EB-3 Priority Date for the Philippines: November 2026 Cutoffs, History, and Next Steps

Reviewed by: Beth Persky, Esq.

In the November 2026 Visa Bulletin, the EB-3 priority date for the Philippines (skilled workers and professionals) has a Final Action Date of August 15, 2023 and a Date for Filing of January 1, 2024. For EB-3 Other Workers, the Philippines Final Action Date is January 1, 2022 and the Date for Filing is June 1, 2022. USCIS has designated the Dates for Filing chart for all employment-based adjustment of status filings in November 2026, so an applicant in the United States with a Philippines EB-3 priority date earlier than January 1, 2024 may file Form I-485 during November 2026 if otherwise eligible. The November designation applies to applications USCIS receives in November; a filing received in October 2026 is judged against the October chart.

These dates matter to Filipino nurses, physical therapists, and other workers whose employers have filed a Form I-140 petition. This post explains how to read both charts, how the Philippines EB-3 date has moved since fiscal year 2020, why the Philippines has its own column in the Visa Bulletin, and how the wait plays out for consular processing at the U.S. Embassy in Manila compared with Adjustment of Status in the United States. All dates are from the November 2026 bulletin, which the Department of State published ahead of the month. Before relying on any date here, check travel.state.gov to see whether the December 2026 bulletin has been published and whether USCIS has posted its December chart designation; if so, the newer dates control.

Current EB-3 Philippines dates (November 2026)

The Visa Bulletin publishes two employment-based charts each month. The Final Action Dates chart shows when a green card or immigrant visa can actually be issued. The Dates for Filing chart shows when applicants can get in line earlier, by filing an adjustment application (in months when USCIS designates that chart) or by submitting documents to the National Visa Center (NVC). If your priority date is earlier than the date listed, it is “current” for that chart. A priority date that matches the listed date exactly is not current.

Source: Visa Bulletin for November 2026, U.S. Department of State, and the USCIS November 2026 adjustment of status filing chart page. Compared with the October 2026 bulletin, no Philippines EB-3 date moved. In the same month, the All Chargeability EB-3 Final Action Date advanced one month (from May 15, 2024), and the All Chargeability Other Workers Final Action Date advanced five months (from January 1, 2022) and its Date for Filing advanced one month (from June 1, 2022), so Philippines Other Workers now trails the rest of the world.

Which chart does USCIS accept in November 2026?

For applicants already in the United States, USCIS decides each month whether employment-based Adjustment of Status (Form I-485) filings follow the Dates for Filing chart or the Final Action Dates chart. For November 2026, the USCIS Adjustment of Status Filing Charts page states that all employment-based preference categories must use the Dates for Filing chart, as it did in October 2026 (in September 2026, USCIS had required the Final Action Dates chart). USCIS also notes a standing exception: if a category is “current” on the Final Action Dates chart, or the Final Action Date is later than the Date for Filing, applicants in that category may file using the Final Action Dates chart that month. That exception does not help Philippines EB-3 in November 2026, because both Philippines EB-3 Final Action Dates are earlier than the corresponding Dates for Filing.

In practice, a Philippines EB-3 skilled worker or professional with a priority date earlier than January 1, 2024 may file an I-485 that USCIS receives in November 2026, if otherwise eligible. A Philippines Other Worker needs a priority date earlier than June 1, 2022.

Filing early lets the applicant apply for a work permit (Form I-765) and advance parole (Form I-131) while waiting, but it does not speed up the green card. Filing the I-485 does not by itself grant employment authorization, permission to travel, or any nonimmigrant status; the I-765 and I-131 are separate applications that USCIS decides on their own. USCIS cannot approve the I-485 until the priority date is also earlier than the Final Action Date in the bulletin in effect at the time of approval (USCIS Policy Manual, Volume 7, Part A, Chapter 6), which is August 15, 2023 for Philippines EB-3 in November 2026. USCIS can change the chart designation from month to month, and it states that it anticipates posting the designation within one week after the Department of State publishes the bulletin. Check its page each time a new bulletin is released.

How the Philippines EB-3 date has moved since FY2020

The federal fiscal year starts on October 1, so each October bulletin opens a new year of visa numbers. The table below shows the Philippines EB-3 dates in the October bulletin of each fiscal year, with the All Chargeability (rest of world) EB-3 Final Action Date for comparison. “C” means current: no cutoff date that month.

