EB-3 Priority Date for India: November 2026 Dates and How EB-3 Compares With EB-2

Reviewed by: Beth Persky, Esq.

The EB-3 priority date for India in the November 2026 Visa Bulletin is January 22, 2014 on the Final Action Dates chart and January 15, 2015 on the Dates for Filing chart. Those dates take effect November 1, 2026 and apply through November 30, 2026. India EB-3 Other Workers has the same two dates. USCIS has designated the Dates for Filing chart for all employment-based Form I-485 filings received in November 2026, so an India EB-3 applicant with a priority date earlier than January 15, 2015 may be able to file Form I-485 between November 1 and November 30, 2026 if otherwise eligible, while approval still waits for a priority date earlier than January 22, 2014.

EB-3 is the third employment-based preference under INA 203(b)(3). It covers three groups: skilled workers, who will perform work that is not temporary or seasonal and that requires at least two years of training or experience; professionals, who hold at least a U.S. bachelor’s degree or a foreign equivalent, are members of the professions, and will fill a job for which that degree is the normal minimum requirement; and other workers, who will perform unskilled work that is not temporary or seasonal and requires less than two years of training or experience. In every group the employer must show that qualified U.S. workers are not available, which is the purpose of the labor certification process.

For applicants chargeable to India (generally by country of birth, not citizenship), EB-3 is closely tied to EB-2. The India EB-2 row and the India EB-3 row of the Visa Bulletin sit closely together, they have traded places over the years, and an applicant who holds both an EB-2 and an EB-3 petition can use whichever category’s cutoff date passes the applicant’s priority date first. This post explains the November 2026 India EB-3 dates, how a PERM-based priority date is set, how India EB-3 and EB-2 compare over eight fiscal years, the FY2023 retrogression, and how downgrading and job changes affect your place in line.

What are the India EB-3 dates for November 2026?

Sources: Department of State Visa Bulletins for October 2026 and November 2026, and the USCIS “When to File” page for November 2026.

The October 2026 bulletin was the first bulletin of fiscal year 2027. In that bulletin, the EB-3 Final Action Date for the “All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed” column moved backward from the September 2026 date of September 1, 2024, which the bulletin attributed to keeping number use within the FY2027 annual and quarterly limits. In the November 2026 bulletin, that worldwide EB-3 Final Action Date is June 15, 2024, still earlier than the September 2026 date. The October retrogression did not change the India row, but it shows that EB-3 numbers are limited for every country this year, which affects how much unused supply can flow to India later in the fiscal year.

The November 2026 Visa Bulletin figures in this post apply from November 1, 2026 through November 30, 2026. Until November 1, the October 2026 bulletin governs. The Department of State generally publishes the next bulletin in the second half of the preceding month, so check the Visa Bulletin index at travel.state.gov for the December 2026 Visa Bulletin before relying on any date in this post after November 30, 2026.

Which chart is USCIS accepting in November 2026?

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, the same chart designated for October 2026. In September 2026, employment-based applicants had to use the Final Action Dates chart. USCIS makes this designation each month and states that it anticipates posting the designation within one week of the Department of State publishing the bulletin. USCIS also states a standing rule: 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 rule does not help India EB-3 in November 2026, because the Final Action Date (January 22, 2014) is earlier than the Date for Filing (January 15, 2015).

What that means for an India EB-3 applicant in the United States during November 2026:

