For those in the US who are waiting for a green card, monthly visa scheduling announcements are a central reference in determining the pace of application. The September schedule issued at the end of August 2026, which was the last in the 2026 fiscal year, has become a focus of recent attention, as it coincides with the fiscal year, with a polarized pattern of significant migration of relatives and potential fluctuations in occupational migration. With regard to the timing of the publication, most reports indicate that the announcement was officially issued by the United States Department of State on 31 August 2026, but there are reports that it was issued on 22 August 2026 and that there is no official channel for definitive confirmation of the final date.
The category of family migrants during this period has seen the largest increase in the 2026 fiscal year. With regard to the final action date, the F3 (married children of United States citizens), the F4 (sisters and sisters of United States citizens) advanced for 29 months, the F2B (unmarried adult children of permanent residents) advanced for approximately 20 months, the F1 (unmarried adult children of United States citizens) moved globally for 13 months to 22 January 2020, the Mexico category advanced for 1 month to 1 January 2008, and the F2A (spouses of permanent residents and minor children) and other countries and the Mexican category advanced globally for 1 month to 22 August 2026. The USCIS explicitly announced that the application for recalibrating status of relatives migrants in September would continue to use the Dates for Filing Chart, rather than the final action schedule. It has been reported that the main reason for the significant leap in the category of immigration of relatives is that the overall number of immigration visas issued for relatives in the 2026 fiscal year was lower than expected, and the remaining quota was released centrally before the receipt of officials in the fiscal year, providing a rare window for applicants waiting for years.
In contrast to the advance of relatives, the category of occupational migrants was almost completely frozen in September. EB-1 (excellent, cross-national executive), EB-2 (senior professional category), EB-3 (technical human), EB-5 (investing migrant category) with no change from August, with only EB-4 (including specific religious workers) moving forward for two months, with the final date adjusted to 15 December 2022. Of these, EB-2 India, EB-5 India were still not available in September. The USCIS announced that applications for adjustment of the status of occupational migrants in September would continue to use the Final Action Date Sheet. At the same time, the U.S. Department of State issued a clear warning that the EB-1 Indian category, EB-2 (all applicants of place of birth), and the EB-5 unencumbered category could be reversed or temporarily rendered unusable by the end of the fiscal year on 30 September 2026, pending the opening of the new fiscal year on 1 October and the reshuffle of quotas. It has been reported that the overall number of occupational migrant visas issued for the 2026 fiscal year was lower than expected, as the Department of State had previously promoted the elimination of the backlog in the cutoff dates for some categories, the strict observance of the annual quota and per-county limits towards the end of the fiscal year and the triggering of a retrogressive mechanism if the demand for subsequent applications rose or the limits were exhausted. In addition, it has been reported that the United States recently suspended the application of the technology service company Cognizant ' s PERM (Permanent Employment Certificate) Green Card, which is a pre-emptive step for applications for green cards for occupational migrants. The initiative mainly affects expatriate workers who depend on the employer, of whom Indian workers are most directly affected, and many American Chinese practitioners have been prevented from submitting green card applications through the employer.
The impact of the current schedule on the American population is clearly differentiated, with three categories of applicants requiring special attention to risk: The first category concerns applicants for occupational migration, particularly those from China, India born EB-1, EB-2, and EB-5 who have no reservation category, who have reached or reached the current final action date on a priority date, and who have delayed the submission of I-485 applications for adjustment of their status or arranged for the signing of their consulates, and who have fallen behind schedule by 30 September, lose their eligibility to apply for the current fiscal year, pending release of the new fiscal year quota. The second category is that of the mid-signer of the DV-2026 (2026 fiscal year diversity visa). Reports clearly remind him that the right to issue visas for the DV-2026 is strictly limited until 30 September 2026, even if the applicant has completed the drawing of lots, the submission of materials, the passing of a face-to-face signature, and as long as the visa has not been obtained before the deadline for any reason, such as administrative delays, the eligibility cannot continue after the end of the fiscal year. Thirdly, the applicants who are applying for PERM through their employers, whose subsequent I-140 and I-485 applications will not be advanced if they are included in the list of suspensions of PERM qualifications, may not be aware of the employer ' s qualifications until the process has stalled and the problem has been delayed for several years. The common sites include: false expectations of stable scheduling, delays in the submission of applications, leading to missing the current fiscal year window; the mistaken assumption by the DV signer that the visa would eventually be obtained by a single sign, ignoring the rigid deadline for the fiscal year; and the lack of attention to the employer ' s PERM application status until the Green Card flow card shell was aware of the problem.
In the current situation, the American Chinese applicants can take four actions to avoid risk in order of priority: first, to identify their core information: immigration category, place of birth, priority day, application path (whether to submit I-485 within the United States or to sign in front of the United States Consulate), and to confirm their current eligibility to submit applications or arrange face-marks against the September schedule of final action and the USCIS-designated submission date. Second, applicants for professional migration who have met the September deadline for final action on a priority date should immediately submit an I-485 application or make an appointment with the consulate by 30 September, so as not to lose the opportunity for the current fiscal year after a sudden reversal of the schedule. Thirdly, if the DV-2026 signatories have not completed their face-marking or obtained a visa, they immediately contact the corresponding consulate to clarify the situation and request urgent processing, while retaining all documentation of administrative delays for follow-up. Fourth, applicants who are going through the PERM process have taken the initiative to confirm the current status of the PERM application to the employer ' s head of human resources or immigration, to consult with professional immigration lawyers in a timely manner if the employer ' s qualifications are suspended and to assess whether the impact can be reduced by changing the employer, adjusting the type of application. With the opening of the new fiscal year on 1 October, the United States will recalculate the annual quota for all categories of immigration visas, with the possibility of new scheduling changes, and recommends that applicants keep an eye on the official scheduling announcements issued by the USCIS and the Department of State and adjust their application strategies in a timely manner.