The Department of State has just issued the September 2026 Visa Bulletin. This blog post analyzes this month’s Visa Bulletin.

Visa Bulletin

Table A: Final Action Dates — Applications with these dates may be approved for their Green Card (Permanent Residency card) or Immigrant Visa appointment:


Table B: Adjustment of Status Filing Chart

USCIS will continue to use the Table A Final Action chart for I-485 employment-based filings in September 2026. See: USCIS Visa Bulletin Dates

MU Law Analysis

The September Visa Bulletin saw no forward movement which is common for the final month of the fiscal year. There was also no retrogression and no new categories became unavailable.

The Visa Bulletin continues to highlight that recent advancement in priority dates was driven in part by reduced demand, including the impact of prior immigration restrictions and travel bans. These advancements could be temporary as demand increases and if certain restrictions like the 75 country visa pause are lifted. Looking ahead, the Department of State has indicated that further retrogression or unavailability remains possible.

The Visa Bulletin suggests that India EB-1 might become unavailable prior to the end of September.
EB-2 remains current for all countries except India and China but it might become necessary to make the category unavailable prior to the end of September if the annual limit is reached.

The Visa Bulletin noted that FY 2026 will have 186,317 employment-based immigrant visas available, significantly exceeding the normal annual limit of 140,000. This increase is the result of unused family-based immigrant visas from FY 2025 being added to the employment-based visa pool.