• If your priority date is earlier than January 15, 2015, you may be able to file Form I-485 (Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status) between November 1 and November 30, 2026 if you meet the other eligibility requirements. The I-485 can be based on an approved I-140, an I-140 filed concurrently with the I-485, or an I-140 that was filed earlier and is still pending, because EB-1, EB-2, and EB-3 are categories for which USCIS permits concurrent filing when a visa is available under the applicable chart. You must be physically present in the United States and be eligible to adjust status (including, for applicants adjusting under INA 245(a), having been inspected and admitted or paroled and not being subject to a bar in INA 245(c), unless INA 245(k) excuses the bar). You may also choose to file Form I-765 (work permit) and Form I-131 (advance parole) with or after the I-485. Those filings are optional, each has its own eligibility rules, and each carries its own government filing fee under the current USCIS fee schedule (see the fee figures below).
• USCIS can approve the I-485 only when your priority date is earlier than the Final Action Date in effect at the time of approval, which for November 2026 is January 22, 2014 for India EB-3. An I-485 filed under the Dates for Filing chart stays pending until that happens, and the Final Action Date can move backward while it waits.
• The USCIS Policy Manual (Volume 7, Part A, Chapter 6) states that USCIS looks at the chart in effect when the application was filed to decide whether it was properly filed, and at the Final Action Dates chart current at the time of approval to decide whether a visa number is available.
• USCIS states in its Employment-Based Adjustment of Status FAQs that it decides whether an application was filed with a visa available by consulting the chart for the month in which the application was received at the correct filing location, and that only a revised Visa Bulletin for that month would change that decision.

Applicants processing an immigrant visa abroad through the National Visa Center do not select a chart. The National Visa Center uses the Dates for Filing chart to tell applicants when to assemble and submit documents, and an immigrant visa can be issued only when the priority date is earlier than the Final Action Date.

How is an EB-3 priority date set?

EB-3 cases that require a labor certification start with a permanent labor certification (PERM, Form ETA-9089) filed by the employer with the Department of Labor (DOL). Under 8 CFR 204.5(d), the priority date of a petition that requires a labor certification is the date DOL accepted the labor certification application for processing. The date appears on the certified ETA-9089 and is printed on the I-140 receipt and approval notices. The priority date does not move earlier if the PERM took a long time to certify, and it does not move later if the I-140 is filed near the end of the certification’s validity period.

After DOL certifies the PERM, the certification is valid for 180 days from the date of certification (20 CFR 656.30(b)). If no Form I-140 is filed in support of the certification during that 180-day period, the certification expires, and the employer would need a new PERM to sponsor the worker. The clock starts on the certification date, not the date the employer receives the paper certification. Under 20 CFR 656.30(c), a certified PERM is valid only for the specific job opportunity, the specific beneficiary, and the area of intended employment stated in the application. How the regulation applies when a certification was already used in a timely I-140 and the employer later wants to file a second petition on it is addressed in the downgrade section below.

The I-140 itself is a new filing with its own government fees. Under the USCIS fee schedule in effect as of October 22, 2026, the Form I-140 filing fee is $715 for paper filing, $665 for online filing,, and an Asylum Program Fee of $600 applies to employer petitioners (reduced to $300 for small employers with 25 or fewer full-time equivalent employees and for self-petitioners, and $0 for nonprofits). Optional premium processing (Form I-907) for an EB-3 I-140 costs $2,965. For the adjustment stage, the Form I-485 filing fee is $1,440, Form I-765 filed with or after an I-485 that paid that fee is $260, and Form I-131 is $630. Confirm every amount on the USCIS Fee Schedule (Form G-1055) before filing, because fees change.

EB-3 cases that do not go through DOL first follow a different rule. For Schedule A occupations (for example, registered nurses and physical therapists), the labor certification application is submitted to USCIS with the I-140 rather than to DOL, and 8 CFR 204.5(d) sets the priority date as the date the completed, signed I-140 petition, with all initial evidence and the correct fee, is properly filed with USCIS.

India EB-3 versus India EB-2, side by side

An India-born applicant with an approved EB-2 I-140 may be able to add an EB-3 I-140, and whichever category’s Final Action Date passes the priority date first determines when the green card can be approved. The table shows the India Final Action Date for each category in the October bulletin of each fiscal year.

In the October 2026 bulletin the gap is two months; in November 2026 it will be nearly three months (EB-3 January 22, 2014 versus EB-2 November 1, 2013). It was more than two years in October 2021 and zero in October 2022. The gap also moves within a fiscal year: in September 2026, India EB-2 was listed as “Unavailable” while India EB-3 kept a Final Action Date of January 1, 2014, and in October 2026 EB-2 returned with a cutoff. Because the gap changes, a decision to file in EB-3 instead of EB-2 based on the current gap alone carries risk. Our EB-2 priority date for India post covers the EB-2 side in detail.

