The Visa Bulletin is the Department of State's monthly guide to immigrant visa-number availability. In a family preference case, it helps you compare your priority date with the category and country limits that affect when you can move forward.
That comparison can explain why an approved family petition still involves a wait. To use it, you need the right row, country column, and chart for your next step. The bulletin does not predict the date USCIS will decide your petition or your family member will receive a Green Card.
Which family cases use the Visa Bulletin?
Family preference categories have annual numerical limits. When demand exceeds the available numbers, the bulletin shows cutoff dates that determine which priority dates can be reached. These limits apply to visa availability across consular processing and adjustment of status, rather than just to applications at one USCIS office.
Immediate relatives of U.S. citizens have a different rule. They include spouses, unmarried children under 21 as defined by immigration law, and parents of citizens who are at least 21. They are outside the family preference quotas, so they do not wait for a preference cutoff. Petition review and the remaining residence requirements still take time.
The distinction between family preference and immediate relative categories matters more than the broad label family immigration. For example, a permanent resident's spouse is in F2A, while a citizen's spouse is an immediate relative.
There is no single annual cap covering every Green Card. The law sets a minimum of 226,000 family preference numbers and an employment-based starting level of 140,000, with statutory adjustments. Immediate relatives are outside those preference totals. Category allocations and per-country rules then affect how the limited numbers are distributed.
Match your case to the right row and column
Start with the classification and priority date in your case records. A family case generally uses the date USCIS received the properly filed petition as its priority date. Approval does not start a new place in line, and the bulletin does not give you an exact numbered position among applicants.
For a family preference case, find the row that matches the relationship and the petitioner's status. The main family rows are:
- F1: unmarried sons and daughters, 21 or older, of U.S. citizens
- F2A: spouses and unmarried children under 21 of lawful permanent residents
- F2B: unmarried sons and daughters, 21 or older, of lawful permanent residents
- F3: married sons and daughters of U.S. citizens
- F4: brothers and sisters of U.S. citizens who are at least 21
F2 is divided into F2A and F2B, which have different rows. Here, F1 names a family preference, not a student visa. Age-protection rules under the Child Status Protection Act can affect a child's classification, so a birthday alone may not settle which row applies.
Next, identify the country of chargeability. This usually follows the beneficiary's country of birth, rather than citizenship or current residence. Exceptions can sometimes allow a spouse's or parent's country to be used. If your country is not separately listed, use the column for all chargeability areas except those listed.
Per-country limits help explain why columns differ. The general 7% limit concerns the combined family-sponsored and employment-based preference numbers, subject to exceptions; it is not a separate 7% ceiling on every category. F2A also has a partial exemption from per-country limits, while retaining its overall numerical limit. That does not make F2A a guaranteed fastest route.
Choose the chart for the step you are taking
Open the Department of State's Visa Bulletin page for the applicable month and its archive. Check the month printed on the bulletin itself. An advance bulletin or an old search result can show a different month from the one you need.
Final Action Dates
Final Action Dates concern visa-number availability for a final decision. In a preference case with a listed cutoff, the priority date must be earlier than that cutoff for a number to be available under the chart. Meeting that comparison does not establish the person's remaining eligibility or guarantee approval.
Dates for Filing
Dates for Filing identify when applicants can begin the specified application or document-submission stage. For consular cases, follow the National Visa Center's notification and instructions about assembling and submitting documents. Reaching a filing date does not mean an immigrant visa can already be issued.
For adjustment of status in the United States, check which Visa Bulletin chart USCIS permits for adjustment filings that month. USCIS determines whether applicants may use Dates for Filing instead of Final Action Dates. Do not choose the more favorable chart yourself or assume last month's choice continues.
Once the chart permits filing, the applicant must still meet the separate requirements for filing Form I-485. Presence in the United States and a favorable cutoff alone do not establish eligibility to adjust status.
Compare your priority date with the entry
Read across your category row to the correct country column in the applicable chart. The cell may contain a date or a letter. Its meaning depends on the chart's purpose:
If columns extend beyond the view, swipe the table horizontally or focus it and use the arrow keys.
| Entry | How to read it |
|---|---|
| A date | Your priority date must be strictly earlier than the listed date. A priority date on the cutoff itself is not earlier. |
| C | The category and column are current for that chart. There is no priority-date cutoff for its stated purpose; the other requirements still apply. |
| U | Numbers are unavailable for issuance. This does not mean that your petition was denied. |
Read the notes beneath the chart too, especially any category-specific allocation rule. A current filing chart and a dated final-action chart can appear together. In that situation, an allowed filing or document submission comes before final visa-number availability.
When the dates move backward
A cutoff can advance, remain unchanged, or move backward. A backward movement is called retrogression: a priority date reached previously may fall outside the new cutoff. The change reflects visa-number allocation and demand, rather than a new priority date assigned to your individual petition.
Keep a record of the bulletin month, chart, category, country column, and entry you checked. Review the applicable update before taking action. A month of forward movement does not establish a rate you can multiply to predict when your own date will be reached.
If numbers become unavailable before a final decision, the case may have to wait for availability again. Continue following case-specific notices and document requests during that wait. A favorable chart never replaces an agency's instructions about your application.
Keep visa availability separate from processing time
The petition decision has its own timeline. The official USCIS processing-times tool for the relevant form and office addresses that question. Understanding I-130 processing time helps you distinguish a pending petition from a separate wait for a visa number.
After petition approval, a consular case also involves document review and interview scheduling. The consular processing timeline separates those stages. Documentary completion, a current cutoff, and an interview appointment are different milestones; none gives a universal date for receiving the physical Green Card.
Questions that come up when reading the charts
Does current mean my Green Card is approved?
No. Current describes visa-number availability for the category and country under that chart. The relevant chart must support the step being taken, and the applicant must still satisfy the remaining application and eligibility requirements. A C in Dates for Filing is not final approval.
Is my priority date the date my I-130 was approved?
No. For a family petition, the priority date generally comes from the date USCIS received the properly filed petition. The approval date records a different event. Use the case's priority date when comparing it with the bulletin.
Does a new citizenship change my country column?
A change in the beneficiary's citizenship does not by itself change chargeability, which usually follows country of birth. Specific exceptions may permit another country to be used, including certain spouse or parent situations. The applicable exception must be checked before using a different column.
Uncertainty about a category, a child's age, or chargeability can change the reading before you ever compare dates. Our family immigration attorneys can review how those facts affect a family petition and its next stage.
Contact our team with the priority date, category, and bulletin month you are comparing so we can help clarify what that reading allows you to do next.
