US Visa Bulletin March: EB-2 India up 11 months for green card applicants

US Visa Bulletin March 2026: USCIS will accept employment-based adjustment filings in March as EB-1 and EB-2 India categories move forward

Visa Bulletin March 2026: In a major relief for Indian green card applicants, the US State Department’s March 2026 Visa Bulletin shows forward movement in key employment-based categories, with EB-2 for India advancing by 11 months and EB-1 moving ahead by four months. China, however, saw no movement in EB-2. The update shows forward movement across several employment-based categories and confirms that US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will accept employment-based adjustment of status applications in March using the Dates for Filing chart.

 

What the visa bulletin means for applicants

 

The Visa Bulletin remains the primary reference for individuals waiting to adjust status or obtain an immigrant visa. It contains two key charts serving different purposes.

   

> Dates for filing indicate when applicants may submit their adjustment of status or immigrant visa applications.

> Final action dates show when a green card can actually be approved, effectively reflecting visa availability and demand.

 

For employment-based green cards, applicants must have a priority date earlier than the listed cut-off in the Dates for Filing chart when USCIS authorises its use, as it has done for March.

 

Dates for filing: Key movement

 

Under the March 2026 visa bulletin:

 

EB-1: China and India will advance by four months to December 1, 2023. All other countries remain current.

 

EB-2: All countries except India and China will become current. India advances by 11 months to November 1, 2014. China remains at January 1, 2022.

 

EB-3 professionals and skilled workers

 

> China remains at January 1, 2022, and India remains at August 15, 2014. All other countries except the Philippines advance by three and a half months to January 15, 2024.

> State Department sources for EB-3 Philippines differ: the official Visa Bulletin PDF lists January 1, 2024, while the website lists January 15, 2024.

 

EB-5 unreserved: China advances by five weeks to October 1, 2016. India remains at May 1, 2024. All other countries remain current. EB-5 set-aside categories also remain current.

 

Final action dates: March 2026

 

Final action dates determine when immigrant visas can actually be issued or adjustment applications approved.

 

EB-1

China: March 1, 2023

India: March 1, 2023

All other countries: Current

 

EB-2

China: September 1, 2021

India: September 15, 2013

All other countries: October 15, 2024

 

EB-3 professionals and skilled workers

China: May 1, 2021

India: November 15, 2013

Philippines: August 1, 2023

All other countries: October 1, 2023

 

EB-3 other workers

China: December 8, 2018

India: November 15, 2013

All other countries: November 1, 2021

 

EB-4

All countries: July 15, 2021

 

EB-5 unreserved

China: August 15, 2016

India: May 1, 2022

All other countries: Current

 

EB-5 set-asides

Rural: Current for all countries

High unemployment: Current for all countries

Infrastructure: Current for all countries

 

How are employment-based green cards divided?

 

Employment-based immigrant visas are split across five preferences, each with a fixed share of the annual global quota and its own eligibility rules.

 

EB-1 – Priority workers

– Individuals with extraordinary ability

– Outstanding professors and researchers

– Certain multinational executives and managers

 

EB-2 – Professionals with advanced degrees or individuals of exceptional ability

– Professionals with advanced degrees

– Individuals with exceptional ability in sciences, arts or business

 

EB-3 – skilled workers, professionals and Other Workers

– Skilled workers and professionals

– “Other Workers” doing unskilled labour, subject to a 10,000 visa cap

 

EB-4 – Certain special immigrants

– Some religious workers

– Certain employees of US foreign service posts

– Other special categories set by statute

 

EB-5 – Employment creation

– 20 per cent reserved for rural projects

– 10 per cent for high unemployment areas

– 2 per cent for infrastructure projects

– The remaining 68 per cent unreserved and open to other qualifying investments

 

EB-5 set-aside categories have their own pools of numbers, separate from the unreserved EB-5 quota. Because these set-aside pools are current for India, investors who qualify for rural, high unemployment or infrastructure projects can proceed more quickly than those in the unreserved track.