November 2026 Visa Bulletin Keeps the I 485 Filing Window Open for Applicants Born in China
Posted on October 27, 2026 by Warren Wen | Category: English
November 2026 Visa Bulletin Keeps the I 485 Filing Window Open for Applicants Born in China
Family preference categories advance broadly while China employment filing dates remain stable
The November 2026 Visa Bulletin is a reminder that immigration news is not always measured by how far a date moves. Sometimes the most important development is that a door opened last month—and stayed open.
Many applicants born in mainland China entered late October still assembling medical examinations, civil documents, status records, and employment evidence. Their concern was understandable: if USCIS switched employment-based adjustment applicants back to the Final Action Dates chart in November, the expanded October filing opportunity could disappear before their cases were ready.
That did not happen. USCIS again designated the Dates for Filing chart for both family-sponsored and employment-based adjustment applications in November. China employment-based filing cutoffs remain at the expanded October levels. For applicants who became eligible in October but could not complete a sound filing package by October 31, November offers another month—not to drift, but to finish the job correctly.
Two Visa Bulletin Charts Answer Different Questions
The Visa Bulletin contains two sets of dates that serve different purposes. The Dates for Filing chart determines when an applicant may submit Form I-485 if USCIS authorizes use of that chart for the month. The Final Action Dates chart determines when an immigrant visa number is available for final approval.
In practical terms, one chart determines whether an otherwise eligible applicant may enter the adjustment process; the other determines whether USCIS may complete the case. An applicant whose priority date is earlier than the applicable November filing cutoff may be able to file Form I-485, but only after satisfying all other requirements—including lawful admission, adjustment eligibility, applicable status rules or INA section 245(k), the continuing validity of the employment or family basis, document sufficiency, and admissibility.
Filing is valuable, but it is not approval. A pending I-485 may allow the applicant and qualifying family members to apply for employment authorization and advance parole. The green card itself must still wait until the priority date is earlier than the applicable Final Action Date, a visa number is available, and USCIS has completed its substantive review.
A pending adjustment application also does not automatically preserve H-1B, L-1, or another nonimmigrant status. Whether to maintain an underlying status, when to use an EAD or advance parole, and whether a later job change may qualify for AC21 portability are separate strategic questions. The ability to file should never be confused with the resolution of every status, travel, and employment issue.
Family Preference Categories Move Forward by About One Year
For applicants chargeable to mainland China, the largest numerical changes in November appear in the family-sponsored categories. The F1 Final Action Date advances from January 22, 2020, to January 22, 2021. F2B moves from August 22, 2019, to August 22, 2020. F3 advances from October 22, 2014, to October 22, 2015, and F4 moves from October 22, 2011, to October 22, 2012. The corresponding filing dates also advance by approximately one year.
F2A is the exception to the one-year pattern. Its Final Action Date moves forward by one month, to October 22, 2026, while the F2A Dates for Filing category remains current. Because USCIS is permitting family-sponsored applicants to use the filing chart in November, certain spouses and unmarried children under 21 of permanent residents may have a filing opportunity even though final approval remains governed by the F2A Final Action Date.
The broad movement is welcome, but it should not be read as proof that the underlying backlog has suddenly been reduced by a full year. The State Department sets cutoff dates based on projected demand and visa-number management. A one-year movement in November describes this month’s control dates; it is not a promise that future bulletins will advance at the same pace.
Why No Major Employment Movement Is Good News
For China employment-based applicants, the November Dates for Filing are unchanged from October: EB-1 remains July 1, 2024; EB-2 remains January 1, 2023; EB-3 professionals and skilled workers remain April 1, 2024; Other Workers remain October 1, 2020; and unreserved EB-5 remains March 1, 2021. The rural, high-unemployment-area, and infrastructure EB-5 set-aside categories remain current.
Those unchanged dates matter because October produced unusually large filing advances. China EB-2 moved forward by one year, EB-3 by roughly twenty-seven months, and unreserved EB-5 by four years. Many applicants became eligible to file Form I-485 for the first time, yet one month may not have been enough to complete medical examinations, obtain birth or marriage records, reconstruct immigration history, confirm employer support, and prepare filings for every family member.
November preserves that opportunity. USCIS did not switch employment-based applicants back to the Final Action Dates chart, and the State Department did not pull the China filing dates backward. An applicant whose priority date is earlier than the applicable cutoff—and who is otherwise eligible to adjust—may use the same filing threshold in November that applied in October.
