The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced that the annual limit for the EB-5 unreserved immigrant visa category for India has been reached for fiscal year 2026. This means that no new visas in this category will be issued until the start of the new fiscal year (FY 2027) on October 1, 2026. The category limit was reached in the first week of June, following a similar cap on EB-2 visas for India last month.
Understanding the EB-5 Visa Program
The EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program allows foreign investors to obtain a Green Card by investing in a U.S. business that creates jobs. Under current USCIS rules, applicants must invest at least $800,000 in a targeted employment area or infrastructure project and create at least 10 permanent full-time jobs for U.S. workers. The program has two categories: reserved and unreserved. Reserved visas are for rural projects and infrastructure projects, while unreserved visas cover all other investments, such as hotel businesses.
Legal Basis for Visa Limits
The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) limits the number of employment-based preference immigrant visas issued each fiscal year. Specifically, INA 203(b)(5) sets the annual limit for EB-5 visas at 7.1% of the worldwide employment limit, with 68% of that allocated to unreserved categories. Additionally, the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022 allows unused reserved visas from FY 2024 to be made available in the unreserved category for FY 2026. Under INA 202(a)(2), no single foreign state may receive more than 7% of total employment-based and family-sponsored visas, prorated among categories.
Who Is Affected?
Individuals who were scheduled to receive their Green Cards in the EB-5 unreserved category in July, August, or September 2026 will be affected by this pause. They must now wait until the next fiscal year, starting in October, for their turn. The exhaustion of visa numbers months before the fiscal year ends indicates a growing number of Indians obtaining Green Cards through this investment pathway, which typically has a waiting time of three to five years.
In comparison, the EB-2 visa category, commonly used by H-1B visa holders, also faces high demand from India with a significant backlog. The recent cap on EB-5 unreserved visas highlights the increasing popularity of this investment-based route among Indian nationals seeking permanent residency in the United States.
