Visa Bulletin
Updated October 2026 | By Kodem Law Immigration Practice Group
October Visa Bulletin 2026: Employment-Based Preferences
October 2026 opens fiscal year 2027 with sharp movement in both directions. EB-2 lost Current for All Chargeability Areas, Mexico and the Philippines; EB-3 lost Current for All Chargeability Areas and Mexico on the filing chart. Against that, EB-2 India returned from Unavailable and China advanced by years in places. One warning is not in the tables at all: Certain Religious Workers expires on 11 December 2026 unless Congress extends it again.
Which chartUSCIS is accepting employment-based adjustment of status filings under the Dates for Filing chart in October 2026. If your priority date is earlier than the Dates for Filing cutoff for your category and country, you can file now. USCIS can change this from month to month, so confirm at uscis.gov/visabulletininfo before you file.
October brings a fresh annual allocation; the demand carried over from FY2026 does not reset with it. The bulletin gives the reason in its own words — these retrogressions “are necessary to keep visa issuances within FY 2027 quarterly and annual limits” — and adds that the situation is “being continually monitored”, which cuts both ways: cutoffs may recover during the year, and they may retrogress further.
Dates for Filing for Employment-Based Adjustment of Status Applications
The Dates for Filing chart governs when an application may be submitted, and in October 2026 it is the chart USCIS is using for employment-based adjustment of status filings. It decides whether the I-485, and with it the interim work and travel authorisation, can be filed at all.
| Employment-Based | All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed | China (Mainland Born) | India | Mexico | Philippines |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Current | ▲ 01 Jul 2024was 01 Dec 2023 | ▲ 01 Jul 2024was 01 Dec 2023 | Current | Current |
| 2nd | ▼ 15 Mar 2026was Current | ▲ 01 Jan 2023was 01 Jan 2022 | 15 Jan 2015 | ▼ 15 Mar 2026was Current | ▼ 15 Mar 2026was Current |
| 3rd | ▼ 01 Aug 2024was Current | ▲ 01 Apr 2024was 08 Jan 2022 | 15 Jan 2015 | ▼ 01 Aug 2024was Current | 01 Jan 2024 |
| Other Workers | ▼ 01 Jun 2022was 01 Aug 2022 | ▲ 01 Oct 2020was 01 Oct 2019 | 15 Jan 2015 | ▼ 01 Jun 2022was 01 Aug 2022 | ▼ 01 Jun 2022was 01 Aug 2022 |
| 4th | ▲ 01 Jan 2025was 01 Jan 2023 | ▲ 01 Jan 2025was 01 Jan 2023 | ▲ 01 Jan 2025was 01 Jan 2023 | ▲ 01 Jan 2025was 01 Jan 2023 | ▲ 01 Jan 2025was 01 Jan 2023 |
| Certain Religious Workers | ▲ 01 Jan 2025was 01 Jan 2023 | ▲ 01 Jan 2025was 01 Jan 2023 | ▲ 01 Jan 2025was 01 Jan 2023 | ▲ 01 Jan 2025was 01 Jan 2023 | ▲ 01 Jan 2025was 01 Jan 2023 |
| 5th Unreserved | Current | ▲ 01 Mar 2021was 01 Mar 2017 | 01 May 2024 | Current | Current |
| 5th Set Aside: Rural | Current | Current | Current | Current | Current |
| 5th Set Aside: High Unemployment | Current | Current | Current | Current | Current |
| 5th Set Aside: Infrastructure | Current | Current | Current | Current | Current |
▲ advanced ▼ retrogressed plain text = unchanged from September 2026.
What Moved This Month
Each change below compares this month’s cutoff date with the September 2026 bulletin, for the same category and country. Note that “retrogressed from Current” and “retrogressed by three months” are different events: the first is a category acquiring a queue where it had none, the second is an existing queue getting longer.