This removes the pressure to sacrifice accuracy merely to beat October 31. It does not justify indefinite delay. USCIS decides every month which chart adjustment applicants may use. November’s selection says nothing certain about December. The sensible response is to replace panic with disciplined execution, not to replace action with waiting.
Final Action Dates Edge Forward in Two China Categories
The employment-based approval cutoffs are not completely static. China EB-1 advances by one month, from July 1, 2023, to August 1, 2023. China EB-3 professionals and skilled workers advance by fourteen days, from January 8, 2022, to January 22, 2022. China EB-2 remains October 1, 2021; Other Workers remain October 1, 2019; unreserved EB-5 remains December 1, 2016; and EB-4 remains December 15, 2022.
The distinction remains important. The filing line is stable at October’s expanded position, but the approval line has moved only slightly. November therefore gives many applicants an additional month of filing eligibility without materially shortening the wait for final adjudication.
What Applicants Should Do in November
- Confirm the correct chart and cutoff. USCIS is using the Dates for Filing chart for both family- and employment-based adjustment applications in November. The priority date must be earlier than the listed cutoff, not equal to it.
- Complete the filing package, not just the forms. Review the medical examination, birth and marriage records, I-94 and full status history, petition approval or concurrent-filing basis, employer support, Supplement J when applicable, Affidavit of Support requirements, fees, signatures, and potential inadmissibility issues.
- Separate filing eligibility from status strategy. A pending I-485 can create a period of authorized stay, but it does not automatically continue an underlying nonimmigrant status. Employment authorization, travel, and job portability decisions require separate analysis.
- Identify the correct employment classification. EB-3 professionals and skilled workers use the April 1, 2024, filing date; Other Workers use October 1, 2020. The categories are not interchangeable. A proposed EB-2-to-EB-3 downgrade requires an appropriate employer and PERM foundation; an NIW petition cannot simply be downgraded to EB-3.
- Review children’s ages immediately. Families with derivative children approaching age 21 should evaluate the Child Status Protection Act and the sought-to-acquire requirement based on the facts of the individual case.
- Treat EB-5 availability as only one part of the analysis. A current set-aside category describes visa-number availability. It does not resolve project eligibility, source-of-funds compliance, redeployment, sustainment, I-526E, or I-829 risk.
November’s Certainty Ends on November 30
The November bulletin does not contain a special warning that China employment categories are about to retrogress, and USCIS has expressly selected the Dates for Filing chart for the month. To rely on November’s chart, however, a properly filed I-485 must be received by USCIS within the November filing period. Placing a package in the mail at the end of the month is not the same as ensuring timely receipt.
No one can yet know whether USCIS will continue using the filing chart in December or whether later demand will cause the State Department to adjust the dates. Filing volume, quarterly usage, and visa-number management will shape the months ahead. The absence of a warning is welcome, but it is not a guarantee.
October raised the filing gate. November keeps it in place. Missing the last day of October did not erase the opportunity, but allowing another month to pass without completing an otherwise viable case may prove far more costly than the lack of movement in the bulletin itself.
October and November 2026 Key Dates for Applicants Born in Mainland China
| Category | October 2026 | November 2026 | Change |
| F1 Final Action | January 22, 2020 | January 22, 2021 | Advances 1 year |
| F2A Final Action | September 22, 2026 | October 22, 2026 | Advances 1 month |
| F2B Final Action | August 22, 2019 | August 22, 2020 | Advances 1 year |
| F3 Final Action | October 22, 2014 | October 22, 2015 | Advances 1 year |
| F4 Final Action | October 22, 2011 | October 22, 2012 | Advances 1 year |
| EB-1 Filing | July 1, 2024 | July 1, 2024 | No change |
| EB-2 Filing | January 1, 2023 | January 1, 2023 | No change |
| EB-3 Filing | April 1, 2024 | April 1, 2024 | No change |
| Other Workers Filing | October 1, 2020 | October 1, 2020 | No change |
| EB-5 Unreserved Filing | March 1, 2021 | March 1, 2021 | No change |
| EB-5 Set-Asides | Current | Current | No change |
This article is only for your reference. Please do not apply mechanically to any exact cases. You are welcome to consult our attorneys at Liu & Associates, P.C. For contact information, please click here.