How has the India EB-3 date moved since FY2020?

This table adds the Date for Filing to the India EB-3 history. Each row corresponds to the archived Department of State bulletin for that month.

Over seven years, the India EB-3 Final Action Date moved from January 1, 2009 to January 1, 2014. The largest year-over-year advance shown in this table came between October 2020 and October 2021, and part of it was later reversed. These are historical facts and do not predict future movement. The Department of State sometimes includes projected movement in a Visa Bulletin, but any projection is an estimate that can change, and the bulletin itself warns that dates can retrogress at any time. USCIS also publishes a Form I-485 inventory report showing the estimated number of pending employment-based adjustment applications by category, country of chargeability, and priority-date month; that report is a snapshot of pending USCIS cases only, and it does not include applicants processing abroad or people who have not yet filed.

What the FY2022 to FY2023 retrogression shows

Retrogression means the Department of State moves a cutoff to an earlier date because more applicants with earlier priority dates are ready for final action than numbers remain. For India EB-3, the Final Action Date was January 1, 2014 in October 2021 and April 1, 2012 in October 2022, a step back of about 21 months. A further retrogression of India EB-3 occurred within FY2023, in the July 2023 Visa Bulletin, which the Department of State explained in Item F of that bulletin and which USCIS addresses in its Employment-Based Adjustment of Status FAQs.

FY2021 and FY2022 had higher than usual employment-based annual limits because unused family-sponsored numbers from the prior year were added to the employment-based total under INA 201(d), which helped India EB-3 advance quickly. When the employment-based limit returned closer to its normal level, demand from applicants with earlier priority dates exceeded the available numbers and the date moved back. Applicants whose priority dates had been current and who had filed I-485s kept their applications pending until their dates became current again. Under USCIS Policy Manual Volume 7, Part A, Chapter 6, an application that was properly filed when a visa was available is retained, pre-processed, and adjudicated up to the point of final approval, then held until a number is available. USCIS also states in its FAQs that it conducts interviews on some employment-based adjustment applications even while a visa is not available under the Final Action Dates chart, so that it can approve those applications promptly once a number is allocated.

How the per-country cap and spillover work for EB-3

Under INA 203(b)(3), EB-3 receives 28.6 percent of the worldwide employment-based limit, plus any numbers not required by EB-1 and EB-2. Under INA 202(a)(2), no more than 7 percent of the combined family-sponsored and employment-based preference total can be issued to natives of any single country in a fiscal year. This is a ceiling, not a reserved share: no country is guaranteed any fixed number of visas in any category. The October 2026 bulletin sets the FY2027 per-country limit at 25,620 visas. INA 202(a)(5) allows employment-based numbers to be issued without regard to the per-country ceiling when worldwide demand in a category is below the category’s limit for that quarter or year. That mechanism can allow India EB-3 to advance faster in years when worldwide EB-3 demand is low. USCIS explains in its FAQs that when the Department of State sets a worldwide Final Action Date for a category, it has estimated that demand exceeds the available numbers, and the exception to the per-country limit does not apply in that category for that period. The worldwide EB-3 row has a Final Action Date cutoff in November 2026 (June 15, 2024), after the October 2026 retrogression, which indicates that less unused supply is available for India this year. Whether any particular month’s movement resulted from that mechanism is something only the Department of State’s bulletin notes can confirm.

The Other Workers subgroup has a separate cap of 10,000 within EB-3 (INA 203(b)(3)(B)), which the bulletin states is reduced by up to 5,000 a year under the NACARA legislation; the October 2026 bulletin states that the FY2027 reduction is limited to about 150. India EB-3 Other Workers shares the India EB-3 dates for November 2026, but the two rows can differ in other months.

