Indian professionals employed in the United States on H-1B visas are facing serious travel and employment disruptions as visa stamping delays in India now extend into 2027. With no new interview slots available for the rest of the current calendar year, many workers are being advised not to travel outside the US due to the risk of getting stranded.
According to current information, US consular offices in major Indian cities, including Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, and Kolkata, are no longer showing regular interview availability for H-1B visa stamping. Instead, applicants attempting to schedule appointments are seeing “NA” listed as the next available date, signaling that no interview slots are currently open.
Immigration attorney Emily Neumann highlighted the issue in a post on X, stating that she has not seen any new H-1B visa interview slots open in India for the past 50 days. She warned H-1B holders currently in the US against traveling to India for visa stamping.
“They are not in any hurry to give you a visa. They are trying to deny visas whenever they can,” Neumann wrote. “This is a completely different world from what we saw during the Biden administration. This administration does not want to give you a visa.”
The delays began in December 2025, when visa interviews originally scheduled for that month were postponed to March 2026. Those same appointments were later pushed to October 2026. In recent weeks, many applicants have seen their interview dates delayed yet again, this time into 2027.
The impact is being felt strongly across industries that rely heavily on H-1B workers, including technology, healthcare, and higher education. Employers are reporting project delays, disrupted teams, and increased operational costs. Some companies have allowed limited remote work from outside the U.S., while others have temporarily reassigned responsibilities to local staff.
Indian IT firms with large U.S. operations have reportedly increased hiring of American citizens to reduce dependence on visa holders and maintain continuity amid the uncertainty.
The annual H-1B cap remains at 85,000 visas, including 20,000 reserved for individuals with advanced degrees from U.S. institutions. However, recent changes to the lottery system place greater emphasis on salary levels and work experience, making the process more competitive.
Visa categories that require in-person interviews based on approved petitions, such as H, L, O, P, and Q, are currently marked as “NA” in the US Department of State’s appointment system. This indicates that all standard interview slots are fully booked, leaving applicants unable to schedule interviews.
For many Indian professionals, plans for short trips to India have been put on hold indefinitely. Those who do travel risk being stuck outside the US for months, affecting their jobs, families, and long-term immigration status.
