The United States has exhausted all available Employment-Based Fifth Preference (EB-5) unreserved immigrant visas for applicants chargeable to India for fiscal year 2026, the US Department of State announced. As a result, US embassies and consulates will not be able to issue additional visas in these categories to Indian applicants until the new fiscal year begins on October 1, 2026.
According to the State Department, the annual limit for EB-5 visas allocated to Indian applicants was reached on June 5, following coordination with the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
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What the move means for Indian applicants
The pause affects the EB-5 unreserved visa categories, which include C5, T5, I5, R5, RU and NU. These visas are issued under the immigrant investor programme, which allows foreign nationals to obtain permanent residency by making qualifying investments in the United States.
The State Department said US law places annual limits on employment-based immigrant visas. Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, EB-5 visas account for 7.1% of the worldwide employment-based immigrant visa allocation, with 68% reserved for unreserved EB-5 categories.
In addition, no single country can receive more than a specified share of employment-based and family-sponsored immigrant visas, resulting in country-specific caps that can be reached before the end of a fiscal year.
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Visa issuance to resume in FY2027
With all available FY2026 EB-5 unreserved visas for Indian applicants now used, embassies and consulates have been instructed not to issue any further visas in these categories for the remainder of the fiscal year.
The State Department said annual visa allocations will reset at the start of fiscal year 2027 on October 1, 2026. At that point, embassies and consulates may resume issuing EB-5 unreserved immigrant visas to qualified Indian applicants.
The announcement applies only to the EB-5 unreserved category for applicants chargeable to India and does not affect other visa categories.
