The Department of State has released the August 2026 Visa Bulletin. EB-1 India maintained its position after last month's retrogression, EB-2 and EB-5 Unreserved remain unavailable for India, and most other employment-based categories advanced modestly.
The most important change this month is that the State Department now says EB-1 India may become unavailable "in the coming weeks," and it has broadened its EB-2 retrogression warning to cover the entire category, not just China.
The Visa Bulletin publishes two charts each month for employment-based green card categories: Final Action Dates and Dates for Filing Applications.
Final Action Dates determine when a visa can be issued or when an adjustment of status is approved. Dates for Filing determine when an applicant can submit documents to start that process. USCIS decides each month which chart applies for adjustment of status filings, so applicants should always check the current USCIS determination.
Two other terms are important to know. "Current," shown as "C," means there is no cutoff date and all qualified applicants can move forward. "Unavailable," shown as "U," means no visa numbers remain in that category for that country for the rest of the fiscal year.
The EB-1 Final Action Date for India stays at October 15, 2022, unchanged from July. After July's two-month retrogression, no further ground was lost this month.
In July, the State Department said further retrogression or unavailability "may be necessary in the coming months." In August, the bulletin says high demand "may necessitate making the category unavailable in the coming weeks" if India's pro-rated EB-1 limit is reached before the fiscal year ends on September 30.
EB-1 China advanced one month, from June 1, 2023, to July 1, 2023. EB-1 remains Current for all other countries.
Here is what we see in that shift from "months" to "weeks": the State Department is signaling that EB-1 India could become Unavailable like EB-2 India before September 30. An India-chargeable EB-1A applicant with a priority date earlier than October 15, 2022, who is eligible for final action now may not want to assume that window stays open through the end of the fiscal year.
July's bulletin carried an EB-2 retrogression warning specific to China. August's bulletin drops the country limitation. It now states that sufficient demand and increased number use "in the EB-2 visa category" may make it necessary to retrogress the final action date or make the category unavailable in the coming months.
For now, nothing has changed in the chart. EB-2 remains Current for all countries except China, which holds at September 1, 2021, and India, which remains unavailable. That includes EB-2 National Interest Waiver cases for every country other than China and India.
An EB-2 NIW applicant chargeable to a Current country who is in the United States in valid status and has an approved or pending Form I-140 petition can still file the application for adjustment of status now. If the category retrogresses later in the fiscal year, applications filed while the category was Current remain in line. Whether to accelerate a filing is a case-specific decision to make with counsel but this is the first month the State Department has put the whole category on notice.
No change here. Both categories show "U" for India, as they have since July, and the July bulletin stated both would stay unavailable for the remainder of FY 2026.
The August bulletin does not repeat July's projection that the dates would likely return in October 2026 at approximately their earlier levels. That projection appeared in the July bulletin and depends on FY 2027 demand and annual limits.
The employment-based Dates for Filing chart is nearly identical to July across every category and country. The single change is EB-3 China, which advanced one week, from January 1, 2022, to January 8, 2022.
Visa Bulletin movement, especially a sudden warning of the EB-2 category, often raises the question of whether another category fits better.
Beyond Border specializes in O-1A, EB-1A, EB-2 NIW, L-1, and H-1B petitions, with a 98% approval rate across more than 4,000 petitions filed and a 30 day filing guarantee once all supporting documents are received.
If you want to explore other options or need counsel on the most efficient strategy, you can speak with our team to review your options.
No. It means the State Department sees demand levels that could require a retrogression or unavailability before the fiscal year ends. The category remains Current for all countries except China and India this month.
Yes, potentially. EB-2 NIW falls under the EB-2 category, so any future retrogression or unavailability would apply to NIW cases from the affected countries.
No. It stayed the same at October 15, 2022. The change is the warning, which now says the category may become unavailable for India in the coming weeks.
The July 2026 bulletin projected that both would likely advance in October 2026, when FY 2027 begins. The August bulletin does not repeat that projection, and any recovery depends on demand and the FY 2027 annual limits.
USCIS requires applicants to use the “Final Action Dates” for adjustment of status applications.
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