Business Immigration Insights

The State Department has published the October Visa Bulletin, the first issue of Fiscal Year 2026. Priority dates in most employment-based categories make modest gains, ranging from 1 week to 7 months. All categories benefit from USCIS accepting the Dates for Filing chart in October—the first time the agency has done so since January of this year—allowing from 5 to 15.5 months of additional filing time, depending on nationality and category.

Below is a summary that includes Final Action Dates and changes from the previous month, but first – some background if you’re new to these blog posts.  If you’re familiar with the Visa Bulletin, feel free to skip the next paragraph.

The Visa Bulletin is released monthly by the U.S. Department of State, in collaboration with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).  If your priority date (that is, the date you were placed on the waiting list) is earlier than the cutoff date listed in the Bulletin for your nationality and category, it means a visa number is available for you that month.  Having a number available, in turn, means you can submit your DS-260 immigrant visa application (if you’re applying at a U.S. embassy abroad) or your I‑485 adjustment of status application (if you’re eligible to apply with USCIS from inside the United States).  If you already submitted that final step and your category then retrogressed, having a number available again means the embassy or USCIS can now adjudicate and approve your application.

Now for the October Visa Bulletin:

China gains in all categories:

• EB-1 advances more than 1 month to December 22, 2022
• EB-2 advances 5 months to April 1, 2021
• EB-3 Professionals advances 3 months to March 1, 2021
• EB-3 Other Workers advances 7 months to December 1, 2017

India progresses in all categories but one:

• EB-1 holds February 15, 2022
• EB-2 advances 3 months to April 1, 2013
• EB-3 Professionals and EB-3 Other Workers advance 3 months to August 22, 2013

All Other Countries moves ahead in two categories:

• EB-1 remains current
• EB-2 advances 3 months to December 1, 2023
• EB-3 Professionals stalls at April 1, 2023
• EB-3 Other Workers advances 1 week to July 15, 2021

 NOTE 1:  USCIS will accept I-485 applications in October based on the Department of State’s more favorable Dates for Filing chart, which allows from 5 to 15.5 months of additional filing time depending on nationality and category:

• Chinese nationals gain almost 5 months to file in EB‑1; 8 months in EB-2; and 10 months in EB‑3 Professionals and EB-3 Other Workers.
• Indian nationals gain 14 months in EB-1; 8 months in EB-2; and almost 1 year in EB-3 Professionals and EB-3 Other Workers.
• Nationals of all other countries may file their I-485s in advance of their priority dates being current by 7.5 months in EB-2; 15.5 months in EB-3 Professionals; and 4.5 months in EB-3 Other Workers.

NOTE 2:   The Dates for Filing chart applies only to I-485 applications with USCIS.  Immigrant visa applications with US embassies are always based on the Final Action Dates chart.