March 2026 Visa Bulletin: EB-3 Advances for Mexico, Philippines, and Most Countries

The U.S. State Department has released the March 2026 Visa Bulletin, with USCIS confirming that employment-based applicants must use the Dates for Filing chart for determining filing eligibility this month. The bulletin brings modest but meaningful forward movement for EB-3 applicants across several countries. For most EB-3 applicants — those not born in China or India — the Dates for Filing cutoff advances three-and-a-half months to January 15, 2024. Mexico-born applicants are included in this general advancement. The Philippines receives a slightly smaller advance of three months, moving to a cutoff of January 1, 2024. Applicants born in China and India continue to face significant backlogs with no movement in the EB-3 category. China remains at January 1, 2022, and India stays at August 15, 2014 — a backlog spanning over a decade. The most notable headline from this bulletin is India's EB-2 category leaping forward by 11 months to November 1, 2014, though this does not directly affect EB-3 workers. China and India also saw EB-1 advances of four months each. EB-3 applicants from eligible countries whose priority dates fall before the new cutoffs should consult with their immigration attorneys to prepare and submit their I-485 adjustment of status applications or begin consular processing. The Dates for Filing chart allows applicants to file supporting documents even before a visa number is immediately available.