EB-5 Visa Numbers Exhausted for India: What Investors Should Know
The U.S. Department of State, in coordination with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), confirmed that as of June 5, 2026, every immigrant visa available in the Employment-Based Fifth Preference (EB-5) unreserved category has been issued to applicants chargeable to India for fiscal year (FY) 2026. The practical effect of this is that U.S. embassies and consulates cannot issue any additional EB-5 unreserved visas to India-chargeable applicants until the new fiscal year begins.
What is an EB-5?
The EB-5 program offers a path to permanent residence for foreign nationals who invest in a U.S. commercial enterprise and generate jobs for American workers. The "unreserved" portion of the program, which includes the C5, T5, I5, R5, RU, and NU classifications, covers standard investments that are not set aside for rural, highunemployment, or infrastructure projects. In recent years, a growing number of Indian investors have turned to EB-5 as an alternative to the heavily backlogged EB-2 and EB3 categories.
The Numbers Behind the Cutoff
Visa availability in the EB-5 category is governed by a set of statutory limits. Under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), the EB-5 category receives 7.1 percent of the total worldwide employment-based visa allocation each year, and 68 percent of that figure goes to the unreserved classifications. This year's supply was also supplemented by a provision of the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022, which allows unused reserved visas from FY 2024 to flow into the unreserved categories for FY 2026. On top of this is the per-country ceiling: no country's nationals can claim more than seven percent of the combined employment-based and family-sponsored total, distributed proportionally across categories. Demand from India has been strong enough to consume that entire allocation with nearly four months left in the fiscal year.
Where Pending Cases Stand
However, applicants with cases already in the pipeline should not interpret this announcement as a denial. Nothing about a pending application changes other than its timing; cases will simply hold in place until visa numbers are replenished. The annual limits reset on October 1, 2026, the first day of FY 2027, at which point consular posts may once again issue EB-5 unreserved visas to qualified India-chargeable applicants.
Who Should Be Paying Attention
The pause is relevant for Indian nationals awaiting EB-5 unreserved interviews or visa issuance at consular posts abroad, those with pending adjustment of status applications tied to the unreserved category, and prospective investors weighing EB-5 as their route to a green card.
Looking Ahead
Although this is a temporary interruption, it is a reminder that even the EB-5 program is affected by the numerical pressures facing India-chargeable applicants throughout the employment-based system. Investors should use the coming months to ensure their cases are documentarily complete and ready to proceed the moment numbers return in October. Should you find that your immigration circumstance is affected by this announcement, we encourage you to reach out to the immigration department at Pasricha & Patel, LLC to speak to our immigration attorneys, who can help you navigate the appropriate next steps.