The U.S. Department of State has confirmed that the employment-based EB-2 quota for India is now fully exhausted for fiscal-year 2026, rendering the category “unavailable” until 1 October 2026. The announcement—reflected in the June Visa Bulletin and dissected by EB-5 advisory site Beyond EB-5 on 29 May—means no new green cards can be issued to Indians under EB-2 (advanced degree or exceptional ability) for the next four months. The shutdown deepens an already grim backlog: the final-action date had stalled at 1 September 2013, implying a 12-year wait even before numbers ran out. While USCIS will continue accepting adjustment-of-status filings where dates are current, adjudication cannot be finalised without an available visa number. Thousands of Indian H-1B holders in the queue now face renewed uncertainty over job mobility, travel and spouse work authorisation. Paradoxically, Congress’s 2022 EB-5 Reform & Integrity Act carved out separate visa pools—20 % for rural, 10 % for high-unemployment projects—that remain “Current” for India. Investors able to deploy USD 800,000 into a qualifying rural project can file an I-526E petition and, if inside the U.S., a concurrent I-485, obtaining work and travel permits within months. Advisories note a 30 September 2026 grandfathering deadline to lock in today’s rules. Indian corporates now face critical talent-planning choices. Options include: (1) maintaining key staff on H-1B extensions while absorbing travel-risks; (2) exploring inter-company L-1 transfers; or (3) supporting executives in self-petition categories such as EB-1 C multinational manager or the EB-5 investment route. Immigration counsel recommend beginning PERM audits early for FY 2027 filings in case next year’s quota again disappears rapidly. Take-away for employees: file any EB-2-based I-485 promptly if your priority date is current under Chart B; renew advance-parole documents well in advance; and assess whether an EB-5 reserved petition could offer a faster, employer-independent path to a green card.
Source: Beyond EB-5
