July 2026 Visa Bulletin: EB-1 India Retrogresses Further

What Happened

The U.S. Department of State released the [July 2026 Visa Bulletin](https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/legal/visa-law0/visa-bulletin/2026/visa-bulletin-for-july-2026.html) (Volume XI, Number 16), and USCIS confirmed on June 16, 2026 that employment-based adjustment applicants must use the [Final Action Dates chart](https://www.uscis.gov/green-card/green-card-processes-and-procedures/visa-availability-priority-dates/adjustment-of-status-filing-charts-from-the-visa-bulletin). The more permissive Dates for Filing chart is unavailable again for EB categories.

The headline is EB-1 India's continued slide. The final action date moves back two full months, from December 15, 2022 in June to October 15, 2022 in July. The State Department also warns that further retrogression or complete unavailability may follow if India's prorated EB-1 limit is reached before the fiscal year ends on September 30.

EB-2 India remains marked 'Unavailable' after its annual limit was [exhausted in May 2026](https://haven-five-hazel.vercel.app/blog/eb2-india-per-country-limit-exhausted-fy2026), and the State Department does not expect the category to reopen before October 2026. EB-3 is the one area with forward movement, especially for China and Rest of World applicants.

July 2026 Final Action Dates at a Glance

Here are the key employment-based Final Action Dates for July 2026, with month-over-month changes from the June bulletin:

• EB-1 India: October 15, 2022 (retrogressed 2 months from December 15, 2022)
• EB-1 China: June 1, 2023 (advanced 2 months from April 1, 2023)
• EB-1 Rest of World, Mexico, Philippines: Current
• EB-2 India: Unavailable (was September 1, 2013 in June — category limit exhausted)
• EB-2 China: September 1, 2021 (no movement)
• EB-2 Rest of World, Mexico, Philippines: Current
• EB-3 Skilled Workers India: January 1, 2014 (advanced ~2.5 weeks from December 15, 2013)
• EB-3 Skilled Workers China: December 22, 2021 (advanced ~4.5 months from August 1, 2021)
• EB-3 Skilled Workers Rest of World and Mexico: August 1, 2024 (advanced 2 months from June 1, 2024)
• EB-3 Skilled Workers Philippines: August 1, 2023 (no movement)

EB-1 India: Second Consecutive Retrogression

EB-1 India has now retrogressed in back-to-back months. In the [June 2026 bulletin](https://haven-five-hazel.vercel.app/blog/june-2026-eb-visa-bulletin-retrogression), the category moved backward about 3.5 months. July adds another two months, pushing the final action date to October 15, 2022. Only applicants with priority dates before that cutoff can have their cases adjudicated.

The State Department’s bulletin includes an unusually direct warning: ‘High demand and number use by aliens chargeable to India in the EB-1 visa category made it necessary to retrogress the final action date to hold number use within the FY 2026 annual limit. Further retrogression or making the category unavailable may be necessary in the coming months if India’s pro-rated limit in the EB-1 category is reached before the fiscal year ends.’

If EB-1 India goes unavailable, it would mean both the EB-1 and EB-2 categories for India are simultaneously shut down within the same fiscal year — leaving EB-3 as the only active employment-based pathway for Indian nationals, with its own cutoff date stuck at January 1, 2014.

EB-2 India: Locked Out Through September

EB-2 India’s ‘Unavailable’ designation continues unchanged from the [May 22 announcement](https://haven-five-hazel.vercel.app/blog/eb2-india-per-country-limit-exhausted-fy2026) that the category’s annual limit was exhausted. No new I-485 approvals or immigrant visa issuances are possible in this category until at least October 1, 2026, when FY2027 numbers become available.

The State Department offers a forward-looking note: ‘It is likely that in October the final action date will advance to at least the final action date announced in the May 2026 Visa Bulletin.’ This suggests a partial recovery when the new fiscal year begins, though the pace of any subsequent advancement will depend on demand from Indian EB-2 applicants and the FY2027 annual limit on employment-based preference visas.

For the hundreds of thousands of Indian nationals with approved EB-2 I-140 petitions, the wait continues with no clear timeline for when their specific priority dates will become current.

EB-3: Forward Movement for China and Rest of World

EB-3 provides the bulletin's clearest good news. China-born applicants in the Skilled Workers and Professionals subcategory see their final action date advance nearly five months, from August 1, 2021 to December 22, 2021, the largest single-month EB advance in this bulletin cycle.

EB-3 Rest of World and Mexico both advance two months to August 1, 2024, opening filing for a wider pool of applicants. EB-3 India sees a smaller but still positive advance of approximately 2.5 weeks, moving from December 15, 2013 to January 1, 2014.

However, the State Department flags a warning for EB-3 Philippines: ‘Sufficient demand and increased number use by aliens chargeable to Philippines in the EB-3 visa category may make it necessary to retrogress the final action date or make the category unavailable.’ Filipino applicants with EB-3 priority dates near the current cutoff of August 1, 2023 should file promptly if eligible.

What Attorneys Should Know

USCIS has again designated the Final Action Dates chart (Chart A) as the operative chart for employment-based adjustment filings in July 2026. The [Dates for Filing chart](https://www.uscis.gov/green-card/green-card-processes-and-procedures/visa-availability-priority-dates/adjustment-of-status-filing-charts-from-the-visa-bulletin) (Chart B) is not available for EB cases.

The bulletin also notes that Presidential Proclamations 10949 and 10998 have reduced immigrant visa issuance rates at consular posts, which paradoxically allowed dates to advance in prior months. With the [Dorcas v. USCIS ruling](https://haven-five-hazel.vercel.app/blog/court-vacates-uscis-benefits-hold-39-countries) vacating the associated USCIS hold policies, increased demand may now materialize — and the State Department explicitly warns that ‘retrogression may be necessary in the upcoming months to keep issuances within annual limits.’

• For EB-1 India clients with priority dates near October 2022: file I-485 immediately if eligible under Final Action Dates, before further retrogression or unavailability hits
• For EB-2 India clients: review whether an EB-2 to EB-3 downgrade is strategically viable — EB-3 India’s cutoff (January 1, 2014) may be more favorable for clients with older priority dates
• For EB-2 China clients: monitor closely — the State Department has flagged possible retrogression or unavailability. Counsel clients with current priority dates to file without delay
• For EB-3 Philippines clients with priority dates near August 2023: prioritize filing now given the retrogression warning

What Applicants Should Do

If your priority date is current under the July 2026 Final Action Dates chart, work with your employer and attorney to file Form I-485 as soon as possible. Several categories now carry retrogression or unavailability warnings, and a one-month delay could matter.

• Check your priority date against the Final Action Dates chart — not the Dates for Filing chart, which USCIS has deactivated for EB cases this month
• If you are EB-2 India: no final action is possible until October 2026 at the earliest. Use this time to confirm that your I-140 is approved and employer sponsorship remains active. Consider EB-3 only if your priority date is before January 1, 2014
• If you are EB-1 India with a priority date before October 15, 2022: file now. The State Department has warned that the date could move backward again or that the category could become unavailable entirely
• If you hold an approved I-140 and have been in H-1B status for six or more years, confirm your eligibility for three-year H-1B extensions under AC21 Section 104(c) — your ability to extend depends on having an approved I-140 regardless of visa bulletin movement
• If your I-485 is already pending, no action is needed on filing. Continue to renew your EAD and Advance Parole documents as needed