Thousands of Indian H-1B visa holders who travelled to India in December for routine visa stamp renewals have been left stranded after US consulates abruptly cancelled their scheduled interviews. In several instances, appointments have been pushed back as far as October 2026. Immigration attorneys have described the situation as a “huge mess,” noting they have never witnessed such disorder before, with many uncertain whether there is any coherent strategy behind the sudden changes.
Reports from the Washington Post indicate that many of these workers, largely from the technology sector, had timed their India trips to coincide with the US holiday season, a common period for visa renewals. They now find themselves stuck with expired visas, unable to return to the US for work or to be with their families. The State Department has informed applicants that the delays stem from enhanced social media vetting procedures introduced under the Trump administration. The policy is intended to strengthen background checks on visa applicants in the interest of national security and public safety.
Immigration lawyers managing these cases report that dozens of their clients have been impacted. Some law firms have over 100 workers currently stranded. These individuals are predominantly seasoned professionals in their 30s and 40s, many working in critical sectors such as technology. The sudden disruption has triggered severe personal and professional consequences. Some workers who travelled with their children now confront tough decisions, such as whether to keep them out of school or send them back to the US unaccompanied. Others remain separated from their spouses or are on unpaid leave while their savings dwindle. Veena Vijay Ananth, a veteran immigration attorney based in India, called it “the biggest mess” she has ever seen, stating that there appears to be no coherent plan to address the crisis.
The US State Department has stated that visa interviews are now being prioritised to allow for more rigorous applicant screening. This reprioritisation has resulted in a sharp rise in H-1B visa processing times. India is the leading source of H-1B workers, representing 71% of all visa holders according to a 2025 USCIS report. Major corporations such as Amazon, Microsoft and Meta are among the top sponsors of these employees.
The visa disruptions are part of wider modifications to the H-1B programme enacted during Trump’s second term. In July, the US government discontinued remote visa renewals for H-1B and H4 visa holders, mandating that applicants return to their home countries. Subsequently, an executive order introduced a $100,000 fee on new H-1B applications. Social media screening was introduced in December as an additional component of the vetting process.
As a consequence of these policy shifts, many applicants now face delays stretching several months. The majority of visa holders have had their interviews rescheduled to dates between March and June, with some postponed until October, and in isolated cases, even into 2027. While the US State Department attributes the delays to operational limitations tied to security requirements, some immigration lawyers believe the underlying reason may be rising political resistance to the H-1B programme, especially concerning Indian nationals.
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