The U.S. Department of State released the July 2026 Visa Bulletin on June 16, showing India's employment-based second preference (EB-2) and fifth preference unreserved (EB-5) categories as "unavailable," meaning no new applications in those categories can be filed after June 2026 until the categories reopen, according to the bulletin.

Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, the worldwide annual employment-based preference limit is at least 140,000 visas, with a per-country cap of 25,620. The bulletin states that allocations were made in chronological order of priority dates for demand received by June 2, and categories become oversubscribed when demand exceeds the numerical limits.

In the EB-1 category, China's cutoff date moved forward to June 1, 2023, while India's cutoff date retrogressed to October 15, 2022. The EB-1 category remains current for all other countries of chargeability, the bulletin shows.

For EB-2, China maintains a cutoff date of September 1, 2021, and all other countries remain current. India's EB-2 category is listed as "U" (unavailable), meaning no visa numbers are authorized for issuance.

In the EB-3 category, India's cutoff date advanced to January 1, 2014, and China's cutoff date advanced to December 22, 2021. The cutoff date for all other countries advanced to August 1, 2024. For EB-3 Other Workers, India advanced to January 1, 2014; China remained at April 1, 2019; and all other countries advanced to March 1, 2022.

The EB-4 category cutoff date advanced to September 15, 2022. The bulletin notes that the EB-4 program for certain religious workers has been renewed through September 30, 2026, and will become unavailable if Congress does not renew it.

For EB-5 unreserved, India became unavailable, while China's unreserved cutoff date advanced to December 1, 2016. The EB-5 category remains current for all other chargeability areas and for the three set-aside categories (rural, high unemployment, and infrastructure) across all countries.

In family-sponsored preferences, the F2A category (spouses and children of permanent residents) cutoff date remained at January 1, 2025 for all countries except Mexico, which remained at January 1, 2024. The F2B category (unmarried sons and daughters of permanent residents) advanced to November 22, 2017 for all countries except Mexico and the Philippines.

The bulletin specifies that for July, F2A numbers exempt from the per-country limit are authorized for applicants from all countries with priority dates earlier than January 1, 2024. F2A numbers subject to the per-country limit are authorized for applicants chargeable to all countries except Mexico, with priority dates beginning January 1, 2024 and earlier than January 1, 2025.

Informational content only, not legal advice. Consult a licensed immigration attorney.