The August 2026 Visa Bulletin is out, and this edition continues our monthly series that reads it in plain English. Each month we walk through where every employment-based category and country stands, who should be paying attention, and what changed since the prior bulletin. This month is a quieter one than July: no category retrogressed and no new line went Unavailable. Instead, seventeen cells stepped forward — most visibly EB-4, which advanced a month for every country — while EB-2 India and EB-5 Unreserved India remain Unavailable. Every date below is taken directly from the official Department of State chart — for your own exact cell, use our Visa Bulletin Tracker.
Which chart applies this month
Each month, USCIS tells adjustment-of-status applicants which of the bulletin's two charts they may use to file: the Final Action Dates chart or the more generous Dates for Filing chart. USCIS announces this choice separately from the Department of State's bulletin, and it can change month to month. For August 2026, USCIS is directing employment-based adjustment-of-status applicants to the Final Action Dates chart, which is the chart every date in this analysis is drawn from. Always confirm the current instruction on the USCIS adjustment-of-status filing charts page before you file, since USCIS can choose a different chart in any given month. If the two charts are new to you, our guide on how the Visa Bulletin works explains the difference.
Where each employment category stands (August 2026)
Below is a plain-English read of the Final Action Dates for each employment-based category. Throughout, "Current" (shown as "C" in the bulletin) means there is no backlog at all for that country, so anyone with a valid priority date can move forward. A date means only applicants with a priority date earlier than that cutoff may proceed this month.
EB-1 (Priority Workers)
For most of the world, EB-1 is Current: Mexico, the Philippines, and all other countries have no cutoff this month. China advances to a Final Action Date of 1 July 2023, while India holds at 15 October 2022. If you were born in China or India and your EB-1 priority date is before that day, you are current; if it is after, you are still in line.
EB-2 (Advanced Degree / Exceptional Ability)
EB-2 is Current for Mexico, the Philippines, and all other countries. China holds at 1 September 2021, and India remains Unavailable ("U"), meaning no EB-2 visa numbers are being issued to India-born applicants under this category this month. This is a step beyond a cutoff date: rather than a specific priority-date threshold, there is simply no number available in the category for India. EB-2 was the one category with no movement at all in any column this month.
EB-3 (Skilled Workers & Professionals)
EB-3 shows a cutoff for every country this month. China advances to 1 January 2022 while India holds at 1 January 2014. Mexico and all other countries advance to a Final Action Date of 1 September 2024, and the Philippines holds at 1 August 2023. Notably, for China the EB-3 date (January 2022) remains later than its EB-2 date (September 2021) — a reminder that the "higher" category is not always the faster one for a given country. With EB-2 India Unavailable, EB-3 India at January 2014 is the line India-born applicants are watching, and it did not move this month.
EB-3 Other Workers
The Other Workers subcategory of EB-3 runs behind the main EB-3 line for several countries. China advances to 1 May 2019, India holds at 1 January 2014, the Philippines holds at 1 December 2021, and both Mexico and all other countries advance to 1 April 2022. If your job is classified as "other worker," this is the row that applies to you rather than the main EB-3 figure above.
EB-4 (Special Immigrants)
EB-4, including the Certain Religious Workers subcategory, carries the same Final Action Date of 15 October 2022 across every country this month — China, India, Mexico, the Philippines, and all others alike, each a month further along than in July. So for EB-4, the relevant question is simply whether your priority date falls before that single October 2022 cutoff.
EB-5 (Immigrant Investors)
The investor categories split in two. Under EB-5 Unreserved, China holds at a Final Action Date of 1 December 2016 while India remains Unavailable ("U"); Mexico, the Philippines, and all other countries are Current. The three set-aside categories — Rural, High Unemployment, and Infrastructure — are Current for every country this month, including China and India. That makes the set-aside paths the one corner of the employment-based system where China- and India-born investors face no cutoff date right now. No EB-5 line moved this month.
For your own category and country, the Visa Bulletin Tracker reads the exact cell for you, and the Priority Date Calculator tells you instantly whether a specific priority date is current.
What moved from July 2026
Below is a plain look at which Final Action Dates changed since the July 2026 bulletin. Seventeen category-and-country cells moved, all of them forward: no line retrogressed and no line newly became Unavailable. Every date is taken directly from the official Department of State charts for the two months.
