A new fiscal year, a new set of dates
The October Visa Bulletin landed and it starts fiscal year 2027. If you are waiting on a green card, this is the month the numbers reset. Some lines leap forward. Others quietly crawl backwards. Attorney Jacob Sapochnick summed it up best in his monthly video: the State Department held the bulletin back until the new year began, then released a mixed bag.
Who moved forward
Family categories had the best month. F4 siblings took a big step forward, and F2B moved too. If your priority date has been sitting still for a year, check it again. It may finally be current.
Employment-based EB-1 for India, plus every employment category for China, also advanced. For a lot of people those are the queues that never seem to move, so this is real news.
For the first time since April, worldwide EB-2 is no longer “current.” It now has a cutoff date for everyone except China and India. If you filed a national interest waiver recently, that change hits you directly.
Who went backwards
EB-3 retrograded for several countries. That is the frustrating part of the system. Your case can be ready to go and still sit because the monthly cap ran out. Nothing you did wrong.
USCIS says applicants should use the Dates for Filing chart this month, for both employment and family categories. Just remember it reviews that decision every single month. Do not assume November follows the same rule.
Two dates worth circling
Some USCIS fees change on October 16, 2026. File with the wrong amount and the whole package gets rejected. Check the current fee before you post anything.
And do not travel on a pending adjustment case without an approved travel permit and proper advice. It sounds obvious until it happens to someone.
Settling in is only half the job
Once the paperwork is finally done, the real settling starts. New house, new routine, and one annoying gap: your favourite channels from home do not come with the new internet connection.
If you are still choosing where to land, our pieces on European golden visas in 2026 and digital nomad visas are worth a read. Moving in the middle of tax season too? Then the October 15 deadline for US expats abroad is the one you do not want to forget.
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