October 2025 Visa Bulletin – First Bulletin for the Fiscal Year; Significant Forward Movement and I-485 Filing Opportunities to Many

The U.S. State Department has released the October 2025 Visa Bulletin which is the first Visa Bulletin for the new fiscal year which starts on October 1.  The headline in this month’s Visa Bulletin is meaningful forward movement across EB-1, EB-2, and EB-3 categories; India and China, two highly-backlogged countries, specifically see advances of several months, offering long-delayed relief and opportunity for I-485 submissions for many applicants.    Also, there is a limited opportunities for EB-2 to EB-3 downgrades for India and China applicants.

Which Employment-based Applicants Are Eligible to File I-485 in October 2025?

By using the Dates for Filing chart, USCIS will allow the following applicants to file I-485 in the month of October 2025.   The “advancement” noted below is related to the I-485 filing eligibility from the prior month.

Worldwide (ROW)

• EB-1 ROW any priority date (approved or pending I-140);
• EB-2 ROW with PD before July 14, 2025 (10 months advancement);
• EB-3 ROW with PD before July 1, 2023 (3 months advancement).

India

• EB-1 India with priority date (PD) (approved or pending I-140) before April 15, 2023 (advancement by 14 months);
• EB-2 India with PD before December 1, 2013 (advancement by 11 months);
• EB-3 India with PD before August 15, 2014 (advancement by 15 months).

China

• EB-1 China with priority date (PD) (approved or pending I-140) before May 15, 2023 (advancement by 6 months);
• EB-2 China with PD before December 1, 2021 (advancement by 1 year);
• EB-3 China with PD before January 1, 2022 (advancement by 13 months).

EB-2 to EB-3 India and China Downgrade Opportunities 

October 2025 also brings a rare opportunity to certain EB-2 India and China applicants to downgrade their preference category to EB-3 and file I-485s.   The following candidates may benefit from EB-3 downgrade:

• EB-2 India applicants with a priority date of December 1, 2013 until August 15, 2014; and
• EB-3 China applicants with a priority date of December 1, 2021 until January 1, 2022.

Applicants without pending I-485 who have a priority date noted above may benefit from EB-3 downgrade with a concurrent I-485 filing.  Please contact us for analysis and a flat fee quote for the process.  See our alert on the mechanics and benefits of downgrading EB-2 to EB-3.

Summary of the October 2025 Visa Bulletin – Employment-Based (EB)

Please note that USCIS will determine and publish, about a week after this Visa Bulletin is published, whether or not to accept I-485 filings on the basis of these filing dates.

Summary of the October 2025 Visa Bulletin – Family-Based (FB)

USCIS will determine and publish separately, a few days after this Visa Bulletin is published, whether or not to accept I-485 filings on the basis of these filing dates.

Current Date?

Our office stands ready to assist in the applicable process.  There are many applicants across many of the employment and family categories who can now process their (and their family members’) I-485 Adjustment of Status applications from within the U.S. or process their immigrant visa at a U.S. Consulate abroad.

Please do not hesitate to contact us if our office can help you take advantage of this (very time-sensitive for some) opportunity to file I-485 applications. We are also happy to provide a free quote for preparing and filing your I-485 application.

Confused About the Visa Bulletin? We understand that the Visa Bulletin, with its the multiple publications, categories and conditions may be confusing – we invite you to review our Visa Bulletin Explained article for our attempt in helping applicants understand the Visa Bulletin and know what to look for (and when).

Further Updates and News

We invite you to subscribe to our free weekly immigration newsletter to receive timely updates on this and related topics. We also invite you to contact us if our office can be of any assistance in your immigration matters or you have any questions or comments about this month’s Visa Bulletin.