Want a US Green Card? Some Indians Could Face a 179-Year Wait

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The report stated that Indian professionals are projected to face the longest delays due to visa backlogs and statutory limits imposed on the number of green cards issued each year.

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The analysis, published by the National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP), highlights that nearly 1 million people from India are stuck in the employment-based immigration backlog, which makes up 79 per cent of the total green card stockpile as of December 2025.

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The report estimates that a highly skilled worker from India with a labour certification application or employment-based immigrant petition filed in January 2026 could face a potential wait of 4 to 5 years for EB-1, 179 years for EB-2, and 38 years for EB-3 visa categories.

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Among the causes of the massive employment-based visa backlog, the think tank states that a cap of 140,000 is “too low for the number of skilled foreign nationals employers sponsor for permanent residence.”

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Close to 140,000 green cards are available annually, and the limit was set by the US Congress in 1990, which includes both the principal and dependent family members. NFAP states that the second factor leading to a surge in the green card logjam is the per-country limit. As per US law, India and China are allotted the same number of green cards as Iceland and Luxembourg.

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