| Category | Dates for Filing — Change | Final Action Dates — Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1st |
▲China, India: Advanced by 7 months
Unchanged: All Areas, Mexico, Philippines
|
▲India: Advanced by 3 months and 17 days
Unchanged: All Areas, China, Mexico, Philippines
|
| 2nd |
▼All Areas, Mexico, Philippines: Retrogressed from Current to 15 Mar 2026▲China: Advanced by 1 year
Unchanged: India
|
▼All Areas, Mexico, Philippines: Retrogressed from Current to 01 Jan 2025▲China: Advanced by 1 month▲India: Became available at 01 Nov 2013
|
| 3rd |
▼All Areas, Mexico: Retrogressed from Current to 01 Aug 2024▲China: Advanced by 2 years, 2 months and 24 days
Unchanged: India, Philippines
|
▼All Areas, Mexico: Retrogressed by 3 months and 17 days▲China: Advanced by 7 days▲Philippines: Advanced by 14 days
Unchanged: India
|
| Other Workers |
▼All Areas, Mexico, Philippines: Retrogressed by 2 months▲China: Advanced by 1 year
Unchanged: India
|
▼All Areas, Mexico: Retrogressed by 3 months▲China: Advanced by 5 months▲Philippines: Advanced by 1 month
Unchanged: India
|
| 4th | ▲Advanced by 2 years — all areas | No change |
| Certain Religious Workers | ▲Advanced by 2 years — all areas | No change |
| 5th Unreserved |
▲China: Advanced by 4 years
Unchanged: All Areas, India, Mexico, Philippines
|
▲India: Became available at 01 Dec 2023
Unchanged: All Areas, China, Mexico, Philippines
|
No movement at all this month, on either chart: 5th Set Aside: Rural, 5th Set Aside: High Unemployment, 5th Set Aside: Infrastructure.
Dates for Filing — Category by Category
EB-1 — Employment-based First Preference (Extraordinary Ability, Outstanding Professors and Researchers, Certain Multinational Executives and Managers)
China and India both advanced seven months to the same cutoff; the worldwide, Mexico and Philippines columns remain Current. EB-1 is one of several rows with no retrogression anywhere this month, alongside EB-4, Certain Religious Workers and every EB-5 row.
EB-2 — Employment-based Second Preference (Advanced Degrees and Exceptional Ability)
The worldwide column, Mexico and the Philippines lost Current and now sit at a March 2026 cutoff. China advanced a full year. India did not move. The three columns that lost Current still have a cutoff only months old, so the practical effect for most recent filers is small — but it is a queue where there was none.
EB-3 — Employment-based Third Preference (Skilled Workers and Professionals)
The worldwide column and Mexico lost Current, landing in August 2024. China advanced by more than two years and two months, the largest move in EB-3 this month. India and the Philippines are unchanged — and note that the Philippines was not Current here to begin with, so it did not lose anything.
EB-3 Other Workers — Positions Requiring Less Than Two Years of Training or Experience
Other Workers retrogressed two months in the worldwide, Mexico and Philippines columns while China advanced a year. India is unchanged and remains the longest wait in the category, more than five and a half years behind China, the next-nearest column.
EB-4 — Employment-based Fourth Preference (Special Immigrants)
A uniform two-year advance across every column. EB-4 filing dates moved from January 2023 to January 2025 in one step — one of the largest advances on the filing charts this month, behind only EB-5 China at four years and EB-3 China at just over two years and two months.
EB-4 Certain Religious Workers (SR) — a Sunsetting Category
Certain Religious Workers carry the same dates as EB-4 this month, including the two-year advance. They are not the same category in law, and this is the row to read carefully. The SR classification for non-minister religious workers is temporary and has to be reauthorised by Congress. The October bulletin records that H.R. 6500, signed on 2 September 2026, extends it only through 11 December 2026. Unless Congress extends it again, SR visas cannot be issued and SR adjustment applications cannot be approved after that date, whatever the chart shows. Ministers under INA 101(a)(27)(C)(ii)(I) are permanent and unaffected.
EB-5 Unreserved — Immigrant Investors (C5, T5, I5, R5)
China advanced four years on the filing chart. India is unchanged and the worldwide, Mexico and Philippines columns remain Current.
EB-5 Set Aside — Rural (20%)
All three set-asides remain Current for every country on both charts. Rural, high-unemployment and infrastructure investors face no queue this month.
EB-5 Set Aside — High Unemployment (10%)
Unchanged and Current for every country.
EB-5 Set Aside — Infrastructure (2%)
Unchanged and Current for every country.
Final Action Dates for Employment-Based Adjustment of Status Applications
The Final Action Dates chart governs when a visa may be issued or adjustment approved. A case sitting between the two charts has been filed and cannot yet be approved.