Source: October Visa Bulletins for each year, travel.state.gov Visa Bulletin archive. The Philippines EB-3 Final Action Date matched the rest of the world in every October bulletin from FY2021 through FY2026, then separated again in FY2027. The start of a fiscal year also does not always bring a big jump: the Philippines Final Action Date has advanced by roughly 4 to 11 months between October bulletins since FY2024. Past movement is history, not a forecast. The Department of State can hold, advance, or move dates back in any month, and it has done all three for this category.

Why does the Philippines have its own column?

U.S. immigration law caps the number of family-sponsored and employment-based green cards that natives of any one country can receive in a fiscal year at 7 percent of the combined family-sponsored and employment-based totals (INA 202(a)(2)). The November 2026 bulletin gives that per-country limit as 25,620. When demand from one country exceeds its share, the Department of State lists the country separately and applies the proration rules in INA 202(e). The November 2026 bulletin names four oversubscribed chargeability areas: China (mainland born), India, Mexico, and the Philippines.

Philippine demand is high in both systems. The Philippines has long family-sponsored backlogs, and Philippine-educated nurses and physical therapists are sponsored in EB-3 through Schedule A. Because the 7 percent figure is calculated on the two systems combined, the Department of State counts issuances to natives of the Philippines in both family-sponsored and employment-based categories when it decides whether the country has reached its limit. Being listed separately does not always mean a worse date: in six of the eight October bulletins in the table above, the Philippines column showed the same EB-3 Final Action Date as All Chargeability. It means the Department of State can set a different date when Philippine demand requires it, as it has in October and November 2026.

Chargeability follows country of birth, not citizenship or residence (INA 202(b)). A person born in the Philippines who later became a citizen of another country is still charged to the Philippines. The statute allows limited exceptions. A spouse who is accompanying or following to join the principal applicant may be charged to the principal’s country of birth, and a principal may be charged to an accompanying spouse’s country of birth, if needed to prevent separation of the couple (cross-chargeability, INA 202(b)(2)). A child accompanying or following to join a parent may be charged to that parent’s country of birth if needed to prevent separation (INA 202(b)(1)). These rules are fact-specific: the family member must actually be immigrating in the required accompanying or following-to-join relationship, and a better cutoff date alone does not make a spouse’s or parent’s birthplace available. Confirm chargeability before relying on any column.

Retrogression history in brief

Retrogression means a cutoff date moves backward, so a priority date that was current can stop being current. USCIS explains on its Visa Retrogression page that this happens when more people apply in a category or country than there are visas available that month, and that it tends to occur toward the end of a fiscal year as issuance approaches the annual category or per-country limits. The Philippines EB-3 category has seen several cycles:

• 2015: EB-3 Philippines retrogressed sharply in mid-2015 and was listed as unavailable for part of the rest of that fiscal year.
• FY2020: The Philippines had its own EB-3 Final Action Date (October 15, 2017) while the rest of the world was current.
• FY2021 to FY2022: EB-3 was current for the Philippines and the rest of the world. Employment-based limits in those years were unusually high because unused family-sponsored numbers from the pandemic period were added to the employment-based total under INA 201(d).
• FY2023: EB-3 retrogressed for the Philippines and the rest of the world during the fiscal year. USCIS has noted that the Department of State established a worldwide EB-3 Final Action Date in the third and fourth quarters of FY2023, and that during those quarters the exception to the per-country limits did not apply in EB-3. By October 2023 both the Philippines and the rest of the world stood at December 1, 2021.
• FY2026 to FY2027: The Philippines separated from the rest of the world again. In October 2026 the rest of the world EB-3 Final Action Date moved back to May 15, 2024, while the Philippines moved forward two weeks to August 15, 2023, leaving the Philippines about nine months behind. In November 2026 the rest of the world EB-3 Final Action Date advanced to June 15, 2024 while the Philippines held at August 15, 2023, about 10 months behind.

The October 2026 bulletin states that some employment-based categories for “Rest of World” countries have retrogressed to stay within FY2027 limits and that the situation is being monitored. It does not announce future dates for the Philippines, and the November 2026 bulletin likewise announces no future dates for the Philippines.

