Green Card Backlog Update: Indian Families Get Relief as EB-3 Advances in 2026 Visa Bulletin

Indian-born green card applicants in the EB-3 employment-based category are experiencing a notable shift in wait times, as the latest visa bulletin shows forward movement for this historically backlogged group. While this progress offers cautious optimism, experts warn that the relief may be temporary depending on overall application volume and retrogression patterns in coming months. The EB-1 (priority workers) and EB-2 (advanced degree professionals) queues, however, remain heavily congested for Indian nationals, with cutoff dates showing little to no advancement. This disparity reflects the way demand is distributed across employment-based preference categories, and underscores the continued strain on the per-country annual cap system. For EB-3 skilled worker and professional applicants from India, the forward movement in priority dates means that those who have been waiting years may be approaching the point of filing their I-485 adjustment of status applications — a critical milestone in the green card process. Applicants are encouraged to check the current Visa Bulletin Dates for Filing chart to determine eligibility. Immigration attorneys advise applicants to monitor the monthly visa bulletin closely, as cutoff dates can retrogress without warning based on USCIS usage rates. Building a buffer between one's priority date and the published cutoff is considered best practice before initiating downstream immigration steps. EB-3 applicants should coordinate with their employers and attorneys to ensure all documentation — including labor certifications and I-140 petitions — is in order so they can move quickly when their priority date becomes current.