United States: April 2025 Visa Bulletin β Sharp EB-5 Retrogression for China and India, and Modest Advancement for Most Other EB Categories; USCIS to Honor Final Action Dates for EB Categories
March 10, 2025
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At a glance
- In April, the EB-5 Final Action Date for China will retrogress by approximately two and a half years, and the Final Action Date for India will retrogress by over two years.
- The EB-2 Final Action Date will advance for India by one month, and for China, by almost five months.
- The EB-3 Final Action Date for India will advance by two months, and for China, by three months.
- The Final Action Date EB-2 Worldwide will advance by five weeks.
- The Final Action Date for EB-3 Worldwide Professional/Skilled Workers will advance by one month.
- Next month, USCIS will accept employment-based adjustment of status applications from foreign nationals with a priority date that is earlier than the Final Action Dates listed in the April Visa Bulletin.
A closer look
According to the State Departmentβs April Visa Bulletin, Final Action cutoff dates for issuance of an immigrant visa or approval of an adjustment of status application will be as follows:
- EB-1: India will advance by two weeks, to February 15, 2022, and China will remain at November 8, 2022. All other countries will continue to be current.
- EB-2: India will advance by one month, to January 1, 2013, and China will advance by almost five months, to October 1, 2020. All other countries will advance by five weeks, to June 22, 2023.
- EB-3 Professionals and Skilled Workers: India will advance by two months, to April 1, 2013, and China will advance by three months, to November 1, 2020. All other countries will advance by one month to January 1, 2023.
- EB-5: For the EB-5 Unreserved categories, China will retrogress by approximately two and a half years, to January 22, 2014, and India will retrogress by over two years, to November 1, 2019. All other countries will remain current. The EB-5 set-aside categories (Rural, High Unemployment, and Infrastructure) will also remain current.
USCIS to honor Final Action Dates for EB categories in April
USCIS has announced on its own Visa Bulletin web page that the agency will accept employment-based adjustment of status applications based on the Visa Bulletin Final Action Dates chart in April. To be eligible to file an employment-based adjustment application in April, foreign nationals must have a priority date that is earlier than the date listed below for their preference category and country.
Annual limit reached for the EB-4 category
As predicted by the State Department and announced on February 28, 2025, all available EB-4 immigrant visas for FY 2025 were issued as of February 28, requiring the State Department to make the category unavailable immediately. EB-4 will be unavailable for the month of April and continuing through the end of the fiscal year on September 30, 2025. No immigrant visa or adjustment of status applications may be approved in the EB-4 category through that date. The annual limit will reset at the start of the new fiscal year on October 1, 2025.
EB-5 retrogression for China and India
The April Visa Bulletin states that the State Department was required to retrogress the EB-5 unreserved category for China and India due to increased demand and number use by applicants chargeable to those countries as well to other countries worldwide. The agency also says that it may become necessary to establish a Final Action Date for Worldwide EB-5 applicants in the unreserved category, if demand and number use continue to increase.
Final Action Dates for April 2025
EB-1
China: November 8, 2022
India: February 15, 2022
All other countries: Current
EB-2
China: October 1, 2020
India: January 1, 2013
All other countries: June 22, 2023
EB-3 Professionals and Skilled Workers
China: November 1, 2020
India: April 1, 2013
All other countries: January 1, 2023
EB-3 Other Workers
China: April 1, 2017
India: April 1, 2013
All other countries: May 22, 2021
EB-4
All countries: Unavailable
*The annual EB-4 limit for FY 2025 has been reached. The limit will reset on October 1, 2025.
EB-5 Unreserved (Regional Center and Non-Regional Center)
China: January 22, 2014
India: November 1, 2019
All other countries: Current
EB-5 Set-Asides
Rural: Current for all countries
High Unemployment: Current for all countries
Infrastructure: Current for all countries
This alert is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please contact the immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen.
