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By Billal Rahman
Immigration Reporter
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The State Department has advanced several employment-based green card cut-off dates for November, bringing some applicants closer to being eligible for permanent residence.
The November 2026 Visa Bulletin shows movement in the EB-2 and EB-3 categories for applicants from several countries, although substantial backlogs remain for those from India and China.
Douglas S. Pierce, a former USCIS supervisor who retired in late 2025 after more than three decades with the Immigration and Naturalization Service and USCIS, told Newsweek that the November bulletin’s limited movement was particularly significant for Indian and Chinese workers in the United States on H-1B visas.
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“The biggest things that stand out are the lack of movement forward on India employment preference categories that are most impacted by those who are in the US as H-1B workers,” Pierce said, adding that H-1B workers born in China and India were being “profoundly impacted by the lack of movement on these numbers.”
What Applicants Should Know
In the employment-based second-preference category, or EB-2, the final action date for most countries, including Mexico and the Philippines, advances three months to April 1, 2025. The date remains November 1, 2013, for India and October 1, 2021, for China.
In the EB-3 category, the final action date for most countries and Mexico advances one month to June 15, 2024. For India, it moves to January 22, 2014, from January 1, 2014, while the Philippines remains at August 15, 2023.
The EB-3 Other Workers category, which covers certain jobs requiring less than two years of training or experience, also advances. The final action date for most countries and Mexico moves five months to June 1, 2022. For India, it advances to January 22, 2014, from January 1, 2014.
The EB-1 category remains current for applicants from most countries, Mexico, and the Philippines. The final action date for applicants born in mainland China advances one month to August 1, 2023, while India's date remains February 1, 2023, according to the Visa Bulletin.
The EB-4 category, covering certain special immigrants, remains at December 15, 2022, across the listed countries and areas.
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In the EB-5 investor category, the unreserved category remains current for most countries. The cut-off remains December 1, 2016, for mainland China and December 1, 2023, for India.
The three EB-5 set-aside categories covering rural investments, high-unemployment-area investments and infrastructure projects remain current for all countries listed in the bulletin.
The bulletin also provides separate dates for filing applications, which can differ from final action dates. For EB-2 applicants from most countries, including Mexico and the Philippines, the filing date remains March 15, 2026. For India, it remains January 15, 2015.
The F2A final-action date is October 22, 2026, for most countries, including mainland China, India and the Philippines, while the cutoff for Mexico is April 22, 2026. The State Department said F2A numbers exempt from the per-country limit may be issued to applicants from all countries whose priority dates are earlier than April 22.
Family-sponsored applicants face significant waits in several other categories. For most countries, the November final-action dates are January 22, 2021, for F1, covering unmarried adult sons and daughters of U.S. citizens; August 22, 2020, for F2B, covering unmarried adult sons and daughters of permanent residents; October 22, 2015, for F3, covering married sons and daughters of U.S. citizens; and October 22, 2012, for F4, covering siblings of adult U.S. citizens.
Separate, generally earlier dates apply to some oversubscribed countries.
The State Department based the November cut-off dates on visa demand reported through October 5. The dates may change as new applications are reported and visa availability changes.
The Department of State cautions that cut-off dates can move backward if demand exceeds available visa numbers. If a category reaches its annual limit, it may become unavailable for the remainder of the relevant period. Applicants who are not yet eligible should therefore monitor subsequent monthly bulletins rather than assume that the dates will continue to advance.
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Pierce argued that the Visa Bulletin should be viewed alongside other administration measures affecting employment-based immigration, pointing to increased H-1B fees, changes affecting the PERM program and H-4 work authorization, and a proposal concerning the grace period for laid-off workers.
He described the measures collectively as a “comprehensive assault on all of the things that made it possible for H-1B employees to build a life in the United States while pursuing permanent green cards,” and said he believed they reflected “a targeted plan to reduce the number of Indians and Chinese who can obtain employment, especially in the tech fields, and build a life here.”
What Applicants Should Do Next
Applicants should compare their priority date with the cut-off for their category and country. The priority date must be earlier than the listed date. Those applying from within the U.S. should also check U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services guidance to determine which chart applies for November. Reaching a filing or final action date does not guarantee green card approval, which remains subject to visa availability and other eligibility requirements.
Update, 10/23/26, 8:40 a.m. ET: This article was updated with comment from Douglas S. Pierce.
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Matthew Cannon and Emma Lee-Sang.
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