EB-1C India: Can Primary and Dependent I-485 Cases Be Approved Together?

A Reddit user in the r/greencard community raises a common procedural question about how USCIS handles I-485 approvals when a primary applicant and their dependents have filed at different times. The primary applicant, with a Priority Date of February 9, 2023 under EB-1C India, filed their I-485 in October 2025 and has already completed biometrics. Their case has been assigned to the San Francisco Field Office since December 2025. The dependents filed their I-485 applications in February 2026, approximately four months after the primary applicant, and have biometrics scheduled for March 20. The applicant is seeking community insight on whether USCIS tends to hold the primary case pending dependent biometric completion, or whether approvals can and do come separately. This is a relevant procedural consideration for many EB-3 and other employment-based applicants whose family members file adjustment of status applications on a delayed timeline. USCIS has discretion in how it sequences approvals, and outcomes can vary based on field office workload, officer assignment, and case-specific circumstances. Community experiences shared in such threads often indicate that USCIS may approve cases together when dependents are close to completing biometrics, though there is no guaranteed policy requiring simultaneous approval. Applicants in similar situations are generally advised to ensure all family members complete biometrics promptly and that all required evidence is submitted without gaps. While this post is specific to EB-1C, the procedural dynamics are directly applicable to EB-3 applicants with dependents filing on different schedules, making it a useful reference for the broader employment-based green card community.