World
US Warns EB-1 Green Card Category for Indians Could Close Before Fiscal Year Ends
By Nischai Vats
Indian applicants seeking US green cards under the EB-1 category may encounter a fresh obstacle, as the US State Department has cautioned that this visa tier could become unavailable before the fiscal year concludes on September 30 due to overwhelming demand.
The EB-1 classification, formally known as the employment-based first-preference green card, is reserved for priority workers. This includes individuals with extraordinary abilities, distinguished professors or researchers, and certain executives or managers at multinational companies.
The warning was issued in the September Visa Bulletin published by the State Department, which noted that the EB-1 category might exhaust India's allocated quota in the coming weeks, ahead of the fiscal year's conclusion.
According to the bulletin, "High demand and number use by aliens chargeable to India in the EB-1 visa category may necessitate making the category unavailable in the coming weeks if India's pro-rated limit in the EB-1 category is reached before the fiscal year ends."
Final action dates play a critical role for visa applicants, as they determine when an immigrant visa number becomes available, allowing for the official approval of a green card or permanent residency status.
The department stated it would keep monitoring the situation closely, adding that "any necessary adjustments will be made accordingly." Should India's EB-1 allocation be used up before the September 30 deadline, the category would become unavailable for the remainder of the fiscal year.
Data from the State Department's website shows that for fiscal year 2026, the worldwide limit for Employment-Based preference visas, as mandated under Section 201 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, stands at 186,317. Each country is capped at 7 per cent of the combined total employment annual limits, translating to 28,862 visas per country.
For Indian nationals, the September filing dates chart lists December 1, 2023, as the relevant date for EB-1 applicants, while EB-2 and EB-3 categories use January 15, 2015, as their reference date.
The State Department reiterated that visa categories may be marked "Unavailable" before the fiscal year's end if overall limits, category-specific limits, or pro-rated per-country limits are met.