Federal law says the family and employment visas given to natives of any single country may not exceed 7 percent of the total of such visas in a fiscal year. That per-country limit is the rule behind most questions about EB-2 and EB-3 for India, and it comes with an exception for unused employment visas in a calendar quarter.
Quick answer
| Topic | What the official pages say |
|---|---|
| Per-country limit | 8 U.S.C. 1152(a)(2): visas for natives of one country in the family and employment categories may not exceed 7 percent of the total in a fiscal year (2 percent for a dependent area) |
| Employment exception | 8 U.S.C. 1152(a)(5): if employment visas available in a calendar quarter exceed qualified applicants, the surplus may be issued that quarter without regard to the 7 percent cap |
| Employment supply | USCIS says about 140,000 employment-based immigrant visas are available each fiscal year, counting spouses and children |
| Where dates are published | The monthly Visa Bulletin, by category and country |
The statute text is on the govinfo page for 8 U.S.C. 1152, and the employment totals are on the USCIS permanent workers page.
What the 7 percent limit says
Section 1152(a)(2) of Title 8 sets the cap. The total number of immigrant visas made available to natives of any single foreign state in the family-sponsored and employment-based categories may not exceed 7 percent of the total of those visas in a fiscal year. For a dependent area, the figure is 2 percent. The cap is written as a limit on a country, not on a category, so it applies across family and employment visas taken together.
The same section contains exceptions in later paragraphs. The text reviewed for this guide shows that paragraphs (3), (4), and (5) create exceptions, and the one that matters most for employment cases is described below. Anyone reading the statute directly should read those paragraphs in full, because a short summary leaves out conditions.
The quarterly surplus exception
Paragraph (5)(A) deals with employment-based visas only. If the employment visas available in a calendar quarter are more than the number of qualified applicants for that quarter, the surplus may be issued during that quarter without regard to the 7 percent limit. In plain terms, the cap is not applied to visas that would otherwise go unused in that quarter.
The statute does not say how many visas that is in any given quarter, and the pages reviewed give no figures. Whether a particular quarter has a surplus is not something this guide can say.
How many employment visas exist
USCIS says about 140,000 employment-based immigrant visas are available each fiscal year for workers and their spouses and children, spread over five preference categories. The USCIS page describes the categories this way:
- EB-1: people with extraordinary ability, outstanding professors and researchers, and certain multinational managers and executives. No labor certification is required.
- EB-2: professionals with advanced degrees or people with exceptional ability. Labor certification is generally required, unless a Schedule A designation or a national interest waiver applies.
- EB-3: skilled workers, professionals, and other workers. Labor certification is generally required, unless a Schedule A designation applies.
- EB-4: special immigrants, such as certain religious workers.
- EB-5: business investors.
The pages reviewed do not state a separate annual limit for each category, and they do not state per-category percentages. Because spouses and children are counted in the 140,000, the number of workers is smaller than the number of visas.
EB-2 and EB-3 definitions
For EB-3, USCIS describes three groups: skilled workers with at least two years of training or experience, professionals with a bachelor’s degree, and other workers with less than two years. A permanent full-time job offer and a labor certification, or a Schedule A designation, are part of the category. For EB-2, USCIS describes an advanced degree route and an exceptional ability route, covered in the EB-2 eligibility checklist.
These definitions say who fits a category. They say nothing about a person’s country, which is a separate question tied to the per-country limit and the priority date.
Why one country can have its own row
The Visa Bulletin lists cut-off dates by category and by country, and a priority date earlier than the cut-off means a visa is available. The statute caps each country at 7 percent, so a country whose applicants are many can reach that cap while applicants from other countries are still within limits. That reading follows from the cap itself, which is stated per country.
The pages reviewed for this guide do not explain how the cap is turned into a particular cut-off date for a particular country, or how the surplus exception changes a row from one month to the next. That calculation is made by the Department of State, and its method is not described on the sources used here. For that reason, this guide states no waiting time for any country. See priority dates and the Visa Bulletin for how the dates work in general, and whether dates can be predicted for the limits of any forecast.
How to check the India row yourself
- Find the priority date. For an employment case with a labor certification, USCIS says it is the date the Department of Labor accepts the labor certification. Without one, it is the date USCIS accepts the Form I-140.
- Open the current Visa Bulletin and find the employment-based table. Two charts exist: Final Action Dates and Dates for Filing.
- Read the row for EB-2 or EB-3 and the column for India.
- Compare the priority date with the date in the cell. An earlier priority date means a visa is available. A “C” means current, and a “U” means unavailable.
- Check the USCIS filing charts page to see which chart USCIS says to use for adjustment of status that month.
The priority date checker on this site compares a date entered by the visitor with a cut-off the visitor types in from the bulletin, and the Green Card calculator hub lists the other tools. Neither tool predicts when a date will move.
What can move a date
USCIS notes that a cut-off can move backward, called retrogression, usually when an annual limit is nearly or fully used. A new fiscal year on October 1 typically, though not always, restores dates. These are general statements, and none of them is a forecast for India or any other country.
Frequently asked questions
Does the 7 percent limit mean India gets 7 percent of employment visas?
The statute caps natives of one country at 7 percent of the total family and employment visas combined. It does not split the employment visas by country. The exception in paragraph (5)(A) can lift the cap on unused employment visas in a quarter.
Is there an official wait time for EB-2 India or EB-3 India?
The pages reviewed state none. The Visa Bulletin gives cut-off dates, which describe which priority dates can proceed in that month, not how long a person will wait.
Does a person born in India but a citizen of another country count under the India row?
The statute speaks of natives of a foreign state. The pages reviewed do not cover how this works in individual cases, so a licensed immigration attorney or USCIS can address it.
Can the cap be avoided?
The statute lists exceptions in paragraphs (3), (4), and (5). Whether one applies to a person depends on facts that general pages cannot assess.
Related reading
- Priority dates and the Visa Bulletin
- Can Green Card dates be predicted?
- EB-2 eligibility checklist
- Green Card eligibility categories
About this guide
This website is for information only. It is not affiliated with the U.S. government, does not give legal advice or consultations, and does not offer application services. A personal case belongs with USCIS or a licensed immigration attorney, and the current official pages control.
Last verified: October 2026. Sources: 8 U.S.C. 1152 on govinfo; USCIS permanent workers page; USCIS EB-2 page.