Visa Retrogression in 2026 and What It Means for Green Cards

Visa retrogression occurs when the Department of State moves a Visa Bulletin cut-off date backward because projected demand exceeds the immigrant visa numbers available under applicable annual and per-country limits.

An applicant who was current in one month can therefore become subject to a cut-off date the next month.

October 2026 is the first Visa Bulletin of fiscal year 2027, but the start of a new fiscal year did not produce forward movement in every employment-based category.

DOS explained that some Rest of World employment categories retrogressed even as new FY2027 immigrant visa numbers became available.

EB-3 retrogression generally occurs when visa demand at particular priority dates exceeds the numbers DOS can make available under the applicable statutory limits.

The analysis also depends on whether the applicant falls within the skilled worker or professional classification or the separate Other Workers allocation.

The effect depends heavily on whether Form I-485 has already been filed.

Retrogression can prevent a new filing under the applicable chart, delay final approval, or leave an already pending adjustment application waiting for visa availability to return.

There is no fixed date when visa retrogression ends.

Cut-off dates can advance, stay unchanged, or move backward as DOS evaluates demand and available visa numbers.

Does visa retrogression mean my green card application was denied?

No. Retrogression concerns visa-number availability. A properly pending Form I-485 may remain pending until a visa number becomes available again if the application remains otherwise eligible.

Can I keep working while my I-485 is pending during retrogression?

A pending Form I-485 does not itself authorize employment. The applicant needs a valid basis for working, such as an unexpired adjustment-based EAD or employment authorization available through an eligible nonimmigrant classification.

Can I change jobs while my employment-based green card case is retrogressed?

Certain employment-based adjustment applicants may use INA §204(j) portability when Form I-485 has been pending for at least 180 days, the underlying petition satisfies the applicable requirements, and the new job is in the same or a similar occupational classification.

Eligible applicants generally request portability by submitting Form I-485 Supplement J to confirm a qualifying new, full-time, permanent job offer in the same or a similar occupational classification.

The ordinary job-offer portability rule does not apply in the same way to self-petitioned EB-1A extraordinary-ability cases or EB-2 national-interest-waiver cases. Those classifications do not depend on the same continuing job offer and generally do not use Supplement J for §204(j) portability.

Portability should also be distinguished from transferring the underlying basis of a pending adjustment application. A pending Form I-485 does not itself provide employment authorization.

Retrogression can affect applicants differently depending on EB classification, country of chargeability, priority date, Form I-485 status, employment authorization, and job changes.

Review may be useful when a priority date falls behind a new cut-off, USCIS changes the chart available for filing, a pending adjustment application cannot be finally approved, or the applicant is considering changing employers or immigrant categories.

Relevant documents can include the current Visa Bulletin, I-140 approval or receipt information, priority-date evidence, I-485 notices, employment records, and current immigration and work-authorization documents.