Downgrading from EB-2 to EB-3 and keeping your date

Downgrading means the employer files a new I-140 in EB-3 for a person who already has an EB-2 petition. Under 8 CFR 204.5(e)(1), a person who is the beneficiary of an approved EB-1, EB-2, or EB-3 petition keeps that priority date for any later EB-1, EB-2, or EB-3 petition. Under 8 CFR 204.5(e)(2), the priority date is not kept if the approval was revoked for fraud or willful misrepresentation of a material fact, the labor certification was revoked or invalidated, or USCIS revoked the approval because of a material error.

• Whether the existing certified PERM can support the EB-3 petition is case-specific and must be confirmed against current USCIS authority before filing. Under 20 CFR 656.30(c) the certification is valid only for the job opportunity, beneficiary, and area of intended employment stated in it, and USCIS examines whether the later petition involves the same job opportunity without material change and whether the beneficiary met the EB-3 requirements as of the priority date. Under 20 CFR 656.30(b), the certification expires if not used in an I-140 within 180 days of certification; the regulation does not itself state whether a certification already used in a timely I-140 can support a second I-140 filed after that period. Do not treat the same-PERM downgrade route as available until your attorney confirms the current USCIS position and reviews the certified ETA-9089.
• If the existing certification cannot be used, the employer would need a new PERM, which carries its own, later DOL filing date; the earlier priority date would still be retained under 8 CFR 204.5(e)(1) as long as none of the exceptions applies.
• Both petitions can exist at the same time. Keeping the EB-2 I-140 while adding an EB-3 I-140 lets the applicant use whichever line reaches the priority date first.
• If an I-485 is already pending, USCIS Policy Manual Volume 7, Part A, Chapter 8 allows the applicant to request in writing that USCIS transfer the pending application to a different petition, which may be approved or still pending if the new category permits concurrent filing. USCIS requires that the applicant has continuously maintained eligibility for adjustment, that a visa is available under the new basis on the date of the transfer request, and that the applicant is eligible for the new category; the request is granted or denied as a matter of discretion.
• Transferring the I-485 to a new I-140 resets the portability clock. The Policy Manual states that when an employment-based applicant transfers the I-485 to a new employment-based petition, the applicant generally cannot use INA 204(j) job portability until the I-485 has been pending for at least 180 days from the date of the transfer request. Anyone considering both a downgrade and a job change should plan the sequence with an attorney.
• The downgrade I-140 is a new petition with its own government filing fee (Paper Filing: $715 plus additional fees, if applicable. Online Filing: $665 plus additional fees, if applicable). Current fees are on the USCIS Form I-140 page and Fee Schedule (Form G-1055).
• Some people later move up instead, to EB-1, using the same priority-date retention rule. See our EB-1 priority date for India post.

Changing employers with an India EB-3 priority date

A job change does not automatically cost you your place. The outcome depends on four rules that work independently of one another:

• Priority date retention. Under 8 CFR 204.5(e)(1), the priority date of an approved I-140 can be used for a new employer’s EB-1, EB-2, or EB-3 petition. Unless INA 204(j) portability applies (rule 4 below), the new employer generally needs its own I-140 and, if the classification chosen requires labor certification, its own PERM; a new employer filing in a classification that does not require labor certification (for example, EB-1 or a National Interest Waiver) does not need a PERM. The retained date is lost only in the situations listed in 8 CFR 204.5(e)(2): revocation for fraud or willful material misrepresentation, revocation or invalidation of the labor certification, or revocation for material USCIS error. Automatic revocation of a petition because the employer withdrew it is not one of those situations.
• Petition revocation. Under 8 CFR 205.1(a)(3)(iii)(C) and (D), as amended by the 2017 USCIS rule, an I-140 that has been approved for 180 days or more is not automatically revoked when the petitioning employer withdraws it or the employer’s business terminates. An I-140 withdrawn before it has been approved for 180 days is automatically revoked as a petition, but the beneficiary generally still retains its priority date under 8 CFR 204.5(e) for a later petition.
• H-1B extensions beyond six years. Two separate provisions of AC21 can allow H-1B time beyond the six-year limit. Under AC21 section 104(c), an H-1B worker who is the beneficiary of an approved EB-1, EB-2, or EB-3 I-140 and who is unable to adjust status because of the per-country limit may be eligible for extensions in increments of up to three years. Under AC21 sections 106(a) and (b), a worker may be eligible for one-year extensions if a labor certification or I-140 was filed at least 365 days before the requested extension period begins and no final decision denying it has been issued; section 106 does not require an approved I-140. Because an I-140 withdrawn before 180 days of approval is revoked, it may no longer support a section 104(c) extension even though the priority date survives. The current USCIS treatment of both provisions (Policy Manual Volume 2, Part H) should be confirmed with your attorney before you rely on either one.
• Job portability. If your I-485 has been pending for 180 days or more, INA 204(j) allows you to change to a new job in the same or a similar occupational classification without a new PERM or I-140, by filing Form I-485 Supplement J (Confirmation of Bona Fide Job Offer or Request for Job Portability). The I-140 must be approved, or, if it is still pending, it must have been approvable when filed and must ultimately be approved, and the original job offer must have remained valid until the portability requirements were met. The 180 days are counted from the I-485 receipt date (or from a transfer request, if you changed the underlying petition), not from the I-140 approval date.

