Visa Bulletin Predictions 2025-26
What is a visa bulletin?
An essential document for Green Card applicants across all preference categories under Employment, Family, and Diversity. It serves as a waiting list tracker, allowing them to understand their application’s position in the Green Card application line. The line exists because the number of applications filed each year is always more than the number USCIS can process due to the unavailability of suitable infrastructure and statutory limits on the number of overall green cards that can be issued each year, and limits on green cards that can be issued to applicants of a particular country.
USCIS publishes the visa bulletin every month between the 10th and the 15th, indicating how one’s application on the waiting list is likely to move in the succeeding month. There are two tables that one needs to track in each month’s visa bulletin- the Dates of Filing table and the Final Action Dates table.
What is a priority date?
Every green card applicant receives a receipt from USCIS when the processing of Form I-130 is complete. The receipt is officially called the Notice of Action or Form I-797C. Every receipt has two crucial pieces of information for any Green card applicant: the first is the tracking number, and the other is called the Priority date.
What is the “Dates of the filing” table, and what does it mean to be current?
The Dates of Filing table lists the Priority dates for each Green Card category. The table guides every Green Card applicant on when to initiate the follow-up process after the I-130 form is processed. The follow-up for applicants in the US is to file the Form I-485 with the necessary documents. For applicants outside the US, they should initiate the consular filing process.
Suppose the visa bulletin’s date of filing table shows a date against a green card category that matches or is earlier than the priority date of the green card applicant, then it is deemed current. That means the applicant should proceed with the following steps.
What is the “Final Action Date” table, and what does it mean to be current?
USCIS doesn’t issue the Green Card immediately to any Green Card applicant, even after filing Form I-485 is complete or after one has completed the Consular process. The issuance of the green card will not occur even after one has submitted the required documents and attended the interview. The issuance process starts only if one’s priority date becomes current as per the “Final action date” table. The table lists dates corresponding to each green card category in the monthly bulletin.
If a Green Card applicant finds that their priority date matches or is earlier than the date in the “Final action date” table in the visa bulletin, it means they must start completing the remaining part of the green card application process so that USCIS can issue the green card, or they need to wait for just the issuance of the card. You can stay up-to-date with the Visa Bulletin or subscribe to Our Newsletter.
Fiscal Year 2026-2027 & New Green Cards
One needs to understand that USCIS doesn’t follow the regular nomenclature of the calendar year for immigration-related issues; instead, every US Immigration year starts from October 1st and ends on September 30th. Based on the definition of the U.S. fiscal year, the upcoming new year will commence on October 1, 2025. We already know how the dates are expected to change in October 2025, based on the latest visa bulletin issuance by USCIS.
New Green Cards issuance in 2026:
By examining recent yearly issuance patterns and statutory limits, we can expect more than a million green cards to be issued in fiscal year 2026. The number can exceed the million mark if there are unused green card numbers from the fiscal year 2025.
Note: The number will become clear as USCIS issues a Press release in October 2025.
As per the statutory limit:
- For Family preference categories for existing green card holders, we can expect at least 226,000 new green cards to be issued in fiscal year 2026, from F1 Visa to F4 Visa.
- For Employment preference categories from EB-1 to EB-5, the statutory mandate for issuing new Green cards for the fiscal year 2026 is 140,000.
- For the Diversity Visa, we can expect 52,000 new green card issuances in fiscal year 2026. The number will be reduced from the typical 55,000 due to NACARA provisions and statutory deductions.
Other Green card categories with no statutory limits
- The immediate relative category for U.S. citizens, which includes spouses, parents, and unmarried children under the age of 21 of a U.S. citizen, may result in the issuance of between 300,000 and 500,000 new visas.
- In addition to family numbers of US citizens, there are other categories, such as refugees and asylees, as well as green card issuance based on humanitarian or national interest grounds; we have yet to determine a specific number. Still, if we make a judgment based on previous patterns, we expect 8.5% and 4.6% of the new green cards to be issued for these categories, respectively, in 2026.
Latest Visa Bulletin Predictions for November 2025
Based on current Visa Bulletin trends and FY2026 demand dynamics, EB-1 and EB-3 are more likely to see modest forward movement in the coming 1–3 months. EB-2 looks expected to remain more backlogged or show slower movement — demand for EB-2 (esp. India/China chargeability) and carryover prioritization mean EB-2 cutoffs will probably advance more slowly or even hold for several months.
