United States: March 2025 Visa Bulletin – Modest Advancement for Most Countries in EB-2 and EB-3; USCIS to Honor Final Action Dates for Employment-Based Categories
February 11, 2025
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At a glance
- In March, the EB-2 and EB-3 Final Action Dates for India will advance by six weeks.
- The Final Action Date for EB-2 China will advance by two weeks and EB-2 Worldwide will advance by six weeks.
- The Final Action Date for EB-3 China Professional/Skilled Workers will advance by one month.
- EB-1 and EB-5 Final Action dates will be unchanged in March.
- 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 State Department’s March 2025 Visa Bulletin.
A closer look
According to the State Department’s March 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 remain at February 1, 2022, and China will remain at November 8, 2022. All other countries will continue to be current.
- EB-2: India will advance by six weeks, to December 1, 2012, and China will advance by two weeks, to May 8, 2020. All other countries will advance by six weeks, to May 15, 2023.
- EB-3 Professionals and Skilled Workers: India will advance by six weeks, to February 1, 2013, and China will advance by one month, to August 1, 2020. All other countries will remain at December 1, 2022.
- EB-3 Other Workers: India will advance by six weeks, to February 1, 2013. China will remain at January 1, 2017. The Philippines will advance by five weeks, to January 15, 2021. All other countries will advance by almost two months, to February 1, 2021.
- EB-5: For the EB-5 Unreserved categories, China will remain at July 15, 2016, and India will remain at January 1, 2022. 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 March
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 for in March. To be eligible to file an employment-based adjustment application in March, foreign nationals must have a priority date that is earlier than the date listed below for their preference category and country.
EB-4 retrogression and expiring Certain Religious Workers program
In the March Visa Bulletin, the State Department notes that it has retrogressed the EB-4 Final Action Dates for the month of March to keep issuances within the annual limit, due to high demand and number use throughout the first half of the fiscal year. In March, the category will retrogress by almost a year and a half, to August 1, 2019. The State Department further notes that it may be necessary to make the category “Unavailable” in the coming months, possibly as soon as April.
In addition, the Certain Religious Workers (SR) Program is set to expire on March 14, 2025. If there is no legislative action extending the SR category beyond that date, the category will immediately become “Unavailable” as of March 14, 2025. This would mean that after midnight on March 13, 2025, no SR visas would be issued overseas, or final action taken on adjustment of status cases by USCIS. Immigrant visas issued prior to that date would be valid only until March 13, 2025, and all individuals seeking admission as a non-minister special immigrant religious worker must be admitted into the United States no later than midnight on March 13, 2025. If the program is extended beyond March 14, however, the published Final Action date of August 1, 2019 will continue to be in effect for the category for the remainder of March.
Final Action Dates for March 2025
EB-1
China: November 8, 2022
India: February 1, 2022
All other countries: Current
EB-2
China: May 8, 2020
India: December 1, 2012
All other countries: May 15, 2023
EB-3 Professionals and Skilled Workers
China: August 1, 2020
India: February 1, 2013
All other countries: December 1, 2022
EB-3 Other Workers
China: January 1, 2017
India: February 1, 2013
Philippines: January 15, 2021
All other countries: February 1, 2021
EB-4
All countries: August 1, 2019*
*The Certain Religious Workers program will become unavailable for all countries on March 14, 2025, unless it is reauthorized by legislation.
EB-5 Unreserved (Regional Center and Non-Regional Center)
China: July 15, 2016
India: January 1, 2022
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.
