The Department of State has released the September 2026 Visa Bulletin, the final bulletin of the Fiscal Year 2026. Overall, FInal Action Dates for most Employment-based categories were unchanged.
The most important change this month is the State Department’s EB-2 and EB-5 Unreserved warning, and the published FY 2026 employment-based limit.
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.
Here are all the key changes in the September 2026 visa bulletin;
1. The EB-2 Warning now extends to before the end of the Fiscal Year 2026, which is before September 30th.
2. The chart itself is unchanged. EB-2 is still Current for all Regions except China (September 1, 2021) and India (Unavailable). This includes EB-2 National Interest Waiver cases for every country other than China and India.
What This Means For EB-2 NIW Applicants: If you are eligible and ready to file your adjustment of status while your category is Current, it’s best to do it early, before potential retrogression. Unavailability declarations can happen at any time during the month, so speak with your counsel if you need to know when to file.
3. A new warning for EB-5 Unreserved: The State Department has warned that high demand in EB-5 Unreserved may cause the category to retrogress or become unavailable before the fiscal year 2026. Currently, EB-5 Unreserved remains Current everywhere except China (December 1, 2016) and India (Unavailable). All EB-5 Set Aside categories (Rural, High Unemployment, Infrastructure) remain Current for all countries.
4. EB-1 India remains Unchanged: EB-1 Final Action Dates held steady: India remains at October 15, 2022, China stays at July 1, 2023, and all other countries remain Current.
5. Official FY 2026 employment-based annual limit set: The State Department finalized the FY 2026 worldwide employment-based limit at 186,317 visas (up from the earlier 140,000 estimate) after receiving complete data from USCIS.
EB-4 and Certain Religious Workers advanced two months, from October 15, 2022 to December 15, 2022, for every chargeability area. This is the only employment-based movement in the employment-based categories this month. Every other date remains unchanged from the August 2026 Visa Bulletin.
With multiple availability warnings, you may want to explore backup options or secondary visa strategies to secure your timeline. Beyond Border specializes in O-1A, EB-1A, EB-2NIW, and L-1 visas, with a 98% approval rate across 4,000+ petitions with a 30-day filing guarantee once documents are complete. To evaluate your options, reach out to our team for a personalized consultation.
Yes, it became more specific. The State Department now specifies that retrogression could happen before September 30th, 2026.
Yes. Because EB-2 NIW is part of the overall EB-2 category, any retrogression of unavailability applies to NIW applications as well.
No, it is still the same as in the August 2026 bulletin: October 15, 2022.
The previous figure was an estimate. After receiving final adjustment and parole data, USCIS set the official limit at 186,317.
USCIS requires applicants to use the “Final Action Dates” for adjustment of status applications.
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