Learn how to read the monthly Visa Bulletin, understand priority date movement, and track your green card eligibility.
The Visa Bulletin is a monthly publication from the Department of State that determines when immigrant visa numbers are available for each preference category and country. For employment-based green card applicants, understanding the Visa Bulletin is essential for knowing when you can file your adjustment of status application or attend a consular interview. Wisa breaks down the Visa Bulletin so you can track your priority date and plan your immigration timeline.
The Visa Bulletin is published monthly by the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Consular Affairs. It reports the availability of immigrant visa numbers for both family-based and employment-based preference categories. Because Congress limits the total number of immigrant visas issued each year (approximately 140,000 for employment-based categories) and caps the number available to any single country (7% of the total), the Visa Bulletin acts as a queue management system.
The Visa Bulletin contains two charts for employment-based categories:
Your priority date is the date that establishes your place in the immigrant visa queue. For PERM-based cases, it is the date the DOL received your PERM application. For EB-1 and EB-2 NIW cases that do not require PERM, it is the date USCIS received the I-140 petition. Your priority date must be earlier than the relevant Visa Bulletin date for your category and country of chargeability before you can proceed.
The Visa Bulletin tracks five employment-based categories:
Each month, the Visa Bulletin dates may advance (move forward), remain unchanged, or retrogress (move backward). Forward movement means more people become eligible to file or receive their green cards. Retrogression — when dates move backward — occurs when demand exceeds supply, temporarily making fewer visa numbers available. Significant retrogression can delay your green card by months or years.
Check the Visa Bulletin on the Department of State website at the beginning of each month. Compare your priority date and preference category against both Chart A and Chart B for your country of chargeability (usually your country of birth, not citizenship). USCIS also publishes a monthly announcement indicating whether applicants may use Chart B for filing adjustment of status applications. Wisa tracks Visa Bulletin trends so you can see historical movement patterns for your category.
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Search H-1B Sponsors on Wisa →Chart A (Final Action Dates) shows when your visa number is available for the final green card decision — approval of your I-485 or immigrant visa issuance. Chart B (Dates for Filing) shows an earlier date when you can submit your I-485 application, even if a visa number is not yet available for final action. USCIS decides monthly whether to accept Chart B filings.
Your priority date depends on your green card category. For PERM-based cases (most EB-2 and EB-3), the priority date is when the DOL received your PERM application — shown on the certified ETA-9089. For EB-1 and EB-2 NIW cases without PERM, the priority date is when USCIS received your I-140 petition — shown on your I-797 receipt notice.
When the Visa Bulletin shows 'C' (Current) for your preference category and country, it means there is no backlog — visa numbers are immediately available regardless of your priority date. You can file your I-485 or proceed with consular processing as soon as your I-140 is approved. Most EB-1 categories for countries other than India and China show 'Current.'
Retrogression occurs when demand for visas in a particular category exceeds the available supply. The Department of State moves dates backward to slow the pace of final adjudications and prevent exceeding the annual per-country and per-category limits. This commonly happens toward the end of the fiscal year (September) when visa usage approaches the cap.