Consular processing in Manila vs. Adjustment of Status

Philippine EB-3 applicants who are outside the United States generally complete the case through consular processing. Applicants already in the United States who were inspected and admitted or paroled, and who meet the requirements of INA 245, may be able to adjust status instead. The priority date rules are the same; the steps and timing are different.

In Manila, the NVC and the embassy publish country-specific document requirements, including which Philippine civil records (PSA-issued birth and marriage certificates) and police certificates (NBI clearance) are needed; see the Philippines entry in the Department of State’s reciprocity schedule. Government fees change over time. Check the current Department of State and USCIS fee pages before paying.

Choosing a path is a strategy decision. Status in the United States, travel plans, family members, prior periods of unlawful presence that departure could trigger under INA 212(a)(9)(B), and whether a pending I-485 would help with work authorization all affect it.

Schedule A nurses and physical therapists

Professional nurses and physical therapists are listed in Schedule A, Group I, a Department of Labor list of occupations the Department has determined lack sufficient U.S. workers (20 CFR 656.5). For these jobs, the employer does not run the PERM recruitment process or wait for the Department of Labor to certify the application. Instead, the employer files the labor certification application (Form ETA-9089), a prevailing wage determination, and proof that a notice of filing was posted, directly with USCIS together with the I-140 petition (20 CFR 656.15).

This has two effects for Philippine applicants:

1. The priority date is the I-140 filing date. Because there is no PERM filing with the Department of Labor, the priority date is the date the completed, signed I-140 (with its initial evidence and the correct fee) is properly filed with USCIS (8 CFR 204.5(d)). Acceptance of the filing sets the date; whether the Schedule A evidence is ultimately sufficient is decided when USCIS adjudicates the petition.
2. The Visa Bulletin still applies. Schedule A removes the labor certification step, not the green card wait. A Filipino nurse with a 2024 priority date waits for the Philippines EB-3 date to reach it, the same as any other Philippines EB-3 applicant. The Philippines EB-3 Date for Filing is January 1, 2024 in November 2026, so a 2024 priority date is not yet eligible even for an early I-485 filing.

The regulation also sets credential rules. For professional nurses, the application must show a CGFNS certificate, a full and unrestricted (permanent) license to practice in the state of intended employment, or a passing score on the NCLEX-RN (20 CFR 656.15(c)(2)). For physical therapists, the employer files a letter or statement from the state licensing authority confirming the applicant is qualified to take the state’s written licensing examination (20 CFR 656.15(c)(1)).

Separately, foreign-trained nurses, physical therapists, and workers in other listed health care occupations are inadmissible unless they present a health care worker certification from a credentialing organization approved under 8 CFR 212.15 (for nurses and physical therapists, the CGFNS VisaScreen certificate is one approved option; FCCPT is also approved for physical therapists) (INA 212(a)(5)(C); 8 CFR 212.15). The consular officer needs a valid certificate before issuing the immigrant visa, and USCIS needs one before approving the I-485. The regulation sets a validity period for the certificate, so confirm with the issuing organization and your attorney how to time the application against the expected Visa Bulletin movement.

Risks the Visa Bulletin does not show you

The cutoff dates are only part of the picture. These issues can affect eligibility, timing, and outcomes for Philippines EB-3 applicants:

