EB-1 — China (mainland-born)
In the July 2026 Visa Bulletin, EB-1 for China (mainland-born) has a Final Action Dates cut-off of 1 June 2023 and a Dates for Filing cut-off of 1 December 2023. The Final Action cut-off has been advancing, so the page shows its measured pace and what that pace would imply for a given priority date — as an estimate, never a prediction. This page carries the full published history State printed for this combination: 254 Final Action Dates bulletins back to January 2005, and 130 Dates for Filing bulletins back to October 2015 — every cut-off, every month it moved, and the exact text State printed in each cell. It reports what was published; it is not legal advice.
Source bulletin July 2026 U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs — Visa Bulletin. A work of the U.S. Government, in the public domain (17 U.S.C. §105). Every figure below is the one State printed, kept with its exact source text.
The July 2026 cut-offs
State publishes two charts for EB-1, and they are not interchangeable. Both are shown here as printed. China (mainland-born) has its own column because demand from applicants chargeable there exceeds the per-country limit, so its cut-offs are usually further behind than the "all other countries" column.
- Final Action Dates
1 June 2023
When a visa can actually be issued. From the July 2026 bulletin · State printed this cell as 01JUN23
- Dates for Filing
1 December 2023
When the application may be submitted. From the July 2026 bulletin · State printed this cell as 01DEC23
This is not legal advice This page republishes cut-off dates exactly as the State Department published them. It cannot tell you what will happen to your case, and being current in a chart is not the same as a visa being issued. Cut-off dates routinely stall, and they can move backward without warning. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed immigration attorney.
Final Action Dates
The chart that decides whether a visa can be issued. State has published a Final Action Dates figure for EB-1 / China (mainland-born) in 254 bulletins since January 2005.
Final Action Dates: when would a priority date be reached?
The cut-off to compare against The Final Action Dates cut-off in the July 2026 bulletin is 1 June 2023. A priority date earlier than that has been reached.
Enter a priority date to compare it against the July 2026 cut-off of 1 June 2023.
Any estimate here is an estimate Estimate only. It projects the cut-off forward at its average pace over the trailing published bulletins and assumes that pace holds. It is not a prediction and not a guarantee: cut-off dates routinely stall, and they can move BACKWARD (retrogress) without warning. Not legal advice.
How fast has this cut-off actually moved?
| Window | Bulletins used | Total movement | Average per month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Last 3 bulletins April 2026 – July 2026 | 3 of 3 carried a measurable move | 61 days forward | about 20.3 days forward |
| Last 6 bulletins January 2026 – July 2026 | 6 of 6 carried a measurable move | 120 days forward | about 20 days forward |
| Last 12 bulletins July 2025 – July 2026 | 12 of 12 carried a measurable move | 198 days forward | about 16.5 days forward |
This table describes what already happened; it is not a forecast and it is not what any estimate on this page is computed from. A pace can be zero, or negative when the cut-off has been moving backward, and some windows have nothing measurable in them at all — a category that spent the window Current or Unavailable has no distance to average. A category State has stopped moving can also keep showing a pace from a window that closed years ago, which describes that window and nothing since.
Every published cut-off is on the line above; the table below lists every month it moved.
- Published cut-off date
- Retrogression — the cut-off moved backward (2)
- C — Current: no backlog. Not a date, so it is not on the line
- U — Unavailable: no visas issued. Not a date either
- No bulletin in the public record — the line stops rather than crossing it
| Bulletin | From | To | What changed |
|---|---|---|---|
| July 2026 | 1 April 2023 | 1 June 2023 | Advanced61 days |
| April 2026 | 1 March 2023 | 1 April 2023 | Advanced31 days |
| March 2026 | 1 February 2023 | 1 March 2023 | Advanced28 days |
| January 2026 | 22 January 2023 | 1 February 2023 | Advanced10 days |
| December 2025 | 22 December 2022 | 22 January 2023 | Advanced31 days |
| October 2025 | 15 November 2022 | 22 December 2022 | Advanced37 days |
| July 2025 | 8 November 2022 | 15 November 2022 | Advanced7 days |
| October 2024 | 1 November 2022 | 8 November 2022 | Advanced7 days |
| July 2024 | 1 September 2022 | 1 November 2022 | Advanced61 days |
| April 2024 | 15 July 2022 | 1 September 2022 | Advanced48 days |
| March 2024 | 1 July 2022 | 15 July 2022 | Advanced14 days |
| January 2024 | 15 February 2022 | 1 July 2022 | Advanced136 days |
| October 2023 | 1 February 2022 | 15 February 2022 | Advanced14 days |
| January 2023 | Current | 1 February 2022 | Retrogressed from Current |
| April 2021 | 1 August 2020 | Current | Became Current |
| March 2021 | 1 January 2020 | 1 August 2020 | Advanced213 days |
