Archive briefing

The June 2026 Bulletin, Briefed

FamilyEmploymentEverything

At a glance

June printed the fiscal year's first real retrogressions, and they landed squarely on India's employment lines: EB2 India fell retrogressed 10 months to September 1, 2013, and EB1 India retrogressed 4 months to December 15, 2022. The April bulletin's own notes had warned that retrogression later in the fiscal year could prove necessary to stay within annual limits; in June, for India's employment categories, it did. The family side never noticed: 20 of the month's 22 movements were advances, led — for the second consecutive bulletin — by F2A.

Generated from the bulletin

What moved

  1. F2A all countries · Final actionF2A, all countries, final action: advanced 5 months+5m
  2. F2B all other chargeability areas, China, and India · Final actionF2B, all other chargeability areas, China, and India, final action: advanced 4 months+4m
  3. F1 Mexico · Final actionF1, Mexico, final action: advanced 3 months+3m
  4. F4 all other chargeability areas and China · Final actionF4, all other chargeability areas and China, final action: advanced 8 weeks+2m
  5. F4 all other chargeability areas and China · Dates for filingF4, all other chargeability areas and China, dates for filing: advanced 4 months+4m
  6. F2B all other chargeability areas, China, and India · Dates for filingF2B, all other chargeability areas, China, and India, dates for filing: advanced 3 months+3m

Held on final action: F3.

June 2026 bulletin · both chartsFull June 2026 bulletin

The family picture

F2A repeated May's across-the-board step, advancing advanced 5 months in every column to January 1, 2025 (Mexico to January 1, 2024) — two uniform moves in two months, the category now advancing faster than any other family line. F2B resumed after May's pause with advanced 4 months to September 22, 2017, and F1 Mexico logged its third consecutive advance — advanced 3 months to November 8, 2007 — a streak that column hadn't produced in years. F4's all-countries and China columns added advanced 8 weeks. The rest of the board rested: F1's major columns, all of F3, and the Philippine lines that had led the spring held unchanged.

  • F2A · All Chargeability Areasadvanced 5 months · January 1, 2025
  • F2B · All Chargeability Areasadvanced 4 months · September 22, 2017
  • F1 · Mexicoadvanced 3 months · November 8, 2007
Evidence: The family pictureVerify on the bulletin →
Primary source

From the Department’s notes for June 2026

5 sections, reproduced verbatim from the U.S. Department of State’s June 2026 Visa Bulletin. The Department’s words, not ours.

C. THE DIVERSITY IMMIGRANT (DV) CATEGORY RANK CUT-OFFS WHICH WILL APPLY IN JULY

For July , immigrant numbers in the DV category are available to qualified DV-2026 applicants chargeable to all regions/eligible countries as follows. When an allocation cut-off number is shown, visas are available only for applicants with DV regional lottery rank numbers BELOW the specified allocation cut-off number:

Region

All DV Chargeability Areas Except

Those Listed Separately

AFRICA

55,000

Except: Algeria 40,000

Egypt 31,000

ASIA

35,000

Except: Nepal 13,000

EUROPE

23,000

NORTH AMERICA (BAHAMAS)

50

OCEANIA

1,700

SOUTH AMERICA,

and the CARIBBEAN

3,300

D. AVAILABILITY OF FAMILY-SPONSORED AND EMPLOYMENT-BASED VISASImmigrant visa issuance rates for aliens from certain countries have decreased in light of various actions the…

Immigrant visa issuance rates for aliens from certain countries have decreased in light of various actions the administration has taken to protect national security and public safety, and to otherwise advance the interests of the United States (e.g. Presidential Proclamation 10949 , Presidential Proclamation 10998 , Immigrant Visa Processing Updates ). Consequently, to make visas available in accordance with sections 201-203 of the INA to sufficient prospective immigrants from other countries to use immigrant visa numbers that are available in FY 2026, dates for filing and final action dates had been advanced across various immigrant visa categories in prior months. Note that as additional immigrant visa demand materializes, or administration actions are amended, retrogression may be necessary in the upcoming months to keep issuances within annual limits. Visa categories may become “Unavailable” prior to the end of the fiscal year if annual limits, category limits, or pro-rated per-country limits are reached. This situation is being continually monitored, and any necessary adjustments will be made accordingly.

E. RETROGRESSION IN THE EMPLOYMENT-BASED FIRST PREFERENCE (EB-1) AND EMPLOYMENT-BASED SECOND PREFERENCE (EB-2) FINAL ACTION DATES FOR INDIA

High demand and number use by aliens chargeable to India in the EB-1 and EB-2 visa categories haves made it necessary to retrogress the final action dates to hold number use within the FY 2026 annual limit. Further retrogressions, or making the categories “unavailable,” may be necessary in the coming months if India’s pro-rated limits in the EB-1 or EB-2 categories are reached before the fiscal year ends. This situation will be continually monitored, and any necessary adjustments will be made accordingly.

F. VISA AVAILABILITY IN THE EMPLOYMENT-BASED SECOND PREFERENCE (EB-2) CATEGORY FOR CHINA

Sufficient demand and increased number use by aliens chargeable to China in the EB-2 visa category may make it necessary to retrogress the final action date or make the category “unavailable” in the coming months to hold number use within the maximum allowed under the FY 2026 annual limit. This situation will be continually monitored, and any necessary adjustments will be made accordingly.

G. VISA AVAILABILITY IN THE EMPLOYMENT-BASED THIRD PREFERENCE (EB-3) CATEGORY FOR PHILIPPINES

Sufficient demand and increased number use by aliens chargeable to Philippines in the EB-3 visa category may make it necessary to retrogress the final action date or make the category “unavailable” in the coming months to hold number use within the maximum allowed under the FY 2026 annual limit. This situation will be continually monitored, and any necessary adjustments will be made accordingly.

H. VISA AVAILABILITY IN THE EMPLOYMENT-BASED FIFTH PREFERENCE (EB-5) UNRESERVED CATEGORY FOR INDIASufficient demand and increased number use by aliens chargeable to India in the EB-5 unreserved visa categories may…

Sufficient demand and increased number use by aliens chargeable to India in the EB-5 unreserved visa categories may make it necessary to retrogress the final action date or make the category “unavailable” in the next month to hold number use within the maximum allowed under the FY 2026 annual limit. This situation will be continually monitored, and any necessary adjustments will be made accordingly.

I. U.S. GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEE SPECIAL IMMIGRANT VISAS (SIVs)

The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2024, signed into law on December 22, 2023, may affect certain current and former employees of the U.S. Government abroad, as well as certain surviving spouses and children of deceased employees of the U.S. government abroad, applying for SIVs or adjustment of status, as described in section 101(a)(27)(D) of the INA. This does not affect certain Iraqis and Afghans applying for SQ and SI SIVs. Applicants should contact the consular section at which they filed their Form DS‑1884 for further information on the impact of that law on their case.

J. FOR THE LATEST INFORMATION ON VISA PROCESSING AT U.S. EMBASSIES AND CONSULATES, PLEASE VISIT THE BUREAU OF CONSULAR AFFAIRS WEBSITE AT TRAVEL.STATE.GOV

What happened next

June's India retrogressions were a beginning, not a correction: by September, EB1 India had slipped further to October 15, 2022, and EB2 India went from a September 2013 cutoff to Unavailable outright — no numbers authorized at all — with EB5 India joining it. The family surge, meanwhile, rolled on undisturbed: F2A traveled from January 1, 2025 in June to August 22, 2026 by September. June was the month the fiscal year's two stories — family abundance, India-EB exhaustion — first became visible on the same page.

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