• Children turning 21. A derivative child’s eligibility depends on the Child Status Protection Act calculation (INA 203(h)), not simply on the child’s actual age at approval. The CSPA age is the child’s age on the date a visa became available (the later of the I-140 approval date and the date the priority date became current on the Final Action Dates chart), minus the time the I-140 was pending. If that calculated age is under 21, the child must then “seek to acquire” permanent residence within one year of visa availability and must remain unmarried; once those conditions are met, the CSPA age is locked in even if the child later turns 21. If the Final Action Date retrogresses before the one-year period runs, a qualifying action taken within one year of the original availability date can still preserve that date, and otherwise a new one-year period can begin when a visa becomes available again, subject to the age and marital status requirements (9 FAM 502.1-1(D)). For adjustment applicants, USCIS uses the Final Action Dates chart for this calculation, even in a month when it allows filing under the Dates for Filing chart; that policy (Policy Alert PA-2025-15, USCIS Policy Manual, Volume 7, Part A, Chapter 7) took effect August 15, 2025 and applies to requests filed on or after that date. USCIS may excuse a late sought-to-acquire filing for extraordinary circumstances. A long Philippines backlog makes this calculation decisive for families with teenagers.
• Retrogression after filing. If the Final Action Date moves back after an I-485 is filed, USCIS keeps the application pending and finalizes it when visas again become available based on the dates in the then-current bulletin; it does not deny the case for that reason (USCIS Visa Retrogression page). For consular cases, the NVC or embassy holds the case until the date is current again.
• Status lapses in the United States. INA 245(c) bars adjustment for applicants who, among other things, are in unlawful status when they file, have failed to maintain lawful status continuously since entry, or have worked without authorization. INA 245(k) is a limited exemption for employment-based applicants who are present pursuant to a lawful admission: those bars do not apply if the total number of days after the most recent lawful admission in which the applicant failed to maintain lawful status, worked without authorization, or otherwise violated the terms of admission is 180 or fewer. Every day out of status or working without authorization before the I-485 is filed counts toward that total; waiting for the Visa Bulletin does not reset it. After a proper I-485 filing, USCIS treats the applicant as in a period of authorized stay for unlawful presence purposes, but a pending I-485 does not authorize employment, so working before the I-765 is approved can add to the 180-day count.
• Changing employers. Once an I-485 has been pending 180 days or more, an applicant whose I-140 is approved (or is later found to have been approvable when filed) may be able to move to a new job offer in the same or a similar occupational classification without a new petition (INA 204(j); 8 CFR 245.25; USCIS Policy Manual, Volume 7, Part E, Chapter 5). This applies to EB-1, EB-2, and EB-3 petitions that require a job offer, which includes every Schedule A and PERM-based EB-3 case. The new job is confirmed on Form I-485 Supplement J. Before the 180 days have run, or for consular cases, a new employer generally needs its own petition. The original priority date can be retained for a later EB-1, EB-2, or EB-3 petition if the first I-140 was approved and was not revoked for fraud or willful misrepresentation of a material fact, for revocation or invalidation of the labor certification, or because USCIS found material error in the approval (8 CFR 204.5(e)).
• Public charge review. EB-3 adjustment applicants are subject to the public charge ground of inadmissibility (INA 212(a)(4)), and USCIS decides the question under its current Policy Manual guidance (Volume 8, Part G), which can change. Ask your attorney what evidence of income, assets, and the employer’s job offer to include, and check the USCIS public charge page for the guidance in effect when you file.
• Form edition and filing address. USCIS periodically revises Form I-485 and changes direct filing addresses, and after a revision it sets a date from which only the new edition is accepted. Filing an edition USCIS no longer accepts, or mailing to a superseded address, can result in rejection, and in a month when the chart designation may change a rejection can mean losing the filing window. Check the edition date and filing address on the USCIS Form I-485 page the day you file.

Planning steps while you wait

1. Confirm your priority date and subcategory. Check the I-140 approval notice (Form I-797) for the priority date and whether the case is EB-3 skilled, professional, or Other Workers.
2. Check both charts every month. Compare your date with the Philippines column in both charts, then check which chart USCIS designates for adjustment. Our Visa Bulletin post explains the full bulletin each month.
3. Respond to the NVC promptly. For consular cases, being documentarily complete when the Final Action Date reaches your priority date avoids an extra delay before the interview is scheduled. Civil documents and police certificates have validity rules, so coordinate timing.
4. Keep credentials current. Nurses and physical therapists should track license, VisaScreen or other health care worker certification, and English test expiration dates.
5. Protect status if you are in the United States. A long wait does not excuse a lapse in nonimmigrant status, and more than 180 days of status violations after the last lawful admission can bar Adjustment of Status.
6. Watch your children’s ages. Ask about the CSPA calculation early if a child is within a few years of 21, because the Final Action Dates chart controls the age calculation.
7. Ask whether another category fits. Some applicants also qualify for EB-2. An approved I-140 priority date can generally be carried over to a later employment-based petition (8 CFR 204.5(e)). In November 2026, however, the Philippines EB-2 Final Action Date is April 1, 2025 and the Date for Filing is March 15, 2026, so a move to EB-2 is no longer automatically faster; the answer depends on the job, the credentials, and the dates at the time.
8. Keep copies of everything. Keep the I-140 approval notice, the labor certification, and any NVC correspondence. If the employer changes or closes, these documents support priority date retention.

