Washington, August 3, 2026: The US State Department has warned that India’s allocation in the employment-based first-preference, or EB-1, immigrant-visa category could be exhausted before the end of the current fiscal year.
The August 2026 Visa Bulletin keeps India’s EB-1 final-action date at October 15, 2022. However, the department said strong demand and continued visa use could force it to mark the category “unavailable” if India reaches its annual limit before September 30.
“Unavailable” would mean that no additional immigrant-visa numbers could be issued in that category until numbers become available again. The warning does not mean that EB-1 has already been closed for Indian applicants.
Separately, India’s EB-2 allocation has already been exhausted for the remainder of fiscal year 2026. US embassies and consulates cannot issue additional EB-2 immigrant visas chargeable to India before the new fiscal year begins on October 1. Availability after that date will depend on the fiscal 2027 allocation and outstanding demand.
Applicants should review their priority dates and obtain case-specific advice before making employment or travel decisions.
