The State Department released the February 2026 visa bulletin on January 8, 2026, with significant news for Indian EB-5 applicants. India priority dates advanced substantially to June 2022 from May 2021 the previous month, marking the largest single-month movement in the India EB-5 category since early 2022. The advancement was attributed to strong approval processing at the Vermont Service Center and increased approval rates for India-origin cases.
For the first time in more than two years, industry analysts project that India could reach current visa availability within 18 to 24 months at the current processing velocity. India nationals currently comprise approximately 40 percent of all EB-5 petitioners, making this advancement significant for program dynamics overall. The acceleration has reinvigorated investor interest and prompted several regional centers to announce new project launches targeting India capital sources.
Other country categories showed modest movement: China advanced by 10 days to current status for certain investor categories, Vietnam remained unchanged at current status, and Taiwan advanced by one week. The strong India movement comes after years of advocacy from immigration professionals regarding the structural challenges facing India-origin applicants. USCIS indicated that continued resource allocation to Vermont Service Center processing should maintain momentum for India category advancement.
EB-5 investors and petitioners, regional center operators, foreign nationals, visa applicants and consular officers
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