| Employment-Based | All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed | China (Mainland Born) | India | Mexico | Philippines |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Current | 01 Jul 2023 | ▲ 01 Feb 2023was 15 Oct 2022 | Current | Current |
| 2nd | ▼ 01 Jan 2025was Current | ▲ 01 Oct 2021was 01 Sep 2021 | ▲ 01 Nov 2013was Unavailable | ▼ 01 Jan 2025was Current | ▼ 01 Jan 2025was Current |
| 3rd | ▼ 15 May 2024was 01 Sep 2024 | ▲ 08 Jan 2022was 01 Jan 2022 | 01 Jan 2014 | ▼ 15 May 2024was 01 Sep 2024 | ▲ 15 Aug 2023was 01 Aug 2023 |
| Other Workers | ▼ 01 Jan 2022was 01 Apr 2022 | ▲ 01 Oct 2019was 01 May 2019 | 01 Jan 2014 | ▼ 01 Jan 2022was 01 Apr 2022 | ▲ 01 Jan 2022was 01 Dec 2021 |
| 4th | 15 Dec 2022 | 15 Dec 2022 | 15 Dec 2022 | 15 Dec 2022 | 15 Dec 2022 |
| Certain Religious Workers | 15 Dec 2022 | 15 Dec 2022 | 15 Dec 2022 | 15 Dec 2022 | 15 Dec 2022 |
| 5th Unreserved | Current | 01 Dec 2016 | ▲ 01 Dec 2023was Unavailable | Current | Current |
| 5th Set Aside: Rural | Current | Current | Current | Current | Current |
| 5th Set Aside: High Unemployment | Current | Current | Current | Current | Current |
| 5th Set Aside: Infrastructure | Current | Current | Current | Current | Current |
▲ advanced ▼ retrogressed plain text = unchanged from September 2026.
Final Action Dates — Category by Category
EB-1 — Employment-based First Preference (Extraordinary Ability, Outstanding Professors and Researchers, Certain Multinational Executives and Managers)
India advanced three and a half months; China held. The worldwide, Mexico and Philippines columns remain Current, so EB-1 cases outside China and India can still be approved as soon as they are ready.
EB-2 — Employment-based Second Preference (Advanced Degrees and Exceptional Ability)
The most consequential row in the bulletin. All Chargeability Areas, Mexico and the Philippines retrogressed from Current to a January 2025 cutoff, while India came back from Unavailable at 01 Nov 2013 — a category that could issue nothing in September can issue again in October. China advanced a month.
EB-3 — Employment-based Third Preference (Skilled Workers and Professionals)
The worldwide column and Mexico retrogressed by three and a half months. China and the Philippines advanced slightly. India is unchanged, and EB-3 India remains pinned in January 2014.
EB-3 Other Workers — Positions Requiring Less Than Two Years of Training or Experience
A three-month retrogression in the worldwide and Mexico columns against a five-month advance for China and a one-month advance for the Philippines. India is unchanged.
EB-4 — Employment-based Fourth Preference (Special Immigrants)
No movement in any column. EB-4 final action dates have held at their December 2022 cutoff while the filing chart advanced two years, which widens the gap between filing and approval considerably.
EB-4 Certain Religious Workers (SR) — a Sunsetting Category
The same December 2022 cutoff as EB-4, and no movement. Read it with the sunset above: a Certain Religious Worker case is working to 11 December 2026, not to a cutoff date.
EB-5 Unreserved — Immigrant Investors (C5, T5, I5, R5)
EB-5 Unreserved India returned from Unavailable at 01 Dec 2023 — the second category to come back this month. China held; the remaining columns stay Current.
EB-5 Set Aside — Rural (20%)
Current for every country, unchanged.
EB-5 Set Aside — High Unemployment (10%)
Current for every country, unchanged.
EB-5 Set Aside — Infrastructure (2%)
Current for every country, unchanged.
October 2026 Employment-Based Visa Bulletin: Key Questions Answered
The questions below are the ones beneficiaries and HR teams ask in the first week after a fiscal-year bulletin drops.
Q1Do the religious worker dates mean what they look like they mean?
No, and this is the most consequential thing in the October employment charts that is not a number. Certain Religious Workers show the same two-year filing-date advance as EB-4, but the SR classification for non-minister religious workers is temporary. It expires unless Congress reauthorises it.
The bulletin records that H.R. 6500, signed on 2 September 2026, extends the category only through 11 December 2026. Absent further legislation, no SR visa may be issued and no SR adjustment approved after that date — the chart will say January 2025 and it will not matter. Ministers under INA 101(a)(27)(C)(ii)(I) are a permanent classification and are not affected. If you have an SR case, you are working to a December deadline.
Q2Why did EB-2 and EB-3 retrogress from Current at the start of the fiscal year?
Because the annual allocation reset on the first of October and the demand carried over from last year did not. The bulletin states the reason directly: these retrogressions “are necessary to keep visa issuances within FY 2027 quarterly and annual limits”.
The Department adds that the situation is “being continually monitored, and any necessary adjustments will be made accordingly”, which cuts both ways: cutoffs may recover during the year, and they may retrogress further. Note also that the bulletin’s statement is addressed to “Rest of World” countries. Mexico and the Philippines move with the worldwide date in these categories because they are not independently oversubscribed in them.
Q3EB-2 India was Unavailable in September. What does October’s date mean?
It means the category can issue visas again. Unavailable is the hard stop — no number can be allocated at any priority date. The October final action cutoff of 01 Nov 2013 restores allocation for anyone whose priority date is earlier than that.