Visa Bulletin November 2025 Predictions is divided into the following subtopics:
- Visa Bulletin November Predictions – Family-Based Categories
- Visa Bulletin November Predictions – Employment-Based Categories
Family-Based Categories- Visa Bulletin Prediction for November 2025
| Maxico | Philippines | India | All Other Countries | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| F-1 – Unmarried Adult Sons and Daughters of US Citizens | 6-8 Weeks | 1-2 Weeks | – | 2-3 Weeks |
| F-2A – Spouses & Minor, Unmarried Sons & Daughters of LPRs | 3-4 Weeks | – | – | 1-2 Weeks |
| F-2B – Unmarried Adult Sons & Daughters of LPRs | 6-8 Weeks | 1-2 Weeks | – | 1-2 Weeks |
| F-3 – Married Adult Sons and Daughters of US Citizens | 1-2 Weeks | 5-6 Weeks | – | 4-5 Weeks |
| F-4 – Brothers & Sisters of US Citizens | 2-3 Weeks | 6-8 Weeks | 2-3 Weeks | 1-2 Weeks |
Employment-Based Categories- Visa Bulletin Prediction for November 2025
| India | China | All Other Countries | |
|---|---|---|---|
| EB-1 Priority Workers | 2-3 Weeks | 2-3 Weeks | Remain Current |
| EB-2 Members of the Professions Holding Advanced Degrees or Persons of Exceptional Ability | 1-2 Weeks | 2-3 Weeks | 1-2 Weeks |
| EB-3 Professionals and Skilled Workers | 1-2 Weeks | 2-3 Weeks | 1-2 Weeks |
| EB-3 Other Workers | 1-2 Weeks | 1-2 Weeks | 1-2 Weeks |
| EB-5 | No change. | No change. | No change. |
** The content above is provided for informational purposes only. It should not be construed as legal advice on any subject matter. Use of this information does not create an attorney-client relationship. For Legal Advice, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us.
Latest Visa Bulletin Update 2025-26
October 2025 Visa Bulletin – Key Take Away
- Notable movements are observed in both the final action and filing dates tables for both employment and family preference categories across all countries in the first visa bulletin of the new fiscal year, breaking the stagnation observed in the preceding few months.
- The final action date table shows an average movement of one year for all countries for the F2A category. This is a significant development, so if you are a sponsor of green cards for your spouse and unmarried children under the age of 21, it is time to initiate the remaining steps. The October 2025 bulletin shows a similar movement in the dates of filing table for EB-1, EB-2, and EB-3 for Indians, indicating that it’s time to file, or they may miss this opportunity.
- Many applicants with priority dates slightly earlier than September’s cutoffs should see their eligibility improve in October; review your priority date against the October charts before filing or submitting documents.
Visa Bulletins for the Fiscal Year 2025
November 2025 Visa Bulletin: Coming Soon…
October 2025 Visa Bulletin: The U.S. Department of State has released the October 2025 Visa Bulletin. Compared with September, most categories show forward movement (advancement) this month — some moves are small (days/weeks) and others are larger (months/years), depending on category and chargeability area. Read the full Visa Bulletin Here
September 2025 Visa Bulletin: As the U.S. Department of State rolls out the September 2025 Visa Bulletin, the month reveals generally static movement across most visa categories—yet a few notable forward shifts offer some momentum in the family-sponsored categories.
August 2025 Visa Bulletin: The U.S. Department of State has released the August 2025 Visa Bulletin, outlining the availability of immigrant visas for family-sponsored and employment-based categories. US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will use the Final Action Dates chart in the August bulletin to determine eligibility for filing employment-based adjustment of status applications.
July 2025 Visa Bulletin: The U.S. Department of State has released the official Visa Bulletin for July 2025. providing the latest updates on green card availability. Read the Full Visa Bulletin here.
June 2025 Visa Bulletin: The U.S. Department of State has released the official Visa Bulletin for June 2025. providing the latest updates on green card availability. Read the Full Visa Bulletin here.
May 2025 Visa Bulletin: The May 2025 Visa Bulletin is out now. According to the U.S. Department of State’s May Visa Bulletin, the Final Action cutoff dates for immigrant visa issuance and adjustment of status applications for Employment-based categories, read the Full Visa Bulletin May 2025 here
April 2025 Visa Bulletin: The April 2025 Visa Bulletin is out now. Let’s look at the key takeaways from the same.EB-1 India Advances: By two weeks to February 15, 2022, China remained unchanged on November 8, 2022. All other countries stay current. Read Full visa Bulletin April 2025.
March 2025 Visa Bulletin: The U.S. Department of State published the Visa Bulletin in March 2025. Next month, USCIS will accept employment-based adjustment of status applications from foreign nationals with a priority date earlier than the Final Action Dates listed in the bulletin. Read Full visa Bulletin March 2025.
February 2025 Visa Bulletin: The February 2025 Visa Bulletin presents a mix of advancements across employment-based and family-sponsored categories. Read the Full Visa Bulletin February 2025.
January 2025 Visa Bulletin: The January 2025 Visa Bulletin presents a mix of advancements across employment-based and family-sponsored categories. Read the Full Visa Bulletin January 2025.
Visa Bulletin December 2024: .The U.S. Department of State published the Visa Bulletin in December 2024. In the December Visa Bulletin 2024, all employment-based categories will see no changes in the Final Action Dates and Dates for Filing, with two exceptions: the Final Action Date for EB-2 India will progress by two weeks to August 1, 2012, and EB-3 India will move forward by one week to November 8, 2012. The Final Action Dates and Filing for family-based categories will remain unchanged from the previous month.. Read the Full Visa Bulletin for December 2024 Here.
November 2024 Visa Bulletin: The U.S. Department of State published the Visa Bulletin in November 2024. In the November 2024 Visa Bulletin, updates were made to all family-based immigration categories except the F-2A category. Read Full Visa Bulletin for November 2024 Here.
October 2024 Visa Bulletin: The Department of State has recently released the October 2024 Visa Bulletin, which contains positive news for the new Reform and Integrity Act EB-5 program and for Chinese and Indian nationals who were in line under the previous EB-5 program. Read the Full Visa Bulletin for October 2024 Here.
