India green card wait can stretch 13+ years: Birthplace decides timeline

US green card wait time: From EB-2 backlogs to per-country caps, here's why Indian applicants can wait over a decade despite fast USCIS processing

Applied for a green card and trying to work out when you might finally get it? The answer could be six months or 13 years and counting. It depends largely on where you were born.

 

US immigration attorney Brad Bernstein, in a social media post, broke down how nationality and visa quotas shape the waiting time far more than paperwork speed.

 

He shared an example for Indian applicants.

 

“If you're from India and you've been approved to work in the national interest. That means the government says you're important. If you file right now, you will get it in at least 13 years,” he said.

   

“Imagine you work in the national interest and have to wait more than a decade to come and help the United States,” he added.

 

For applicants from the Philippines, the delay can also stretch into years.

 

“Imagine you met a lovely couple while they were traveling internationally. They want to sponsor you as their nanny for their newborn baby. You will have to wait at least four years,” he said.

 

He pointed to the EB-3 category backlog. “By the time you get here to help raise that baby, that baby's in school.”

 

The contrast, he said, can be dramatic.

 

“You were born in the UK, and your dad gives you a million dollars to get the Trump Gold Card. You'll get your green card in probably less than a year,” he said.

 

“Trump wants these gold cards processed fast, and the EB-1 category is current.”

 

Processing time and visa backlogs are not the same thing

 

Bernstein said many applicants confuse two separate stages in the system.

 

“Green card processing time and visa backlogs are two very different stages in the US immigration system,” he said.

 

According to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), green card processing time refers to how long the government takes to process an application once a person is eligible to apply.

 

For example:

 

• Form I-140 (immigrant petition) processing time

• Form I-485 (adjustment of status) processing time

• Consular processing at a US embassy

 

If there were no quota limits, this would be the only waiting period. Depending on the category, it could range from a few months to a couple of years.

 

Visa backlogs and the Visa Bulletin

 

The United States issues a limited number of green cards each year under categories created by the Immigration and Nationality Act. These include employment-based and family-based streams. Each category is also subject to a per-country cap, no country can receive more than roughly 7 per cent of the total in most categories.

 

For high-demand countries such as India and China, this creates long queues.

 

The US Department of State publishes a monthly Visa Bulletin. It shows:

 

• Final action dates: Who can actually receive a green card

• Dates for filing: Who can submit paperwork earlier

 

An applicant’s place in line is determined by the priority date, usually the date the employer filed the immigrant petition.

 

If that priority date is not “current” in the Visa Bulletin, a green card cannot be issued, even if the application itself has already been processed.

 

Why quotas add years to the wait

 

Take this example.

 

An Indian professional files under EB-2 in 2026.

 

Even if:

 

• USCIS processes the I-140 in six months

• The I-485 takes 12 months

 

They still cannot receive the green card until the priority date becomes current in the Visa Bulletin.

 

For some Indian applicants in EB-2 and EB-3, the backlog stretches well beyond a decade because annual demand far exceeds the per-country limit.

 

In practical terms, processing might take one to two years, but the total wait could be 10 to 15 years or more. That gap is the visa backlog.

 

Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, both family-sponsored and employment-based visas are subject to annual numerical limits. The yearly cap for family-sponsored immigrants is 226,000 visas. Employment-based visas are also capped and divided across five preference categories.

 

No single country can receive more than 7 per cent of the total annual visas in either stream. When demand exceeds supply, categories become oversubscribed. Final action dates are then set based on the priority date of the first applicant who could not be accommodated within the limit.

 

India, along with China (mainland born), Mexico and the Philippines, remains subject to visa prorating rules in several categories because of sustained demand. Spouses and children of principal applicants are counted against the same limits and receive the same priority dates.

 

Where India stands currently

 

Family-sponsored green cards: Final action dates for India

 

F1: November 8, 2016

F2A: February 1, 2024

F2B: December 1, 2016

F3: September 8, 2011

F4: November 1, 2006

 

Family-sponsored green cards: Dates for filing for India

 

F1: September 1, 2017

F2A: January 22, 2026

F2B: March 15, 2017

F3: July 22, 2012

F4: December 15, 2006

 

Employment-based green cards: Final action dates for India

 

EB-1: February 1, 2023

EB-2: July 15, 2013

EB-3: November 15, 2013

Other workers: November 15, 2013

EB-4: January 1, 2021

Certain religious workers: Unavailable

EB-5 unreserved: May 1, 2022

EB-5 rural: Current

EB-5 high unemployment: Current

EB-5 infrastructure: Current

 

Employment-based green cards: Dates for filing for India

 

EB-1: August 1, 2023

EB-2: December 1, 2013

EB-3: August 15, 2014

Other workers: August 15, 2014

EB-4: March 15, 2021

Certain religious workers: Unavailable

EB-5 unreserved: May 1, 2024

EB-5 set-aside categories: Current