Which path applies depends on where your case stands, so get advice before resigning.

Risks to plan around while you wait

• A pending I-485 filed under Dates for Filing is not approval. The application can remain unapproved for years. Renew the work permit before it expires, and keep the underlying job offer intact or port under INA 204(j).
• A pending I-485 does not by itself preserve nonimmigrant status. An applicant who stops maintaining H-1B or another status after filing is generally in a period of authorized stay while the I-485 is pending, but if the I-485 is denied, that person has no underlying status to fall back on. Decide with an attorney whether to keep extending H-1B or L-1 status during the wait.
• Travel while the I-485 is pending. Under 8 CFR 245.2(a)(4)(ii), leaving the United States without advance parole generally results in the I-485 being treated as abandoned, but the regulation excepts applicants in H-1 or L-1 status (and their dependents in H-4 or L-2 status) who remain eligible for that status, are returning to resume the employment or dependent status, and present a valid H or L visa if a visa is required for their admission. Travel consequences depend on your status, so confirm the current rule before any trip.
• Children’s ages are calculated from the Final Action Dates chart for applications filed on or after August 15, 2025. Under the Child Status Protection Act (INA 203(h)), a child’s age for immigration purposes is the child’s age on the date an immigrant visa becomes available, reduced by the number of days the I-140 was pending from filing to approval. USCIS treats the date a visa becomes available as the later of the date the petition was approved and the first day of the month in which the priority date is reached under the applicable chart. Under USCIS Policy Alert PA-2025-15 and Policy Manual Volume 7, Part A, Chapter 7, that chart is the Final Action Dates chart for adjustment applications filed on or after August 15, 2025. USCIS states that it continues to apply its February 14, 2023 policy, which used the chart USCIS had designated for filing, to applications that were pending before August 15, 2025, and that it may consider extraordinary circumstances for applicants who did not file during the earlier policy period when a visa was available under that policy. The child must also seek to acquire permanent residence within one year of visa availability, unless USCIS excuses the delay for extraordinary circumstances. A child who was under 21 when the family filed under Dates for Filing can still age out before the India EB-3 Final Action Date reaches the family’s priority date. Ask an attorney to run the CSPA calculation for every child in the case.
• The medical exam has a shelf life. Form I-693 validity rules have changed more than once, including in 2024 and 2025. Confirm the current validity rule on the USCIS Form I-693 page immediately before scheduling the exam and again before filing, especially if you are filing under Dates for Filing and expect a long wait.
• Category unavailability. A row can show “U” (Unavailable) late in a fiscal year, as India EB-2 did in September 2026. An I-485 that is already pending stays pending; a person who has not filed cannot file until a date is published again and USCIS designates a chart that reaches the priority date.
• Downgrading is not a one-way bet. If EB-2 India moves ahead of EB-3 India again, as it was in October 2019, the EB-3 downgrade may not help. Keeping both approved petitions preserves the option to use either line, though a transfer of a pending I-485 between them is discretionary and resets the INA 204(j) clock.
• H-1B maximum stay. If you rely on an approved I-140 for extensions beyond six years under AC21 section 104(c), confirm the I-140 has been approved for at least 180 days before any employer withdrawal, and confirm how a new employer’s petition interacts with the extension request.
• Employer ability to pay runs from the priority date. Under 8 CFR 204.5(g)(2), the petitioning employer must show the ability to pay the offered wage from the priority date until the beneficiary obtains permanent residence. For a downgrade or a new employer’s petition, that evidence has to cover the retained priority date, which for India EB-3 cases can reach back more than a decade.

