The September 2026 Visa Bulletin: Family Categories Jump, India EB-2 and EB-5 Stay Closed

Published August 22, 2026 | By Parikh & Prasad, PC

The Visa Bulletin for September 2026 is out, and it is the last one of fiscal year 2026. The short version: family-sponsored categories jumped, some by more than two years. Employment-based categories barely moved. And two categories remain closed to India-born applicants for the rest of the fiscal year. Here is what actually changed, and what to do about it.

Two charts, and the one that governs your filing is not your choice

Each bulletin publishes two sets of dates. Final Action Dates control when a visa can actually be issued or an adjustment application approved. Dates for Filing control when you can send documents to the National Visa Center. A "C" means current — numbers are available to everyone qualified, whatever the priority date. A "U" means unauthorized: nothing can be issued at all.

For adjustment of status, USCIS picks the chart. One designation for family cases, one for employment cases, posted each month on the Adjustment of Status Filing Charts page. For August 2026 the designation was Dates for Filing for all family categories, Final Action Dates for all employment categories. As of the date of this post, September had not been designated yet. USCIS says it aims to post within a week of the bulletin's release.

This trips people up constantly. Do not assume last month's designation carries over.

Family-sponsored dates moved a long way

In the "All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed" column — and, this month, for China-mainland born and India in these same categories:

F1, unmarried sons and daughters of U.S. citizens: December 15, 2018 to January 22, 2020.

F2A, spouses and minor children of permanent residents: July 22, 2026 to August 22, 2026. One month.

F2B, unmarried adult sons and daughters of permanent residents: January 1, 2018 to August 22, 2019. That is more than a year and a half in a single month.

F3, married sons and daughters of U.S. citizens: May 15, 2012 to October 22, 2014.

F4, brothers and sisters of adult U.S. citizens: September 1, 2009 to October 22, 2011 for most countries and China.

Dates for Filing moved too: F1 to February 1, 2020, F2B to September 1, 2019, F3 to November 1, 2014, F4 to November 1, 2011. F2A stays current for filing in every column.

Mexico, the Philippines and India did not get the same month

The heavily oversubscribed columns moved much less, and in several categories not at all. Mexico's F1 advanced one month, to January 1, 2008. Mexico's F2B (February 15, 2009), F3 (July 1, 2001) and F4 (April 8, 2001) are unchanged from August. The Philippines moved only in F4, from August 1, 2007 to August 22, 2007 — three weeks. F1, F2B and F3 held. India's F4 sits where it was, November 1, 2006.

So if someone tells you family categories advanced two years this month, check your own row and column before you get your hopes up.

Employment-based was nearly frozen

One line moved on the entire employment Final Action Dates chart. Everything else held: EB-1 current for most countries, July 1, 2023 for China, October 15, 2022 for India. EB-2 current for most countries, September 1, 2021 for China. EB-3 at September 1, 2024 for most countries, January 1, 2022 for China, January 1, 2014 for India. Other Workers unchanged as well.

The employment Dates for Filing chart is byte-for-byte identical to August's. Every category, every column.

The one thing that advanced: EB-4 and religious workers

The fourth preference category for certain special immigrants, and the Certain Religious Workers subcategory inside it, moved two months for every country — October 15, 2022 to December 15, 2022. That is the only forward movement anywhere on the employment final action chart.

EB-2 India and EB-5 unreserved India are still closed

Both show "U" for India in September, same as August. That is not an unusually old cut-off date. It means no immigrant visa may be issued in those categories to an India-chargeable applicant for the rest of the fiscal year.

The State Department's notice on EB-2 says all available EB-2 visas for India-chargeable applicants in FY 2026 have been issued, citing the INA 203(b)(2) annual limit of 28.6 percent of the worldwide employment limit and the seven percent per-country cap under INA 202(a)(2). A separate notice reports that as of June 5, 2026, all available EB-5 unreserved visas for India were used up too. Both notices say the same thing about when it ends: the annual limits reset with FY 2027 on October 1, 2026, and posts may resume issuing then.

Worth knowing: the EB-5 set-asides — rural, high unemployment, infrastructure — are current for every country including India, on both charts.

Three warnings attached to this bulletin

The Department flagged three categories that could close before the fiscal year runs out.

EB-1 India. High demand and number use may require making the category unavailable "in the coming weeks" if India's pro-rated limit is reached.

EB-2. Demand may require retrogressing the final action date or making the category unavailable before the fiscal year ends.

EB-5 unreserved. Same caution — and this one is new. It did not appear in the August bulletin.

These are warnings, not announcements. But read them for what they are: the Department saying a date printed in September's chart may not survive to September 30.

Why the family dates are sprinting

The bulletin explains it outright. Immigrant visa issuance rates for nationals of certain countries have decreased in light of administration actions taken to protect national security and public safety — the bulletin cites Presidential Proclamation 10949, Presidential Proclamation 10998, and immigrant visa processing updates. To use the numbers available in FY 2026, the Department has been advancing dates for filing and final action dates across various categories in recent months.

The caveat in that same paragraph matters just as much: as demand materializes, or as those administration actions are amended, retrogression may be necessary in upcoming months, and categories may go unavailable if annual, category, or pro-rated per-country limits are reached.

FY 2026's numerical limits are now official

September's bulletin publishes the annual determination required under INA 201(c) and (d). USCIS handed over the underlying data on July 24, 2026. Worldwide family-sponsored preference limit: 226,000. Worldwide employment-based limit: 186,317. The per-country limit under INA 202(a)(2), fixed at seven percent of the combined totals, is 28,862, with a dependent area limit of 8,247. Count the EB-5 carryover provisions under INA 203(b)(5)(B) and the per-country figure rises to 29,136, the dependent area figure to 8,325.

DV-2026 selectees have a hard stop on September 30

Entitlement in the DV category lasts only through the fiscal year you were selected for. For DV-2026 that ends September 30, 2026 — for principals and for accompanying or following-to-join spouses and children alike. The bulletin says plainly that availability through the very end of FY 2026 cannot be taken for granted, and that numbers could run out before September 30.

September's regional cut-offs: Africa 101,250, except Algeria at 85,000 and Egypt at 50,000. Asia 40,000, except Nepal at 13,500. Europe 47,500. North America (Bahamas) current. Oceania 3,000. South America and the Caribbean 4,750.

What to do now

Confirm the chart before you file. A family adjustment applicant who files off the wrong chart risks rejection. Check the USCIS filing-charts page for September rather than reusing August's designation.

If a family category just opened for you, move. The bulletin warns in its own text that retrogression may be necessary in upcoming months. September opening is not October staying open.

India-born EB-2 and EB-5 unreserved applicants: plan around October 1. Nothing issues before the fiscal year turns. Spend the remaining weeks getting documentation complete so you are not the bottleneck when numbers come back.

India-born EB-1 applicants: treat this as time-sensitive. The Department said weeks, not months.

DV-2026 selectees: do not wait. There is no extension past September 30 and no rollover into DV-2027.

Bulletin movement is one of the few parts of this practice where the timing is entirely outside your control and the preparation is entirely within it. We track each month's charts against our clients' priority dates and reach out when a case becomes actionable. If you are not sure where your priority date stands, or which chart applies to your filing, contact us to schedule a consultation.

This post is attorney advertising and is provided for general information only. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Immigration law changes rapidly; consult a qualified immigration attorney about your specific situation.

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