The Department of State published the November 2026 Visa Bulletin, and USCIS determined that, in November, adjustment of status applications in the family and employment categories use the Dates for Filing chart (AILA). In the family queues, several cutoff dates moved up to 12 months; in the employment queues, the advance was a few weeks or months.
What happened?
The bulletin includes two charts per category: Final Action Dates, which indicates when the visa or green card can be granted, and Dates for Filing, which indicates when the application can be submitted. The USCIS page on the bulletin charts states that, in November, both the family and employment categories follow the Dates for Filing chart.
What moved in the family queues?
In the All Chargeability column, which covers countries without their own column, such as Brazil, Boundless records these Final Action Dates for November, alongside October's:
- F1 (unmarried sons and daughters of citizens, 21 and over): 01/22/2021, versus 01/22/2020 in October.
- F2A (spouses and unmarried children of permanent residents): 10/22/2026, versus 09/22/2026.
- F2B: 08/22/2020, versus 08/22/2019.
- F3 (married sons and daughters of citizens): 10/22/2015, versus 10/22/2014.
- F4 (siblings of citizens): 10/22/2012, versus 10/22/2011.
In the Dates for Filing chart, immi-usa lists, for the rest of the world, F1 at 02/01/2021, F2A at Current, F2B at 09/01/2020, F3 at 11/01/2015, and F4 at 11/01/2012. In the same source, F2A appears as Current in all columns, which means there is no cutoff date for filing an application in this category.
What changed in the employment queues?
According to Erickson Immigration Group, in the Final Action Dates, the EB-1 category remains Current for the world, except for China and India. The rest-of-world EB-2 moved forward three months, to 04/01/2025, and EB-3 moved forward one month, to 06/15/2024. In the Dates for Filing chart, the rest-of-world dates stayed the same as October's: EB-2 at 03/15/2026 and EB-3 at 08/01/2024.
For countries with their own column, the same source records, in the Final Action Dates, India's EB-2 holding at 11/01/2013 and India's EB-3 at 01/22/2014, 14 days ahead. For China, EB-1 moved to 08/01/2023, one month ahead.
How do you read the chart, step by step?
The bulletin works as follows, according to the description from the sources above:
- The chart lists the category (for example, F2A or EB-3) and the column for the country of birth.
- For adjustment of status in November, USCIS requires use of the Dates for Filing chart; the Final Action Dates chart continues to indicate when final approval can occur, as described by immi-usa.
- The date in the chart is compared with the priority date, which appears on the receipt or approval of the petition (I-130 or I-140).
- The date in the chart applies to those whose priority date is the same as or earlier than it; when the category appears as Current, there is no cutoff date.
Who is affected?
The bulletin affects anyone with a family petition (I-130) or employment petition (I-140) with a set priority date who is waiting for their category's date. The chart chosen by USCIS applies to the adjustment of status application (I-485); for those going through the consular process, the Department of State publishes the same dates in the bulletin. To understand the steps of adjustment of status, see the I-485 guide, and for the phases of the family process, the article on the 5 phases of the family green card.
What's the next date?
The Department of State publishes one bulletin per month, always with the following month's charts, and USCIS informs on its page which chart applies each month. To see how to track your queue month by month, read how to know if your family's queue moved. The other articles are on Prime's blog.
Sources
- November 2026 Visa Bulletin, Department of State
- Visa Bulletin Charts for Adjustment of Status, USCIS
- Visa Bulletin for November 2026, AILA
- November 2026 Visa Bulletin, Boundless
- November 2026 Visa Bulletin, immi-usa
- November 2026 Visa Bulletin Released, Erickson Immigration Group
Educational information, not legal advice. Prime Immigration Office is a paralegal service — document preparation only. For legal advice, consult a licensed Texas attorney or DOJ-accredited representative.