A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit brought by an H-1B visa holder stranded in India for roughly 18 months after his consular interview, ruling that the delay in issuing his visa was not legally unreasonable. In an opinion issued July 10, 2026, U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Kelly of the District of Columbia rejected the mandamus claims of Navdeep Sharma, an Indian national who alleged the government had unlawfully sat on his case and asked the court to compel officials to act.
Sharma worked for Tata Consultancy Services and lived in Georgetown, Texas, with his wife and two children, all U.S. citizens. After attending his consular interview, he waited in India for about a year and a half, unable to return to his job or his family. In July 2025 his online case status changed to “Approved,” but when he returned to the consulate to collect his passport, officials again declined to issue the visa and instead requested information about his social media accounts. Sharma argued his case had been singled out for unusual treatment, noting the social media request came before such screening was publicly announced for H-1B applicants. The Trump administration has since imposed tougher social media vetting for many visa applicants as part of expanded security screening.
Judge Kelly found that Sharma had failed to show the senior officials he named were actually responsible for the delay. He noted that DHS had already approved the underlying H-1B petition and that Sharma’s claims about security checks holding up the case were speculative. While the court expressed sympathy for Sharma’s prolonged separation from his family, Kelly wrote that this hardship alone was not a reason to move him “to the front of the line” ahead of other applicants facing similar waits.
The ruling is a sobering reminder for the many skilled workers caught in “administrative processing” limbo — often flagged under Section 221(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act — after an otherwise approved petition. Mandamus lawsuits, which ask a court to order the government to make a decision, remain a tool for challenging unreasonable delay, but this decision underscores how high the bar can be: courts weigh factors like the length of the delay, the reasons behind it, and whether any official is genuinely to blame. Family hardship, however severe, is rarely enough on its own.
For H-1B professionals traveling abroad, the case highlights two growing risks: expanded social media screening that can extend background checks, and the difficulty of forcing a stalled consular case to move even after the petition is approved. Applicants facing long consular waits should document their timeline carefully, keep employers informed, and consult experienced counsel before filing litigation.
Need help with your immigration petition? Visit QuickFiling.us for AI-guided NIW and EB-1A petition preparation.
Source: Newsweek / Law360