Frequently Asked Questions

• What is the EB-3 priority date for the Philippines in November 2026?

  For EB-3 skilled workers and professionals, the Final Action Date is August 15, 2023 and the Date for Filing is January 1, 2024. For EB-3 Other Workers, the Final Action Date is January 1, 2022 and the Date for Filing is June 1, 2022.

• Is EB-3 current for the Philippines?

  No. As of the November 2026 Visa Bulletin, both Philippines EB-3 lines have cutoff dates. EB-3 skilled workers and professionals was current for the Philippines in the October 2022 bulletin and has carried a cutoff date in every October bulletin since.

• Why is the Philippines EB-3 date different from the rest of the world?

  The Philippines is an oversubscribed chargeability area under the 7 percent per-country limit in INA 202(a)(2). When demand from natives of one country exceeds its share, the Department of State sets a separate cutoff. In November 2026, the Philippines EB-3 Final Action Date is about 10 months behind the All Chargeability date.

• Can I file my I-485 if my priority date is before January 1, 2024?

  If you are in the United States and otherwise eligible, generally yes for an application USCIS receives in November 2026, because USCIS designated the Dates for Filing chart for employment-based cases that month. USCIS must receive the properly filed application while that designation is in effect. The I-485 can be approved only once your date is also earlier than the Final Action Date.

• My priority date is exactly January 1, 2024. Can I file?

  No. A priority date must be earlier than the listed cutoff. A date equal to the cutoff is not current.

• Do Schedule A nurses skip the Visa Bulletin?

  No. Schedule A lets the employer skip PERM recruitment and file the labor certification directly with USCIS, but the nurse still needs a priority date earlier than the Philippines EB-3 Final Action Date before a green card or immigrant visa can be issued.

• What is the priority date for a Schedule A nurse?

  Because there is no PERM filing with the Department of Labor, the priority date is the date the completed, signed Schedule A I-140 petition, with its initial evidence and the correct fee, is properly filed with USCIS (8 CFR 204.5(d)).

• I was born in the Philippines but I am now a citizen of another country. Which column applies?

  Generally the Philippines column. Chargeability follows country of birth under INA 202(b), not current citizenship. The exception is cross-chargeability: if your spouse was born in a country with a better date and is immigrating with you as an accompanying or following-to-join spouse, you may be able to be charged to your spouse’s country of birth. The rule exists to prevent family separation, so it applies only when the spouse is actually immigrating on the same case.

• My child will turn 21 before the Philippines date reaches my priority date. Is the child protected?

  Possibly. The Child Status Protection Act subtracts the time the I-140 was pending from the child’s age on the date a visa became available under the Final Action Dates chart (or the I-140 approval date, if later). If the result is under 21, the child must seek to acquire permanent residence within one year of that date and stay unmarried; if the date retrogresses before the year ends, a new one-year window can open when a visa becomes available again. Whether the child stays under 21 after that calculation depends on the specific dates. Ask an attorney before the child’s 21st birthday, not after.

• When will the NVC schedule my interview in Manila?

  Generally once your priority date is earlier than the Final Action Date and the NVC has found your case documentarily complete. Interview scheduling also depends on embassy capacity, so there can be a gap after the date becomes current.

• What happens if the Philippines EB-3 date moves backward after I file my I-485?

  USCIS generally holds the application until a visa number becomes available again, then decides it. While the I-485 remains pending, the applicant may remain eligible to apply to renew the work permit and advance parole; each renewal is a separate application that USCIS adjudicates under the filing rules in effect at the time, and approval is not guaranteed.

• Can I file the I-485 with the I-140 at the same time?

  USCIS allows concurrent filing of Form I-485 with Form I-140 only if a visa number is available under the chart USCIS has designated for that month. For a Philippines EB-3 skilled worker or professional in November 2026, that means a priority date earlier than January 1, 2024. For a Schedule A case the priority date is the I-140 filing date itself, so concurrent filing is possible only in a month when the category is current.

• Will the Philippines EB-3 date move forward next month?

  No one can say for certain. The Department of State sets dates monthly based on demand and available numbers, and dates can also move back. Check each new bulletin on travel.state.gov.