Planning steps for India-born EB-3 applicants

1. Find your PERM filing date on the I-140 receipt or approval notice, and confirm your chargeability. Chargeability is generally the applicant’s country of birth. Under INA 202(b), a spouse who is accompanying or following to join may be charged to the principal’s country of birth (or the principal to the spouse’s country) when needed to prevent separation, and a child may be charged to either accompanying parent’s country of birth; an adult principal applicant cannot choose a parent’s country of birth on that basis.
2. Compare your date with both the India EB-3 and EB-2 lines every month, and check the USCIS Adjustment of Status Filing Charts page for which chart applies.
3. If you hold both an EB-2 and an EB-3 I-140, track which line reaches your priority date first on the chart USCIS has designated.
4. Prepare I-485 documents in advance, and schedule the medical exam (Form I-693) with the current validity rule in mind, so you can file when a window opens.
5. Before changing jobs, confirm whether your I-140 is approved, how long it has been approved, and whether your I-485 has been pending for 180 days (counted from any transfer request, if you changed the underlying petition).
6. If you are on H-1B, ask which AC21 provision (section 104(c) or section 106) supports extensions beyond six years in your case.
7. If you have children, ask for a Child Status Protection Act age calculation that applies the policy in effect for your filing date.
8. Talk to a licensed attorney before filing a downgrade or changing employers.

Frequently Asked Questions

• Is EB-3 India faster than EB-2 India?

  For November 2026 the India EB-3 Final Action Date (January 22, 2014) is nearly three months later than EB-2 (November 1, 2013), and the Dates for Filing are the same. EB-3 was later in six of the last eight October bulletins, but the gap changes, and EB-2 India was ahead in October 2019.

• Is the EB-3 Other Workers priority date for India different?

  Not for November 2026. India EB-3 Other Workers has the same dates as India EB-3: January 22, 2014 and January 15, 2015. The two rows can differ in other months because Other Workers has its own 10,000 annual cap.

• Can I downgrade from EB-2 to EB-3 and keep my priority date?

  Generally yes. Under 8 CFR 204.5(e), the priority date of an approved EB-2 I-140 carries to a later EB-3 petition unless the approval was revoked for fraud or willful misrepresentation, the labor certification was revoked or invalidated, or USCIS revoked the approval for material error.

• Do I need a new PERM to downgrade to EB-3?

  It depends on the certified PERM and on current USCIS authority. The certification is valid only for the job opportunity, beneficiary, and area of employment stated in it, and the beneficiary must have met the EB-3 requirements as of the priority date. Whether a certification already used in a timely EB-2 I-140 can support a later EB-3 I-140 after the 180-day validity period is a question your attorney must confirm before the downgrade is filed. If a new PERM is required, the earlier priority date is still generally retained.

• Can I have an EB-2 and an EB-3 I-140 at the same time?

  Yes. Both petitions can remain approved, and the applicant can use whichever line becomes current for the priority date first, including by asking USCIS to transfer a pending I-485 to the other petition. The transfer is discretionary, requires a visa to be available under the new basis on the date of the request, and restarts the 180-day count for INA 204(j) job portability.

• What happens to my EB-3 priority date if I change employers?

