October 2025 Visa Bulletin: New Fiscal Year Will Begin With Advancement in Employment-Based Immigrant Visa Categories

Quick Hits

• USCIS to accept adjustment of status filings based on the Dates for Filing Chart in the October 2025 Visa Bulletin.
• The dates for filing for EB-1 India advance significantly by one year.
• The dates for filing for EB-3 worldwide will retrogress by two months, while the final action dates remain unchanged.

The final action dates for several categories advance in the October 2025 Visa Bulletin:

• EB-1: All countries remain current in October except for China, which advances by five weeks to December 22, 2022, and India, which remains at February 15, 2022.
• EB-2: All countries advance by three months to December 1, 2023, except for China, which advances by fifteen weeks to April 1, 2021, and India, which advances by three months to April 1, 2013.
• EB-3: All countries remain at April 1, 2023, except for China, which advances by three months to March 1, 2021, and India, which also advances by three months to August 22, 2013.
• EB-5: All countries remain current in October, except for China, which remains at December 8, 2015, and India, which advances by fourteen months to February 1, 2021.

Source: U.S. Department of State, October 2025 Visa Bulletin, Final Action Dates Chart

The dates for filing advance in several categories in the October 2025 Visa Bulletin:

• EB-1: All countries remain current in October except for China, which advances by nineteen weeks to May 15, 2023, and India, which advances by a year to April 15, 2023.
• EB-2: All countries advance by eight months to July 15, 2024, except for China, which advances by eleven months to December 1, 2021, and India, which advances by ten months to December 1, 2013.
• EB-3: All countries will retrogress by two months to July 1, 2023, except for China, which advances by a little over a year to January 1, 2022, and India, which advances by about fourteen months to August 15, 2014.
• EB-5: All countries remain current in October, except for China, which will retrogress by three months to July 1, 2016, and India, which remains at April 1, 2022.

Source: U.S. Department of State, October 2025 Visa Bulletin, Dates for Filing Chart

Key Takeaways

Due to USCIS’s use of the Dates for Filing chart in October, there will be a significant jump in eligible adjustment of status applicants. Because of the uncertainty of next month’s Visa Bulletin, eligible applicants may want to apply now for adjustment of status in October. Once an adjustment of status application is filed, the applicant’s priority date must be prior to the date listed in the Final Action Dates chart for a green card to be issued.

Ogletree Deakins’ Immigration Practice Group will continue to monitor developments and will publish updates on the Immigration blog as additional information becomes available.

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