EB-5 Unreserved India made the same move, returning at 01 Dec 2023. Both are the fiscal-year reset working in the applicant’s favour rather than against it.
Q4I filed my I-485 when EB-2 was Current. Does the retrogression undo that?
No. A properly filed adjustment application stays filed. Retrogression affects when a visa number can be allocated to approve it, not the validity of the filing.
What it does affect is timing, and with it the interim benefits. An employment authorisation document and advance parole issued on a pending I-485 run to their own expiry dates and must be renewed before they lapse — the I-485 staying pending does not extend them, and a retrogression that adds years to the wait means several renewal cycles rather than one. Travelling on advance parole while holding H-1B or L-1 status has its own consequences and is a separate conversation.
Q5Which chart do I use to file?
Dates for Filing, this month. For October 2026 USCIS is accepting employment-based adjustment of status applications under the Dates for Filing chart.
That matters more than usual because the two charts are far apart in the main categories. EB-2 worldwide is 01 Jan 2025 on Final Action Dates but 15 Mar 2026 on Dates for Filing, so an EB-2 applicant with a priority date between those two dates, a qualifying I-140 and otherwise eligible to adjust can file the I-485 now, and with it apply for work and travel authorisation, even though the case cannot yet be approved.
The bulletin’s default is Final Action Dates, and USCIS can change the designation from month to month at uscis.gov/visabulletininfo, so check it before every filing.
Q6EB-4 filing dates jumped two years but final action dates did not move. Why?
The two charts are set independently. Dates for Filing is set with an eye to how many applications the agencies want in the pipeline; Final Action Dates is set by how many visa numbers can actually be issued.
A two-year advance on one and no movement on the other means more people can file while the same number can be approved. Expect the gap between filing and decision to widen in this category.
Q7China advanced sharply in several categories. Is that durable?
Treat a large October advance as provisional. EB-3 China moved more than two years on the filing chart and EB-5 Unreserved China four years, which is what a fresh annual allocation looks like before demand catches up to it.
Treat it as provisional on experience rather than on anything the Department has said: fiscal-year-opening advances are routinely pulled back once demand catches up with the new allocation, and the bulletin’s monitoring language is attached to this month’s retrogressions rather than to its advances. Plan filings around a big October move; do not plan approvals around it.
Q8What is the difference between retrogressing from Current and retrogressing by three months?
The first creates a queue where none existed, and it is the one that strands more people. EB-2 worldwide went from Current — anyone could be approved — to a January 2025 cutoff, so every priority date from January 2025 onward now waits for approval, with no ceiling on how many that is. (Dates before 15 Mar 2026 can still be filed this month, because USCIS is accepting filings under Dates for Filing.)
The second lengthens an existing queue. EB-3 worldwide moved from a September 2024 cutoff to a May 2024 one, so the people whose dates sat in that three-and-a-half-month band were eligible last month and are not this month — a defined group.
Both strand cases. The difference is scope, not whether anyone is caught, and anyone telling you that losing Current is the milder of the two has it the wrong way round.
Q9Does a filing chart losing Current affect my child’s age under CSPA?
It can, and it is easy to miss in a month dominated by the employment numbers. Since February 2023 USCIS uses the Dates for Filing chart to fix when a visa became “available” for Child Status Protection Act purposes — that is the date the child’s calculated age freezes at, and the date the one-year “sought to acquire” clock starts running from.
EB-2 and EB-3 worldwide lost Current on the filing chart this month. For a derivative child who has not yet filed, that changes the availability picture. If you have a child close to 21 in a pending employment case, run the calculation now rather than when the next bulletin lands.
Q10Where do I find my priority date for an employment case?
For most EB-2 and EB-3 cases it is the date the labour certification was filed with the Department of Labor, carried onto the I-140 approval notice. Where no labour certification is required — EB-1, a national interest waiver, EB-5 — it is the date the I-140 or I-526 was properly filed.
Chargeability follows country of birth rather than citizenship, and a spouse born elsewhere can sometimes open a faster column through cross-chargeability. That is worth checking in a month like this one, where the columns diverge sharply.
How Can Kodem Law Help You?
A fiscal-year-opening bulletin is the hardest one to read correctly. Two categories came back from Unavailable, two lost Current, China advanced by years in places, and all of it arrives in the same document. The risk is not that people miss the movement — it is that they act on the wrong half of it.
Kodem Law works the specifics: whether your priority date clears the chart USCIS has designated this month; what a retrogression does to an I-485 already on file and to the employment authorisation attached to it; whether cross-chargeability under INA 202(b)(2) moves your case to a faster column; how a moving filing chart affects a derivative child under the Child Status Protection Act; how to sequence a filing when a category has just reopened after a period of unavailability; and what to do about a religious worker case running against a December sunset.
