Update — August 26, 2026: The official September 2026 Visa Bulletin has been published. This page originally tracked pre-release predictions; it now uses the final Department of State bulletin and keeps a prediction-vs-actual comparison so readers can see what really happened.
Short answer: employment-based Final Action Dates were mostly frozen from August. EB-1 India stayed at 15OCT22 instead of becoming unavailable, EB-2 India remained Unavailable, and EB-4 advanced to 15DEC22. On the family side, F2A moved to 22AUG26 for most chargeability areas, while Mexico is 22AUG25. The State Department also kept fiscal-year-end warnings for EB-1 India, EB-2, and EB-5 unreserved.
Official source: U.S. Department of State — Visa Bulletin for September 2026.
- September 2026 Visa Bulletin: Key Takeaways
- Official September 2026 Employment-Based Final Action Dates
- September 2026 Family-Sponsored Final Action Dates
- Predictions vs. Actual: What We Got Right and Wrong
- Why a Warning Is Not the Same as a Cutoff Change
- EB-1 India, EB-2 and EB-5: What the State Department Still Warns About
- What Adjustment Applicants Should Check Before Filing
- What Happens in October 2026?
- Official Sources
- Bottom Line
September 2026 Visa Bulletin: Key Takeaways
- EB-1 India: 15OCT22. It did not become unavailable in the published September chart.
- EB-2 India: Unavailable (U) in the Final Action Dates chart.
- EB-2 worldwide: remains Current (C), despite the Department of State warning that demand could still force retrogression or unavailability before the fiscal year ends.
- EB-3: Final Action Dates are unchanged from the August baseline for the major country columns.
- EB-4: Final Action Date advances to 15DEC22 for all listed chargeability areas.
- EB-5 unreserved: India remains Unavailable; China is 01DEC16; most other listed areas remain Current.
- EB-5 set-asides: rural, high-unemployment and infrastructure categories remain Current for all listed chargeability areas.
- F2A: 22AUG26 for most chargeability areas and 22AUG25 for Mexico. Dates for Filing are Current across all listed areas.
Official September 2026 Employment-Based Final Action Dates
In the Department of State chart, C means Current and U means Unavailable. A listed date means the category is oversubscribed and a visa number can be authorized only for applicants whose priority date is earlier than the published cutoff, subject to the applicant otherwise being eligible.
| Category | All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed | China | India | Mexico | Philippines |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EB-1 | C | 01JUL23 | 15OCT22 | C | C |
| EB-2 | C | 01SEP21 | U | C | C |
| EB-3 | 01SEP24 | 01JAN22 | 01JAN14 | 01SEP24 | 01AUG23 |
| Other Workers | 01APR22 | 01MAY19 | 01JAN14 | 01APR22 | 01DEC21 |
| EB-4 | 15DEC22 | 15DEC22 | 15DEC22 | 15DEC22 | 15DEC22 |
| EB-5 Unreserved | C | 01DEC16 | U | C | C |
| EB-5 Rural Set-Aside | C | C | C | C | C |
| EB-5 High-Unemployment Set-Aside | C | C | C | C | C |
| EB-5 Infrastructure Set-Aside | C | C | C | C | C |
September 2026 Family-Sponsored Final Action Dates
The family-sponsored chart also changed materially in several categories. The most important correction to earlier coverage is F2A: the published Final Action Date is 22AUG26 for All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed, China, India and the Philippines. Mexico is 22AUG25.
| Category | All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed | China | India | Mexico | Philippines |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F1 | 22JAN20 | 22JAN20 | 22JAN20 | 01JAN08 | 01MAY13 |
| F2A | 22AUG26 | 22AUG26 | 22AUG26 | 22AUG25 | 22AUG26 |
| F2B | 22AUG19 | 22AUG19 | 22AUG19 | 15FEB09 | 01JUN13 |
| F3 | 22OCT14 | 22OCT14 | 22OCT14 | 01JUL01 | 22FEB06 |
| F4 | 22OCT11 | 22OCT11 | 01NOV06 | 08APR01 | 22AUG07 |
For F2A, the September Dates for Filing chart is Current across all listed chargeability areas. Adjustment-of-status applicants should still check the USCIS monthly filing-chart page before filing because USCIS determines which Visa Bulletin chart governs adjustment filings for each month.
