April 2025 Visa Bulletin Released

 

The Department of State (DOS) has issued its April 2025 Visa Bulletin. We will see forward movement in most employment and family-based immigrant visa categories in April. 

For employment-based categories, EB-1 will move forward for Indian nationals, and the EB-2 and EB-3 categories will advance for all nationals, including India and China. 

For family-based categories, there will be forward movement for all nationals in the F-1, F-2B, and F-3 categories. Additionally, nationals of India, Mexico, and the Philippines will see progression in the F-4 category. There will be no movement in the F-2A category. 

USCIS will continue to honor the Dates for Filing Chart for family-based green card applications in April (chart provided further below). However, employment-based green card applications will need to use the Final Action Dates Chart. This month, we see forward movement in the Dates for Filing for many family-based categories.  These dates are further ahead than the Final Action Dates, so beneficiaries of family-based immigrant petitions can get their applications filed and obtain interim benefits for employment and travel until the government can actually approve their application.

Employment-Based Movement 

In April, there will be forward movement in all categories, except for EB-1 China, which will remain the same. EB-1 India will move forward by two weeks and EB-1 for the rest of the world remains open. 

The EB-2 category will advance by five weeks for all nationals. For nationals of China, the priority date advances by nearly five months, and for nationals of India, it will advance by one month. 

The EB-3 category for skilled workers and professionals will advance by one month for all nationals, three months for nationals of China, and two months for nationals of India. 

Lastly, the EB-3 category for other workers, whose positions require less than two years of training, will also see forward movement by several months for all nationals.

Here’s a chart for easy reference:

Family-based Movement

In April, there will be forward movement in almost all categories, except F-2A, which will remain the same for all nationals. 

The F-1 category will advance by almost four months for all nationals. For nationals of Mexico, the priority date will advance by five weeks, and for nationals of the Philippines, it will move forward by four months and one week.

The F-2B category will advance by two months for all nationals, six months for nationals of Mexico, and three months for nationals of the Philippines. 

The F-3 category will advance by nine months for all nationals, and two months for nationals of the Philippines. Nationals of Mexico will see a seven-week advancement in priority dates. 

Lastly, in the F-4 category, nationals of India will see a nine-week advancement, nationals of Mexico will see a two-week advancement, and nationals of the Philippines will see a ten-week advancement. The final action date for all other nationals will remain the same. 

Here’s a chart for easy reference:

As mentioned previously, USCIS will honor the Dates for Filing chart (further below) for the family-based immigrant visa categories. 

By way of reminder, the categories are:

  • F-1 category:  unmarried sons and daughters of U.S. citizens

  • F2-A category: spouses and children under 21 of lawful permanent residents

  • F2-B category: unmarried adult children (over 21) of lawful permanent residents

  • F-3 category:  married sons and daughters of U.S. citizens

  • F-4 category:  siblings of U.S. citizens

WHAT DATES IN THE VISA BULLETIN SHOULD YOU USE FOR FILING YOUR ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS APPLICATION WITH USCIS?

If USCIS determines that there are more immigrant visas available for a fiscal year than there are known applicants for such visas, then USCIS will state here that you may use the Dates for Filing Visa Applications chart in the Department of State Visa Bulletin, which usually has dates later than the Final Action Dates noted above. Otherwise, USCIS will indicate on its website that you must use the Application Final Action Dates chart (above) to determine when you may file your adjustment of status application in the United States.

For April 2025, USCIS has confirmed the Dates for Filing (below) should be used for family-based categories. Employment-based categories must use the Final Action Dates (above).

If the priority date for your family-based category is before the date listed above and you are in the United States, you may file your application to adjust your status along with the applications for employment authorization and travel permission (assuming you have no bars to admissibility) with USCIS in April. 

The entire visa bulletin is available on the State Department’s website, which includes information on the diversity visa lottery and the EB-5 priority dates. 

If you would like more information on how to understand the monthly visa bulletin, please check out our blog post on this topic and our podcast available here. 

This alert is for informational purposes only.  Please contact us if you would like to discuss these developments further. 

 
Nadia Yakoob