Visiting India on H-1B for emergency, illness, wedding? Immigration attorney answers
An H-1B and H-4 visa holders are facing inordinate delays in India after social media vetting started since December 15, immigration experts said they are flooded with questions on whether H-1B holders can travel to India for any emergency, family function, or wedding without worrying about how to re-enter the country.
In December 2025, hundreds of visa appointments were canceled and rescheduled to March 2026, April onwards. Those who have their visa stamping interviews scheuled in April 2026 and have made some plans around it don't know whether they should travel to India or whether April dates will also be deferred.
Be prepared for a long stay
Immigration attorney Rahul Reddy said those who are planning to travel to India for visa stamping and can't enter the US without a new visa stamping should not take a chance to travel to India even in April, as there are chances that those appointments might get deferred.
And if they are traveling, then they must be prepared for a long stay as nobody knows how much time it will take and what new rules will come into effect.
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Emergency visa appointment
US consular offices occasionally grant emergency visa slots when a person has an urgent, unforeseen circumstance and cannot wait for the regular appointment date. The approval varies from case to case but only of there are slots. Reddy said he knows no one who did not apply for an emergency visa appointment slot in India but there is none.
Reddy explained that when someone cites family emergency, the emergency is theirs to reach India and the US administration is not stopping anyone from travelling to India.
Visa officers won't care to take up any family emergency case urgently because there is no emergency to return to the US. And if one loses their job while they are in India, chances of them getting hired by another company is lean, the attorney warned, as the new company will have to file a petition and pay the $100,000 H-1B petition fee.