October 2023 Visa Bulletin

Written By Lauren Jo

The Department of State has released the October 2023 Visa Bulletin for Employment and Family Based green card applications. To be eligible to file an employment-based adjustment of status application for October 2023, you must have a Priority Date that is earlier than the date listed on the chart here for your preference category and country. USCIS has announced on its own Visa Bulletin web page the cutoff dates for acceptance of adjustment of status applications for both family and employment-based next month will be based on the Dates for Filing chart.

Highlights of the October 2023 Visa Bulletin for Employment-Based Final Action Dates:

  • EB-1 India final action will advance to January 1, 2017. Date for Filing is July 1, 2019.

  • EB-1 China final action will advance two weeks to February 15, 2022. Date for Filing is August 1, 2022.

  • EB-1 Worldwide final action date will become Current. Date for Filing is Current.

  • EB-2 Worldwide final action date will advance by one week to July 8, 2022. Date for Filing is January 1, 2023.

  • EB-2 China final action will remain nearly three months to October 1, 2019. Date for Filing is January 1, 2020.

  • EB-2 India final action will advance one year to January 1, 2012. Date for Filing is May 15, 2012.

  • EB-3 Worldwide (all other countries) Professional/Skilled Workers will advance 18 months to December 1, 2021. Date for Filing is February 1, 2023.

  • EB-3 China Professional/Skilled Workers will advance by four months to January 1, 2020. Date for Filing is September 1, 2020.

  • EB-3 India Professional/Skilled Workers will advance three and a half years to May 1, 2012. Date for Filing is August 1, 2012.

  • EB-3 Worldwide Other Workers will advance three months to August 1, 2020. Date for Filing is December 15, 2020.

  • EB-3 China and India Other Workers will advance to January 1, 2016, and May 1, 2012, respectively. Dates for Filing are June 1, 2017 and August 1, 2012.

  • EB-5: For the EB-5 Unreserved categories (C5, T5, I5, and R5), India will advance by one year and eight months to December 15, 2018, and China will advance by three weeks to October 1, 2015. All other countries will remain current. The EB-5 set-aside categories (Rural, High Unemployment, and Infrastructure) will also remain current.

KEY TERMS

  • Priority Date (Employment-based): the date your immigrant petition (I-140 petition) was filed, or if you were subject to the PERM Labor Market Test process, the date the Labor Certification was filed with the Department of Labor.

  • Priority Date (Family-based): the date your immigrant petition (I-130 petition) was filed.

  • Preference Category (Employment-based): First Preference is EB-1 Priority Workers (i.e. Extraordinary Ability, Outstanding Researcher, or Multinational Manager petitions), Second Preference is EB-2 Members of the Professions Holding Advanced Degrees or Persons of Exceptional Ability; Third Preference is EB-3 Skilled Workers, Professionals, and Other Workers, Fourth Preference is Certain Special Immigrants, and Fifth Preference is EB-5 Employment Creation.

  • Preference Category (Family-based): First Preference is Unmarried Sons and Daughters of U.S. Citizens, Second Preference is Spouses and Children, and Unmarried Sons and Daughters of Permanent Residents broken down to F2A (Spouses and Children of Permanent Residents) and F2B (Unmarried Sons and Daughters (21 years of age or older) of Permanent Residents), Third Preference is Married Sons and Daughters of U.S. Citizens, and Fourth Preference is Brothers and Sisters of Adult U.S. Citizens.

  • Country: This is the country of your birth, even if you have become a citizen in a different country.

Lauren Jo
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September 2023 Visa Bulletin