Hundreds of Indian applicants who had been waiting to appear in their US H-1B and H-4 visa interviews are now facing uncertainty due to their appointments being announced as having been rescheduled to October 2026 and previously rescheduled to February and March 2026.
According to reports, some of the applicants have reported their interview dates as late as October next year.
In the meantime, the American-based source, The American Bazaar, said that immigration attorneys had also been presented with the cases when appointments that were at first planned to be made in mid-January 2026 are postponed to October 2026.
Indian H-1B Applicants in Limbo
This has seen many Indians whose slot has been rescheduled urgently, encouraging applicants with January and February 2026 bookings to cancel their bookings, in the hope that this would enable rescheduled cases to be shifted to the old schedules.
Over the past several weeks, US consulates have been informing many applicants that their interview that was scheduled for either December or January, will be postponed to February or even March.
Why Indian H-1B, H-4 Visa Interviews Are Being Delayed Until 2026
The US authorities attribute the delays to be as a result of the increased processing time associated with the increased social media vetting process on visa applicants.
Professions in their hundreds are being left standing alone and most of them are separated to their families as their jobs hang on a thread due to countless cancellations.
Immigration lawyers informed The American Bazaar that mass cancellations and sudden re-scheduling of visa meet the eyes of applicants rescheduled to have their visa appointments as early as early 2026. They are currently being taken to the last quarter of the year.
The Department of State constantly changes appointments on a regular basis to suit the availability of resources. According to Deccan Chronicle, we will inform directly any change to the visa applicants who have been affected by it.
The underprivileged applicants should request employers to allow them to work or take a leave, should they be able, the option is the most appropriate despite the lack of legal action that can be taken in the immediate future, according to Sangeetha Mugunthan, an associate attorney at Somireddy Law Group PLLC told The American Bazaar.
Mugunthan further stated that direct legal action against the cancellation itself is difficult. I would recommend that the applicants record it all lest of losing the job or even risk losing the visa in the future.
Some of them had already reserved flights abroad, booked leaves or flown to India to stamp their Visas only to be informed that their appointment is no more.
In the case of people who already left the country, the effects are especially harsh, as they have to spend a long time without their families in the US and have few opportunities to do so.
H1B Visa Interview push leaves Indians furious
It is even being reported that with the recent announcements of the new delays, Indian expat forums and messaging groups were buzzing with anxiety and anger. The fact that many users can live under a cloud of uncertainty was described by many, and some questioned the possibility that the US was a viable long-term choice.
The Indian college admissions were earlier shaken by processing delays in F-1 student visa processing this year. Later on, the H-1B community was shaken with proposed changes to increase fees on work visas.
The H-1B interview has been postponed to the end of 2026. Hundreds of Indian professionals have reported that their careers and family life are on a thin thread, and they just do not see any light at the end of the tunnel.
