The US Department of State has said it has issued all available immigrant visas under the Employment-Based Fifth Preference (EB-5) unreserved category for applicants chargeable to India for FY26. As a result, US embassies and consulates will stop issuing fresh visas in these categories until October 1, 2026, when the next fiscal year’s allocation opens.
The move affects Indian investors and their families who were planning to obtain permanent residency in the United States through investment-linked immigration.
What has happened?
The State Department said on June 10 that, working with US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), it had already used all available immigrant visa numbers in the EB-5 unreserved category for Indian applicants as of June 5.
“Since all available EB-5 unreserved visas for applicants chargeable to India in FY 2026 have been used, embassies and consulates may not issue visas in these categories for the remainder of the fiscal year,” the department said. It added that annual limits will reset at the beginning of FY27 on October 1, 2026, after which visa issuance may resume for eligible applicants.
The announcement applies only to the unreserved EB-5 stream and does not amount to a suspension of the broader EB-5 programme.
What is the EB-5 visa and why do Indians use it?
The EB-5 programme is a US immigration route that allows foreign nationals to apply for permanent residency by making qualifying investments in US businesses that generate employment.
Typically, the programme has attracted wealthy families, entrepreneurs and globally mobile professionals looking for long-term residence rights in the US, education opportunities for children and an alternative path to a green card outside employer-sponsored categories.
The current pause affects only unreserved categories — C5, T5, I5, R5, RU and NU — which account for most traditional EB-5 allocations.
Why did India hit the limit?
The restriction is rooted in US immigration law rather than a policy change directed at India.
Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, employment-based immigrant visas are capped annually. EB-5 visas account for 7.1 per cent of the worldwide employment-based visa allocation, and 68 per cent of those are available under unreserved categories. There is also a per-country ceiling that limits how many employment-based and family-sponsored visas applicants from one country can receive in a financial year.
The State Department also noted that unused reserved EB-5 visas from FY24 could be added into FY26 unreserved allocations under the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022, but even with that additional pool, Indian demand exhausted available numbers.
The development had been anticipated. Earlier US visa bulletins had warned that rising demand from India could force the category to become unavailable before the fiscal year ended.
What should Indian applicants expect now?
For applicants who were waiting for consular processing under the affected category, no fresh immigrant visas will be issued before October.
That does not necessarily mean applications disappear or need to be refiled. Instead, cases generally remain in queue until fresh visa numbers become available in the next fiscal cycle.
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