August 15, 2017
The Department of State has released the September Visa Bulletin – the last such bulletin in the 2017 fiscal year – and as expected, it shows either retrogression, stagnation, or incremental forward movement for all categories. USCIS has separately confirmed that all prospective adjustment applicants should consult the “Final Action” charts, which are reprinted below.
Family-Based Applicants
Many family-based categories were either stagnant or retrogressed for September, specifically F-1 (which retrogressed for China, India, and All Other), F-2B and F-3 (which saw no movement for China, India, Mexico, and All Other), and F-4 (which saw multi-year retrogression for China, India, and All Other). The Department of State has indicated that the October Visa Bulletin will show F-1 and F-4 categories returning to their August cutoff dates; hopefully other categories will see genuine forward movement at the same time.
Employment-Based Applicants
Unlike family-based categories, employment-based categories did not see any retrogression, though some categories did remain stagnant, including EB-1 China, EB-1 India, and EB-3 China. Other categories saw advancement of between a few weeks and a few months.
The Department of State has previously indicated that certain EB-2 categories, including EB-2 Mexico, EB-2 Philippines, EB-2 El Salvador / Guatemala / Honduras, and EB-2 All Other, will all become current in October.

TAGS: Employment-Based Immigration, Family-Based Immigration, Visa Bulletin
September 14, 2026
Federal Court Blocks DHS Rule Ending “Duration of Status” for F-1 and J-1 Visa Holders Nationwide preliminary injunction preserves D/S — for now — one day before the rule was set to take effect On...MoreSeptember 11, 2026
DHS Proposed Rule Would End the 60-Day Grace Period After a Job Ends Since 2017, foreign workers on employment-based visas are afforded a discretionary grace period of authorized stay of up to 60...More