In EB-1, China advanced from 1 June 2023 to 1 July 2023, a step forward of 30 days. India, Mexico, the Philippines, and all other countries were unchanged.
EB-2 was unchanged in every column this month: China stayed at 1 September 2021, India stayed Unavailable, and Mexico, the Philippines, and all other countries stayed Current.
In the main EB-3 line, China advanced from 22 December 2021 to 1 January 2022, a step of 10 days, and both Mexico and all other countries advanced from 1 August 2024 to 1 September 2024, a step of 31 days. India and the Philippines were unchanged.
In EB-3 Other Workers, China advanced from 1 April 2019 to 1 May 2019, and both Mexico and all other countries advanced from 1 March 2022 to 1 April 2022. India and the Philippines were unchanged.
In EB-4 and EB-4 Certain Religious Workers, every country advanced from 15 September 2022 to 15 October 2022, a step forward of 30 days across the board. This was the broadest single move of the month, covering all five columns in both subcategories.
EB-5 Unreserved was unchanged: China stayed at 1 December 2016, India stayed Unavailable, and Mexico, the Philippines, and all other countries stayed Current.
The three EB-5 set-aside lines we track — Rural, High Unemployment, and Infrastructure — held steady between July and August, remaining Current for every country. We do not read any direction into these moves or predict where the dates go next; a flat month is normal, a forward month is normal, and a retrogression or Unavailable month is also normal — the underlying drivers are visa-number availability and demand. To see how each of these dates has trended across the last 16 months rather than just two, our EB Visa Bulletin Trends chart plots the full trajectory by category and country.
Who should pay attention
A few groups stand out this month. EB-4 applicants of every nationality — including the Certain Religious Workers subcategory — saw their cutoff move a month later, so anyone whose priority date falls between mid-September and mid-October 2022 is newly within the window. EB-3 and EB-3 Other Workers applicants charged to Mexico or to "all other countries" also gained a month, and China-born applicants moved forward in EB-1, EB-3, and EB-3 Other Workers. On the other side, India-born applicants saw no movement at all: EB-2 and EB-5 Unreserved remain Unavailable regardless of priority date, and EB-1, EB-3, and EB-3 Other Workers all held at their July dates. The EB-5 set-aside categories remain Current for every country, which keeps them an option worth understanding for investors from heavily backlogged countries. Anyone whose category is Current should remember that "Current" reflects this month only and is not a guarantee for the months ahead. We are not predicting where any of these dates will go; we are describing only what the August 2026 chart shows.
A note on retrogression and "Unavailable"
Cutoff dates do not only move forward. A date can sit still for months, it can move backward — a phenomenon called retrogression — and a category can also become Unavailable ("U"), meaning no numbers are being issued in that line at all for the month. These happen when demand outpaces the visa numbers available, which tends to occur later in the government's fiscal year (October through September) as annual and per-country limits are reached. Nothing retrogressed this month, but EB-2 India and EB-5 Unreserved India remain Unavailable, and the Department of State has noted in the bulletin itself that further tightening is possible before the fiscal year closes. We do not forecast specific movement in this series, and a month of forward steps does not imply the next one will follow. Because of this, a category that is Current or fast-moving today can tighten with little notice, and an Unavailable line often reopens when the new fiscal year begins in October. For the mechanics of why dates retrogress and how they usually recover, see our guide on how the Visa Bulletin works.
This analysis is for general informational purposes only and is not legal advice. The official Visa Bulletin and USCIS guidance always control, and immigration law is complex and fact-specific. For advice about your individual situation, consult a licensed immigration attorney or accredited representative.
Frequently asked questions
USCIS announces the chart it accepts for employment-based adjustment-of-status filings each month, separately from the Department of State's Visa Bulletin. Always confirm the current month's instruction on the USCIS adjustment-of-status filing charts page before you file, since USCIS can choose a different chart in any given month.
Current, shown as 'C' in the bulletin, means there is no backlog for that category and country. A visa number is available to anyone with a valid priority date, so you are not waiting on a cutoff date to reach you.
Yes. Cutoff dates often sit still for a month or more, especially later in the government fiscal year when annual or per-country limits are tight. A flat month does not mean anything has gone wrong with your case, and we do not predict which direction a date will move next.
We publish a new read of the employment-based Visa Bulletin each month after the U.S. Department of State releases it. Each edition also notes exactly what changed since the prior month, so you can see movement rather than just a snapshot.
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