October 2026 Visa Bulletin: Mixed Results for Green Card Applicants as Employment-Based Categories Shift

• by Shimanta Das
• October 1, 2026

The October 2026 Visa Bulletin has arrived, bringing a mix of hope and frustration for green card applicants. According to reports, the most significant shifts benefit employment-based applicants from India, with new visa allocations raising hopes for many. However, the State Department’s efforts to reduce the number of visas issued annually have led to declines in some employment-based categories that previously covered the majority of nations, Mexico, and the Philippines. The delayed release of the bulletin, criticized by former senior USCIS official Ricky Murray, gave impacted applicants less than two days to submit petitions and applications to USCIS, adding stress to an already complex process.

In the Final Action Date chart, the cutoff for most countries—including China, India, and the Philippines—progressed from August 22 to September 22, 2026. For most countries, including Argentina, the final action date remains September 22, 2026, while Mexico has a cutoff of March 22, 2026. The F2A category remains current on the filing chart but has separate Final Action cutoffs. These dates are critical for applicants preparing to file Form I-485, as USCIS has selected the Dates for Filing chart for October. This means that even though EB-2 and EB-3 filing cutoffs remain January 15, 2015, the switch from September’s employment Final Action chart to October’s filing chart can create a filing opportunity without a later filing cutoff.

For applicants born in mainland China, the filing cutoffs have moved to July 1, 2024, for EB-1, January 1, 2023, for EB-2, April 1, 2024, for EB-3 skilled workers and professionals, and March 1, 2021, for EB-5 unreserved. These changes offer new opportunities alongside significant employment-based retrogression. As always, applicants should consult the official bulletin and their immigration attorney to navigate these updates carefully.