The Visa Bulletin (Priority Dates, Final Action Dates, Dates for Filing)

Why the Visa Bulletin exists

U.S. immigration law caps the number of immigrant visas (green cards) granted each fiscal year in most family and employment categories, and additionally limits each country of birth to no more than 7 percent of the worldwide total. When demand exceeds the annual supply for a category and country, a waiting line forms. The Visa Bulletin is how the Department of State and USCIS publish, every month, where the line stands. Without it, every applicant would be guessing about timing.

The Visa Bulletin lives at travel.state.gov. It is published around the 15th of each month for the following month.

Priority date: your place in line

Every numerically-capped applicant has a priority date. The priority date is the date the underlying petition was filed:

• Family-based cases: the date USCIS received the I-130.
• Most employment-based cases: the date the Department of Labor accepted the PERM labor certification application. For cases not requiring PERM (EB-1, EB-2 NIW), the priority date is the date USCIS received the I-140.
• EB-5 investor cases: the date USCIS received the I-526 or I-526E.

The priority date is fixed when the petition is filed. It does not change unless the underlying petition is denied or the case is moved to a different category. The priority date is the single most important number in any numerically-capped immigrant case.

Final Action Dates vs Dates for Filing

The Visa Bulletin publishes two parallel charts every month for both family-based and employment-based preferences:

Chart A: Final Action Dates

Final Action Dates control when the green card can actually be issued. A USCIS officer or consular officer cannot approve the green card application until the applicant's priority date is earlier than the Final Action Date for the applicant's preference category and country of birth.

Chart B: Dates for Filing

Dates for Filing control when the applicant can submit the green-card application itself. In the U.S., that means filing Form I-485 (adjustment of status). Abroad, it means submitting the DS-260 immigrant visa application package to the National Visa Center. Dates for Filing are typically several months ahead of Final Action Dates.

Which chart applies for AOS in any given month

USCIS makes a monthly determination of which chart adjustment-of-status applicants in the U.S. can use. The announcement is published on the USCIS Visa Bulletin information page. The decision depends on USCIS's anticipated demand for the year. When USCIS uses Dates for Filing, applicants can file I-485 earlier (often months earlier than Final Action Dates would otherwise allow), which is especially valuable for the EAD work permit and Advance Parole travel benefits.

Consular processing through the National Visa Center always uses the Dates for Filing chart for document collection and the Final Action Dates chart for visa issuance.

Family-based preference categories

The family-based categories on the Visa Bulletin (with annual visa allocations) are:

• Immediate Relatives of U.S. citizens (spouse, parent, unmarried child under 21). Not on the Visa Bulletin; not numerically capped; always current.
• F1: unmarried sons and daughters (21 or older) of U.S. citizens. 23,400 visas per year.
• F2A: spouses and unmarried minor children of lawful permanent residents. 87,900 visas per year (77 percent of the F2 allocation).
• F2B: unmarried sons and daughters (21 or older) of lawful permanent residents. 26,300 visas per year (23 percent of the F2 allocation).
• F3: married sons and daughters of U.S. citizens. 23,400 visas per year.
• F4: brothers and sisters of adult U.S. citizens. 65,000 visas per year.

Employment-based preference categories

• EB-1: priority workers (extraordinary ability EB-1A, outstanding researchers EB-1B, multinational managers EB-1C). 28.6 percent of the worldwide employment allocation, plus unused EB-4 and EB-5 numbers fall here.
• EB-2: advanced-degree professionals and exceptional ability, including National Interest Waiver. 28.6 percent of the worldwide allocation plus unused EB-1 numbers.
• EB-3: skilled workers, professionals, and other workers. 28.6 percent of the worldwide allocation plus unused EB-1 and EB-2 numbers.
• EB-4: certain special immigrants (religious workers, Special Immigrant Juveniles, retired international organization employees, certain physicians, others). 7.1 percent of the worldwide allocation.
• EB-5: immigrant investors. 7.1 percent of the worldwide allocation, with 32 percent of EB-5 numbers further set aside in Reserved categories (rural, high-unemployment, infrastructure) under the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022.

Country chargeability

The Visa Bulletin organizes each preference category by country of birth (not country of citizenship or country of residence). Each immigrant is "charged" to their country of birth except in two situations:

• Cross-chargeability for spouses. A spouse can claim the immigrant visa charge of the other spouse if it would help avoid a backlog. For example, a spouse born in India who married a spouse born in Canada can use the Canada column for that visa case.
• Cross-chargeability for minor children. A child born to parents in a country where neither parent is a citizen or domiciled can be charged to either parent's country of birth.

The countries that appear with separate columns on the Visa Bulletin are India, China-mainland born, Mexico, and the Philippines (and occasionally other countries in specific categories when demand spikes). All other countries are grouped under "All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed."

The "C" current and "U" unauthorized notations

• C (Current). No waiting line. The applicant can move forward without a Visa Bulletin wait.
• U (Unauthorized). No visas are available in that category and country for the month. Applicants cannot move forward and existing filings cannot be adjudicated to issuance.
• Specific date. The Visa Bulletin lists a date in DD/MM/YY format. Applicants whose priority date is earlier than that date may proceed.

Retrogression and forward movement

The Visa Bulletin moves forward when supply exceeds demand and backward (retrogresses) when demand exceeds supply. Several factors drive movement:

• Annual allocation reset. Each fiscal year begins October 1. The Department of State releases the full year's visa supply at the start of the year, which often triggers forward movement in October and November.
• Demand changes. Sudden increases in priority dates for a country (e.g., large numbers of newly-filed I-130s for India F4) drive retrogression.
• Spillover. Unused visas in one category fall to others. Unused EB-1 numbers spill to EB-2; unused EB-4 and EB-5 spill to EB-1.
• USCIS efficiency. When USCIS adjudicates fewer cases than expected, demand on the Visa Bulletin falls and dates can advance.

How to read the Visa Bulletin in three steps

1. Find your category and country. The leftmost column shows the preference category (F1, F2A, F2B, F3, F4 for family; EB-1, EB-2, EB-3, EB-4, EB-5 for employment). The columns across the top show country of birth.
2. Find your priority date. Look at the I-130 or I-140 approval notice, which lists the priority date prominently.
3. Compare the dates. If your priority date is earlier than the date shown for your category and country, you can move forward. If it is later, you wait.

Common pitfalls

• Confusing the two charts. Use the Final Action Dates chart to know when the green card can issue. Use the Dates for Filing chart only when USCIS announces that AOS applicants can file under it for the month.
• Using country of citizenship instead of country of birth. The Visa Bulletin always uses country of birth. An applicant born in India who is now a Canadian citizen still uses the India column.
• Ignoring cross-chargeability. Spouses with different countries of birth should always check both columns to see which gives a faster path.
• Missing the monthly USCIS announcement. USCIS posts which chart adjustment applicants can use about a week after the State Department releases the Visa Bulletin. Read the USCIS announcement, not just the State Department bulletin, before filing.

Frequently asked questions

Go deeper

The Visa Bulletin touches almost every numerically-capped case. For deeper context on specific paths, see the I-130 Step-by-Step Guide, the I-485 vs Consular Processing decision guide, and the EB-5 Minimum Investment 2026 guide. To return to the full glossary, visit the Immigration Glossary hub.