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Visa Bulletin for October 2023


The latest green card waiting lists as of October 2023

Sep 18, 2023


The U.S. Department of State released its Visa Bulletin for October 2023. That’s a big deal if you’re waiting for your priority date to be current so that your green card application can move forward.

If you don’t know what a “visa bulletin” or a “priority date” is, we’ve got you covered. Start by checking out the Boundless guide on How to Read the Visa Bulletin.

If you’re already familiar with those terms, scroll down to our summary of key developments or to the filing category that’s most relevant to you:

Family-based categories

Employment-based categories


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Every month, USCIS announces whether applicants already living in the United States should file their “adjustment of status” applications based on the “Final Action Dates” or the “Dates for Filing.”

For October, family-based applicants and employment-based application must use the “Dates for Filing” (available on the State Department’s website).

Family-Based Green Card Backlogs

F-1: UNMARRIED CHILDREN (AGE 21 AND OLDER) OF U.S. CITIZENS

Country New
Cut-off Date
Old
Cut-off Date
Change in Wait Time
General Category 1-Sept-17 1-Sept-17 No Change
China 1-Sept-17 1-Sept-17 No Change
India 1-Sept-17 1-Sept-17 No Change
Mexico 1-Apr-05 1-Apr-05 No Change
Philippines 22-Apr-15 22-Apr-15 No Change

This category sees no change for all countries.

F-2A: SPOUSES AND UNMARRIED CHILDREN (UNDER AGE 21) OF U.S. GREEN CARD HOLDERS

Country New
Cut-off Date
Old
Cut-off Date
Change in Wait Time
General Category 1-Sept-23 1-Sept-23 No Change
China 1-Sept-23 1-Sept-23 No Change
India 1-Sept-23 1-Sept-23 No Change
Mexico 1-Sept-23 1-Sept-23 No Change
Philippines 1-Sept-23 1-Sept-23 No Change

This category sees no change for all countries.

F-2B: unmarried children (age 21 or older) of U.S. green card holders

Country New
Cut-off Date
Old
Cut-off Date
Change in Wait Time
General Category 1-Jan-17 1-Jan-17 No Change
China  1-Jan-17 1-Jan-17 No Change
India  1-Jan-17 1-Jan-17 No Change
Mexico 1-Aug-04 1-Aug-04 No Change
Philippines 1-Oct-13 1-Oct-13 No Change

This category sees no change for all countries.

F-3: married children of U.S. citizens

Country New
Cut-off Date
Old
Cut-off Date
Change in Wait Time
General Category 1-Mar-10 1-Mar-10 No Change
China 1-Mar-10 1-Mar-10 No Change
India 1-Mar-10 1-Mar-10 No Change
Mexico 15-June-01  15-June-01 No Change
Philippines 8-Nov-03 8-Nov-03 No Change

This category sees no change for all countries.

F-4: siblings of U.S. citizens

Country New
Cut-off Date
Old
Cut-off Date
Change in Wait Time
General Category 1-Mar-08 1-Mar-08 No Change
China 1-Mar-08 1-Mar-08 No Change
India 22-Feb-06 22-Feb-06 No Change
Mexico 15-April-01 01-April-01 No Change
Philippines 22-Apr-04 22-Apr-04 No Change

This category sees no change for all countries.

EB-1: extraordinary people, outstanding researchers and professors, and multinational executives and managers

Country New
Cut-off Date
Old
Cut-off Date
Change in Wait Time
General Category No Wait 1-Aug-23 -2 months
China 1-Aug-22 1-Feb-22 -6 months
Central America  No Wait 1-Aug-23 -2 months
India  1-July-19  1-Jan-12 -7 years, 7 months
Mexico  No Wait 1-Aug-23 -2 months
Philippines  No Wait 1-Aug-23 -2 months

This category sees a 2-month change for the General Category, Central America, Mexico, and the Philippines, a 6-month change for China, and a 7-year, 7-month change for India.

EB-2: exceptional people and advanced degree holders

Country New
Cut-off Date
Old
Cut-off Date
Change in Wait Time
General Category 1-Jan-23 1-Jul-22 -6 months
China 1-Jan-20 8-Jul-19 -5 months, 3 weeks
Central America 1-Jan-23 1-Jul-22 -6 months
India 15-May-12  1-Jan-11 -2 years, 4 months, 2 weeks
Mexico 1-Jan-23  1-Jul-22 -6 months
Philippines 1-Jan-23  1-Jul-22 -6 months

This category sees a 6-month change for General Category, Central America, Mexico, and the Philippines, a 5-month, 3-week change for China, and a 2-year, 4-month, 2-week change for India.

EB-3: bachelor’s degree holders, skilled workers, and unskilled workers

Country New
Cut-off Date
Old
Cut-off Date
Change in Wait Time
General Category 1-Feb-23 1-May-20 -2 years, 9 months
China 1-Sept-20 1-Sept-19 -1 year
Central America 1-Feb-23 1-May-20 -2 years, 9 months
India 1-Aug-12 1-Jan-09 -3 years, 8 months
Mexico 1-Feb-23 1-May-20 -2 years, 9 months
Philippines 1-Jan-23 1-May-20 -2 years, 8 months

This category sees a 2-year, 9-month change for General Category, Central America, and Mexico, a 2-year, 8-month change for Philippines, a 1-year change for China and a 3-year, 8-month change for India.


The EB-4 “special immigrants” category saw a change of 6 months for all countries and the EB-5 “investors” category saw a change of over a year for China and 5 years for India.

Category Country New
Cut-off Date
Old
Cut-off Date
Change in Wait Time
EB-4: Special Immigrants General Category 1-Mar-19 1-Sept-18 -6 months
China 1-Mar-19 1-Sept-18 -6 months
Central America 1-Mar-19 1-Sept-18 -6 months
India 1-Mar-19 1-Sept-18 -6 months
Mexico 1-Mar-19 1-Sept-18 -6 months
Philippines 1-Mar-19 1-Sept-18 -6 months
Vietnam 1-Mar-19 1-Sept-18 -6 months
EB-5: Investors General Category No wait No wait No Change
China 1-Jan-17 08-Sept-15 -1 year, 3 months, 3 weeks
Central America No wait No wait No Change
India 1-April-22 1-April-17 -5 years
Mexico No wait No wait No Change
Philippines No wait No wait No Change
Vietnam No wait No wait No Change

Why This Matters

If you’re in line for a green card, it’s important to keep track of actual changes (and likely future developments) in the Visa Bulletin. It’s always a good idea to prepare all the documents needed for your green card application ahead of time, so you can be ready to file as quickly as possible once the Visa Bulletin shows that a green card is available to you. By failing to file in a month when a green card is available, you risk facing a surprise backward movement (“retrogression”) in the next Visa Bulletin, which would close your window of opportunity for filing a green card application. Stay tuned for next month’s update! As always, we’ll highlight all the important changes for you.


Boundless helps you build a tailored visa plan for every step of the process, from forms to your immigration interview.