  If your I-140 was approved, the priority date can generally be used for a new employer’s petition, and even an I-140 that is automatically revoked because the employer withdrew it before 180 days of approval generally keeps its priority date under 8 CFR 204.5(e). An I-140 approved for 180 days or more is not automatically revoked on withdrawal, which matters for H-1B extensions under AC21 section 104(c). If your I-485 has been pending 180 days or more, you may be able to move to a same or similar job under INA 204(j) with Form I-485 Supplement J.

• Why did India EB-3 go backward in 2022?

  The India EB-3 Final Action Date moved from January 1, 2014 (October 2021) to April 1, 2012 (October 2022) after two fiscal years in which unused family-sponsored numbers raised the employment-based limit. When the limit returned closer to normal, demand from earlier priority dates exceeded the available numbers and the Department of State retrogressed the date.

• Can I file my I-485 in November 2026 with an India EB-3 priority date?

  If your priority date is earlier than January 15, 2015, possibly, because USCIS designated the Dates for Filing chart for employment-based filings received in November 2026. The same Date for Filing and chart designation also apply in October 2026, so a qualifying applicant may be able to file before November 1. You must also meet the other adjustment eligibility requirements. Approval waits until your priority date is earlier than the Final Action Date, which for November 2026 is January 22, 2014.

• My priority date is January 15, 2015 exactly. Can I file?

  No. A visa is available only when the priority date is earlier than the cutoff date listed in the bulletin. A priority date that equals the cutoff is not reached, so a January 15, 2015 priority date does not qualify under the November 2026 India EB-3 Date for Filing.

• Does filing under Dates for Filing protect my child from aging out?

  Not by itself. For adjustment applications filed on or after August 15, 2025, USCIS determines CSPA visa availability using the Final Action Dates chart. A child’s CSPA age is the child’s age on the date a visa becomes available (which USCIS treats as the later of the I-140 approval date and the date the priority date is reached under that chart), minus the time the I-140 was pending, and the child must seek to acquire permanent residence within one year of visa availability unless USCIS excuses the delay for extraordinary circumstances. USCIS continues to apply the earlier February 14, 2023 policy, which used the chart USCIS designated for filing, to applications that were pending before August 15, 2025.

• My India EB-3 Final Action Date was reached and then retrogressed. Is my pending I-485 denied?

  No. USCIS states that an adjustment application properly filed when a visa was available is retained and processed up to the point of final approval, then held until a visa number is available again. Keep your work permit current while you wait, and confirm the travel rules for your status before leaving the United States.

• I am on H-1B with a pending I-485. Can I travel without advance parole?

  Under 8 CFR 245.2(a)(4)(ii), an applicant in H-1 or L-1 status (or H-4 or L-2 dependent status) who remains eligible for that status, is returning to resume it, and presents a valid H or L visa on return if a visa is required is not treated as having abandoned the I-485 by traveling without advance parole. Anyone outside that exception generally needs advance parole before departing. Confirm your situation with an attorney before travel.

• Does an EB-3 Other Workers petition keep an earlier EB-3 skilled worker priority date?

  The retention rule in 8 CFR 204.5(e) applies to petitions under INA 203(b)(1), (2), and (3), and Other Workers is part of INA 203(b)(3), so the earlier priority date carries. The Other Workers row, however, has its own cutoff and can lag the skilled worker row.

• My employer withdrew my I-140 before it was approved. Do I keep the priority date?

  Generally no. The retention rule in 8 CFR 204.5(e)(1) applies to the beneficiary of an approved petition. A petition withdrawn or denied before approval does not establish a retained priority date, and a new PERM filed later will carry its own, later priority date. An attorney should confirm the status of the petition before you rely on its date.

• I was born in India but my spouse was born elsewhere. Can we use my spouse’s country?

  Possibly. Under INA 202(b), a spouse who is accompanying or following to join the principal applicant may be charged to the principal’s country of birth, and the principal may be charged to the spouse’s country of birth, when needed to prevent family separation. This is called cross-chargeability. It requires that the spouse immigrate with the principal (or follow to join) and that both be otherwise eligible; it is not available based on a parent’s country of birth for an adult principal applicant.