Months of waiting with 221(g) slip not unusual: Immigration attorney explains H-1B stamping delay

Immigration attorney Steven Brown said getting a 221(g)notice after the consular interview has become a new normal for H-1b professionals who are now stuck in their home countries without knowing when their application will come out of “administrative processing” and when they can come back to their job in the US. The attorney explained that this 221(g) slip does not mean a refusal; it means the State Department is saying: ‘We are not done with your case yet.”

After the department started social media vetting since December 15, 2025, almost all applicants in India said they were given the 221(g) slip and their applications were approved in a day or two.