Predictions vs. Actual: What We Got Right and Wrong
The earlier version of this page was a forecast. Now that the official bulletin exists, the useful thing is to score those predictions instead of leaving them presented as current guidance.
| Earlier Prediction | Official September Result | Assessment |
|---|---|---|
| EB-1 India had a real risk of becoming Unavailable. | EB-1 India remained at 15OCT22. DOS repeated a warning that it could still become unavailable before fiscal year end. | The risk warning was real, but the predicted outcome did not occur in the published chart. |
| EB-2 India would remain Unavailable. | EB-2 India is U. | Correct. |
| EB-2 worldwide could retrogress or become Unavailable. | EB-2 worldwide remained Current. DOS retained a warning that retrogression or unavailability could still become necessary. | The warning remained valid; the predicted September cutoff change did not occur. |
| EB-3 would be mostly flat or see minimal movement. | The major EB-3 Final Action Dates remained unchanged from the August baseline. | Correct directionally. |
| EB-4 would remain at 15OCT22. | EB-4 moved to 15DEC22. | Missed; the category advanced two months. |
This is why Visa Bulletin predictions should be treated as forecasts, not filing authority. The official Department of State bulletin and the USCIS monthly filing-chart designation control the practical decision.
Why a Warning Is Not the Same as a Cutoff Change
The September bulletin contains explicit fiscal-year-end warnings, but those warnings should not be rewritten as if a category is already unavailable or retrogressed. The published chart is the current status. The narrative warning tells applicants that the Department may need to change availability before the end of the fiscal year if annual or per-country limits are reached.
That distinction mattered in September: EB-1 India remained at 15OCT22 and EB-2 worldwide remained Current even though both had been flagged as categories to watch.
EB-1 India, EB-2 and EB-5: What the State Department Still Warns About
EB-1 India: the Department says high demand and number use may require making the category unavailable before the fiscal year ends if India’s pro-rated limit is reached.
EB-2: sufficient demand and increased number use may make it necessary to retrogress the Final Action Date or make the category unavailable before the end of FY2026.
EB-5 unreserved: the bulletin gives a similar warning that demand and number use may require retrogression or an unavailable designation before the end of the fiscal year.
These are live warnings, not guarantees. Applicants should verify the current official bulletin and any subsequent Department of State or USCIS update before acting.
What Adjustment Applicants Should Check Before Filing
- Confirm your preference category and country of chargeability.
- Compare your priority date with the correct September cutoff.
- Check USCIS’s monthly Adjustment of Status Filing Charts page to determine which chart USCIS authorizes for your filing category.
- Do not use an old prediction table as the basis for filing eligibility.
- If your category is close to an annual limit, verify that it has not subsequently become unavailable before filing.
What Happens in October 2026?
October 1 begins fiscal year 2027 and brings a new annual allocation of immigrant visa numbers. That does not mean every oversubscribed category automatically becomes current or returns to a particular cutoff date. The October 2026 Visa Bulletin will establish the actual FY2027 opening dates.
For applicants in EB-2 India, EB-5 unreserved India, EB-1 India and other oversubscribed categories, the safest approach is to wait for the official October bulletin rather than extrapolating a reset date from September.
Official Sources
- Department of State — Visa Bulletin for September 2026
- Department of State — Visa Bulletin index
- USCIS — Adjustment of Status Filing Charts from the Visa Bulletin
Bottom Line
The September 2026 Visa Bulletin did not deliver the dramatic employment-based shutdowns some forecasts feared. EB-1 India stayed at 15OCT22, EB-2 worldwide remained Current, EB-2 India stayed Unavailable, and EB-4 advanced to 15DEC22. Family-sponsored categories, especially F2A, also need to be read from the actual September chart rather than from pre-release assumptions.
The most useful lesson is simple: forecasts can identify pressure points, but only the official monthly bulletin establishes the published cutoff dates. Use predictions to understand risk; use the Department of State and USCIS to decide what you can actually do.
