September 2026 Visa Bulletin: EB Visa Numbers May Hit Limits

 

The vast majority of the dates remain unchanged in the September Visa Bulletin. According to the State Department, some employment-based categories may reach their annual visa numerical limits before September ends.  

However, due to previous travel bans and visa issuance pauses for certain countries, a significant number of immigrant visas may have remained unused by overseas consulates. Since the current fiscal year is coming to a close, if the family-based visa numbers do not get exhausted by the end of the month, they will overflow to employment-based cases starting in October (the first month of fiscal year 2027), which likely will bring some advancements to October cut-off dates.

We will keep an eye on the upcoming Visa Bulletin to see how the numbers land. In the meantime, potential applicants should prepare ahead and engage an experienced immigration professional to ensure they are fully positioned to file for Adjustment of Status the moment their priority date becomes current.

AD: Dates for Final Action (Green Card Approval)  

FD: Dates for Filing Applications Only

Family-Based	All Others	China	India	Mexico	Philippines
F1	A:01/22/20 F:02/01/20	A:01/22/20 F: 02/01/20	A:01/22/20 F:02/01/20	A:01/01/08 F:12/01/08	A: 05/01/13 F: 04/22/15
F2A	A:08/22/26 F: Current	A: 8/22/26 F: Current	A:08/22/26 F: Current	A:08/22/25 F: Current	A: 08/22/26 F: Current
F2B	A:08/22/19 F:09/01/19	A:08/22/19 F:09/01/19	A:08/22/19 F:09/01/19	A: 02/15/09 F: 05/15/10	A: 06/01/13 F: 10/01/13
F3	A: 10/22/14 F: 11/01/14	A: 10/22/14 F: 11/01/14	A: 10/22/14 F: 11/01/14	A: 07/01/01 F: 07/15/01	A: 02/22/06 F: 08/08/06
F4	A: 10/22/11 F: 11/01/11	A: 10/22/11 F: 11/01/11	A: 11/01/06 F: 12/15/06	A: 04/08/01 F: 04/30/01	A: 08/22/07 F: 03/22/08

1st: Unmarried Sons and Daughters of Citizens (about 23,400 per year).

2A: The 2 “A” preference is for Spouses and Children (under 21 & unmarried) of LPR's.
2B: The 2 “B” Preference is for Unmarried Sons and Daughters (21 or older) of LPR's.
3rd: Married Sons and Daughters of Citizens (about 23,400 per year)
4th: Brothers and Sisters of Adult Citizens. (about 65,000 per year)

Employment-Based	All Others	China	India	Mexico	Philippines
EB-1	A: Current F: Current	A: 07/01/23 F: 12/01/23	A: 10/15/22 F: 12/01/23	A: Current F: Current	A: Current F: Current
EB-2	A: Current F: Current	A: 09/01/21 F: 01/01/22	A: Unavailable F: 01/15/15	A: Current F: Current	A: Current F: Current
EB-3	A: 09/01/24 F: Current	A: 01/01/22 F: 01/08/22	A: 01/01/14 F: 01/15/15	A: 09/01/24 F: Current	A: 08/01/23 F: 01/01/24
Other Workers	A: 04/01/22 F: 08/01/22	A: 05/01/19 F: 10/01/19	A: 01/01/14 F: 01/15/15	A: 04/01/22 F: 08/01/22	A: 12/01/21 F: 08/01/22
EB-4	A: 12/15/22 F: 01/01/23	A: 12/15/22 F: 01/01/23	A: 12/15/22 F: 01/01/23	A: 12/15/22 F: 01/01/23	A: 12/15/22 F: 01/01/23
EB-5	A: Current F: Current	A: 12/01/16 F: 03/01/17	A: Unavailable F: 05/01/24	A: Current F: Current	A: Current F: Current

1st: Priority Workers (Extraordinary ability aliens, multinational companies' executives/managers, outstanding prof./researchers)

2nd: Members of the Professions Holding Advanced Degrees or Persons of Exceptional Ability.

3rd: Skilled Workers, Professionals, and Other Workers (Unskilled.)

4th: “Special Immigrants” (Religious & others)

5th: Employment Creation (Investors)

*China and India EB-5 visa numbers for rural, high unemployment & infrastructure areas/projects are current.

(Immigration laws and policies change regularly.  If you have any questions regarding this article, please visit www.1visa1.com to schedule a legal consultation.)