The U.S. Department of State has released its Visa Bulletin for July 2026 , and the headline development is a significant one for Indian employment-based applicants: the EB-2 (second preference) category for India is now Unavailable for the remainder of fiscal year 2026.
According to the bulletin, “Due to high demand and number use by aliens chargeable to India in the EB-2 visa category, India’s pro-rated EB-2 limit was reached and the category is unavailable for the remainder of FY 2026.” In practical terms, that means no new EB-2 immigrant visas or green cards can be issued to India-chargeable applicants until the new fiscal year begins on October 1, 2026, when fresh annual numbers become available.
Final Action Dates for July 2026 (Chart A):
- EB-1: India 01JUN23, China 15OCT22, All Other Areas Current
- EB-2: India Unavailable, China 01SEP21, All Other Areas Current
- EB-3: India 01JAN14, China 22DEC21, All Other Areas 01AUG24
For Rest-of-World applicants, EB-1 and EB-2 remain Current, while EB-3 advanced to August 1, 2024. China saw EB-2 hold steady at September 1, 2021 and EB-3 move forward to December 22, 2021. India’s EB-3 ticked forward slightly to January 1, 2014.
What this means for applicants: The India EB-2 freeze is a temporary, fiscal-year-end phenomenon, not a permanent policy change — the category should reopen with the October 2026 bulletin. For NIW and EB-2 petitioners chargeable to countries other than India and China, priority dates remain Current, meaning eligible applicants can continue to file adjustment of status. Indian-born NIW applicants whose EB-2 priority dates are not yet current may want to evaluate whether an EB-1A path (which remains far more current at June 1, 2023 for India) is a realistic alternative. Always confirm at uscis.gov/visabulletininfo whether USCIS is using the Final Action Dates or Dates for Filing chart for your adjustment filing.
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Source: Reddit r/USCIS