SEPTEMBER 2026🔹Visa Bulletin

Family-sponsored Dates for Filing advanced substantially in September 2026, although adjustment applicants must wait for USCIS to confirm whether those dates may be used. Employment-based dates remain heavily backlogged, with EB-1 India at heightened risk of becoming unavailable before Fiscal Year 2026 ends and EB-2 facing possible retrogression or unavailability before the fiscal year ends.

Kennedy Law recommends that eligible applicants act now. Filing windows can narrow quickly as visa demand shifts, and delay carries real risk during the final month of the fiscal year. If your priority date may permit filing in September, your eligibility should be reviewed promptly once USCIS confirms the applicable filing chart.

• For September 2026, USCIS has not yet announced whether family-sponsored adjustment applicants may use the Dates for Filing chart.
• September 2026 brought substantial forward movement in family-sponsored filing dates across several preference categories. However, significant backlogs remain, particularly for Mexico and the Philippines.
• The substantial movement in the Dates for Filing chart could open earlier filing opportunities if USCIS authorizes its use for September.
• Still, final green card issuance remains subject to substantial waiting periods in many family-based categories. Immediate relatives of U.S. citizens remain outside the annual quota system and are not controlled by the Visa Bulletin.

• For September 2026, USCIS has not yet announced which chart employment-based adjustment applicants may use. Unless USCIS authorizes the Dates for Filing chart, the Final Action Dates chart will control.
• The September 2026 Visa Bulletin continues to show significant employment-based backlogs, especially for India and China in EB-2 and EB-3. Most employment-based Final Action Dates remain unchanged from August, although EB-4 advances from October 15 to December 15, 2022, worldwide. The bulletin also warns that EB-1 India may become unavailable, and that EB-2 and EB-5 Unreserved may retrogress or become unavailable before the fiscal year ends. 
• The uncertainty over September filing eligibility makes timing, category selection, and long-range status planning especially important.

•  USCIS has not yet announced which chart employment-based adjustment applicants may use for September 2026. Unless USCIS authorizes the Dates for Filing chart, the Final Action Dates chart will control. 
• No EB-2 India immigrant visas may be issued and no EB-2 India adjustment applications may receive final approval during September. A new annual visa allocation becomes available when FY 2027 begins October 1, but October availability will depend on the October Visa Bulletin.
• EB-5 Unreserved India is also unavailable for the remainder of FY 2026. EB-5 set-aside categories remain current worldwide.
• EB-1 India remains at October 15, 2022. 
• EB-1 China remains at July 1, 2023 after advancing to that date in August.
• EB-3 is unchanged from August. China remains at January 1, 2022, India remains at January 1, 2014, and all chargeability areas except those listed remain at September 1, 2024.
• EB-4 advances worldwide, including for India, from October 15, 2022 to December 15, 2022.
• EB-2 China remains backlogged at September 1, 2021.  DOS warns more broadly that the EB-2 category may need to retrogress or become unavailable before the end of FY 2026 if visa use reaches the annual limit.
• EB-3 Philippines remains at August 1, 2023. Given persistent oversubscription, EB-3 Philippines remains a category to watch for possible retrogression, though DOS has not issued a specific warning for that category this month.