{
  "id": 17542827,
  "title": "US Green Card Backlog: Indians Account For 91% Of EB-2 Queue With 3.56 Lakh Cases",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/01/us-green-card-backlog-indians-account-for-91-of-eb-2-queue-with-3-56",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-11-01T04:55:34.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Free Press Journal",
    "slug": "free-press-journal",
    "url": "https://www.freepressjournal.in/world/us-green-card-backlog-indians-account-for-91-of-eb-2-queue-with-356-lakh-cases"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Washington: Indian nationals make up around 91 percent of the green card petitions awaiting visas in the advanced-degree employment-based second preference (EB-2) category, according to US Citizenship and Immigration Services data, highlighting how country-specific caps keep Indian professionals at the back of the line. As of June 2026, there were 391,296 approved EB-2 petitions awaiting green cards, with 356,360 of those belonging to individuals born in India, or approximately 91.1 percent. China accounted for 34,936 EB-2 petitions, or around 8.9 percent of the total. No EB-2 petitions are waiting for visas for Mexico, the Philippines, or other countries. Across all employment-based categories, 856,662 approved petitions were waiting for visa availability, with India accounting for 491,773, or about 57.4 percent. The data only include primary beneficiaries, excluding dependents such as spouses and children who would significantly lengthen the queue. The numbers also do not account for individuals who have already obtained permanent residency or citizenship. The issue is driven by a statutory limit that caps the number of employment-based green cards a single country can receive annually at 7 percent. Due to high demand from Indian professionals, who often enter the US on H-1B visas, Indians face the longest wait times. The backlog has persisted despite the administration's efforts to tighten rules for the H-1B program, the primary pathway for Indian professionals seeking green cards, and the suspension of several technology companies from the PERM labor certification program in October.",
  "summary": "Washington : Indian nationals account for about 91 per cent of approved advanced-degree green card petitions stuck waiting for a visa number, according to US Citizenship and Immigration Services data, underlining how per-country caps keep Indian professionals at the back of the queue. USCIS data as of June 2026 show 391,296 approved petitions in the employment-based second preference (EB-2)…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}