Indian professionals needing H-1B visa stamping have been hit with another jolt: the earliest available interview slots at U.S. consulates in Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad and Kolkata are now in calendar year 2027. According to attorneys quoted by The Financial Express on 27 January, mass rescheduling e-mails began landing in applicants’ inboxes last week, postponing both biometrics and interview appointments by 14–18 months.
The backlog originally surfaced in late 2025 after Washington introduced a compulsory social-media vetting rule for work-visa applicants. Consular sections have since cut daily interview capacity while new screening tools bed in, reversing hard-won post-pandemic gains in wait-time reduction.
If you are caught in this queue, VisaHQ’s India team (https://www.visahq.com/india/) can help by double-checking documentation, monitoring for last-minute openings, and arranging courier services so that passports and supporting evidence move quickly and securely. Their advisers also guide clients through third-country appointment scheduling and alternative visa options, easing some of the uncertainty while you wait for that elusive slot.
![US H-1B Visa Interviews for Indians Pushed to 2027, Creating Mobility Logjam]()
Immigration lawyers warn that thousands of Indian workers who travelled home for stamping over the Republic Day holidays are now stranded, unable to return to U.S. projects or even work remotely because of on-site requirements.
Employers face cascading project delays, off-shoring costs and potential loss of talent to Canada and Australia. Multinationals are scrambling to file humanitarian expedite requests, shift staff to third-country consulates with shorter queues, or reroute project work back to India. Some are also exploring L-1 blanket visas and ‘automatic revalidation’ options for those who still hold valid I-94s.
Industry groups have called on both governments to restore special interview-waiver programmes that expired last September. In the meantime, mobility managers are advising travellers to budget a minimum 18-month lead time for any new H-1B stamping—a stark reminder that physical visa issuance remains a critical choke-point in global talent flows.
The backlog originally surfaced in late 2025 after Washington introduced a compulsory social-media vetting rule for work-visa applicants. Consular sections have since cut daily interview capacity while new screening tools bed in, reversing hard-won post-pandemic gains in wait-time reduction.
If you are caught in this queue, VisaHQ’s India team (https://www.visahq.com/india/) can help by double-checking documentation, monitoring for last-minute openings, and arranging courier services so that passports and supporting evidence move quickly and securely. Their advisers also guide clients through third-country appointment scheduling and alternative visa options, easing some of the uncertainty while you wait for that elusive slot.
Immigration lawyers warn that thousands of Indian workers who travelled home for stamping over the Republic Day holidays are now stranded, unable to return to U.S. projects or even work remotely because of on-site requirements.
Employers face cascading project delays, off-shoring costs and potential loss of talent to Canada and Australia. Multinationals are scrambling to file humanitarian expedite requests, shift staff to third-country consulates with shorter queues, or reroute project work back to India. Some are also exploring L-1 blanket visas and ‘automatic revalidation’ options for those who still hold valid I-94s.
Industry groups have called on both governments to restore special interview-waiver programmes that expired last September. In the meantime, mobility managers are advising travellers to budget a minimum 18-month lead time for any new H-1B stamping—a stark reminder that physical visa issuance remains a critical choke-point in global talent flows.
