USCIS Alert: EB-2 India Visa Quota Exhausted, Green Card Processing Frozen Until October 2026

On May 22, 2026, the U.S. Department of State (DOS) officially announced that the Employment-Based Second Preference (EB-2) immigrant visa quota for India-born applicants has been exhausted for fiscal year 2026. This means the category is now unavailable through September 30, 2026, affecting both consular processing abroad and Adjustment of Status (AOS) filings within the United States. For employers sponsoring Indian-born workers in the EB-2 category, the immediate impact is significant. USCIS will not accept new AOS applications and has paused processing of all pending AOS applications for this category. Similarly, U.S. consular posts worldwide will not issue EB-2 immigrant visas to India-chargeable applicants for the remainder of the fiscal year. The reset will occur on October 1, 2026, when FY2027 annual visa limits take effect. At that point, consulates can resume issuing EB-2 India visas and USCIS will resume accepting and adjudicating AOS applications in accordance with the October 2026 Visa Bulletin cutoff dates. One important protection for affected workers remains in place: H-1B visa holders subject to retrogression under the EB-2 India category may be eligible for a 3-year extension of H-1B status beyond their normal maximum stay under the American Competitiveness in the 21st Century Act (AC21). This provision allows continued lawful employment while applicants wait for their priority dates to become current again. This development underscores the ongoing strain that per-country quotas place on high-demand nationals, particularly those from India. Employers and employees in this category should consult immigration counsel to evaluate whether AC21 extensions or alternative strategies are appropriate for maintaining work authorization through the October reset.