passport but the officials said that the passport doesn’t qualify as damaged, although they agreed to reissue one. I’m now concerned that the US Consulate probably meant something else that I’m not aware of. Has this issue been encountered before and if so, what were the steps taken?