| February 2021 | 1 September 2019 | 1 January 2020 | Advanced122 days |
| January 2021 | 1 April 2019 | 1 September 2019 | Advanced153 days |
| December 2020 | 1 December 2018 | 1 April 2019 | Advanced121 days |
| November 2020 | 1 June 2018 | 1 December 2018 | Advanced183 days |
| October 2020 | 1 March 2018 | 1 June 2018 | Advanced92 days |
| September 2020 | 8 February 2018 | 1 March 2018 | Advanced21 days |
| August 2020 | 22 August 2017 | 8 February 2018 | Advanced170 days |
| July 2020 | 15 August 2017 | 22 August 2017 | Advanced7 days |
Show the earlier 34 changes — back to January 2005
| Bulletin | From | To | What changed |
|---|---|---|---|
| June 2020 | 15 July 2017 | 15 August 2017 | Advanced31 days |
| May 2020 | 8 June 2017 | 15 July 2017 | Advanced37 days |
| April 2020 | 1 June 2017 | 8 June 2017 | Advanced7 days |
| March 2020 | 22 May 2017 | 1 June 2017 | Advanced10 days |
| January 2020 | 15 May 2017 | 22 May 2017 | Advanced7 days |
| December 2019 | 1 February 2017 | 15 May 2017 | Advanced103 days |
| November 2019 | 1 November 2016 | 1 February 2017 | Advanced92 days |
| October 2019 | 1 January 2014 | 1 November 2016 | Advanced1,035 days |
| September 2019 | 1 July 2016 | 1 January 2014 | Retrogressed912 days |
| August 2019 | 8 May 2017 | 1 July 2016 | Retrogressed311 days |
| July 2019 | 22 February 2017 | 8 May 2017 | Advanced75 days |
| March 2019 | 8 February 2017 | 22 February 2017 | Advanced14 days |
| February 2019 | 15 December 2016 | 8 February 2017 | Advanced55 days |
| January 2019 | 1 September 2016 | 15 December 2016 | Advanced105 days |
| December 2018 | 1 June 2016 | 1 September 2016 | Advanced92 days |
| October 2018 | 1 January 2012 | 1 June 2016 | Advanced1,613 days |
| April 2018 | Current | 1 January 2012 | Retrogressed from Current |
| October 2017 | 1 January 2012 | Current | Became Current |
| June 2017 | Current | 1 January 2012 | Retrogressed from Current |
| October 2016 | 1 January 2010 | Current | Became Current |
| August 2016 | Current | 1 January 2010 | Retrogressed from Current |
| October 2007 | 1 January 2007 | Current | Became Current |
| September 2007 | Unavailable | 1 January 2007 | Became available again |
| August 2007 | Current | Unavailable | Current to Unavailable |
| July 2006 | 1 July 2005 | Current | Became Current |
| June 2006 | 1 July 2004 | 1 July 2005 | Advanced365 days |
| May 2006 | 1 January 2004 | 1 July 2004 | Advanced182 days |
| April 2006 | 1 July 2003 | 1 January 2004 | Advanced184 days |
| March 2006 | 1 January 2003 | 1 July 2003 | Advanced181 days |
| February 2006 | 1 January 2002 | 1 January 2003 | Advanced365 days |
| January 2006 | 1 July 2001 | 1 January 2002 | Advanced184 days |
| December 2005 | 1 January 2000 | 1 July 2001 | Advanced547 days |
| October 2005 | Current | 1 January 2000 | Retrogressed from Current |
| January 2005 | not published | Current | First published |
Dates for Filing
The chart that decides when an application may be submitted — usually the more optimistic of the two. It did not exist before October 2015, so its history is shorter by design, not by omission: 130 bulletins since October 2015.
Dates for Filing: when would a priority date be reached?
The cut-off to compare against The Dates for Filing cut-off in the July 2026 bulletin is 1 December 2023. A priority date earlier than that has been reached.
Enter a priority date to compare it against the July 2026 cut-off of 1 December 2023.
Any estimate here is an estimate Estimate only. It projects the cut-off forward at its average pace over the trailing published bulletins and assumes that pace holds. It is not a prediction and not a guarantee: cut-off dates routinely stall, and they can move BACKWARD (retrogress) without warning. Not legal advice.
How fast has this cut-off actually moved?
| Window | Bulletins used | Total movement | Average per month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Last 3 bulletins April 2026 – July 2026 | 3 of 3 carried a measurable move | 0 days | about 0 days |
| Last 6 bulletins January 2026 – July 2026 | 6 of 6 carried a measurable move | 122 days forward | about 20.3 days forward |
| Last 12 bulletins July 2025 – July 2026 | 12 of 12 carried a measurable move | 334 days forward | about 27.8 days forward |
This table describes what already happened; it is not a forecast and it is not what any estimate on this page is computed from. A pace can be zero, or negative when the cut-off has been moving backward, and some windows have nothing measurable in them at all — a category that spent the window Current or Unavailable has no distance to average. A category State has stopped moving can also keep showing a pace from a window that closed years ago, which describes that window and nothing since.
Every published cut-off is on the line above; the table below lists every month it moved.
- Published cut-off date
- Retrogression — the cut-off moved backward (1)
- C — Current: no backlog. Not a date, so it is not on the line
| Bulletin | From | To | What changed |
|---|---|---|---|
| March 2026 | 1 August 2023 | 1 December 2023 | Advanced122 days |
| January 2026 | 15 May 2023 | 1 August 2023 | Advanced78 days |
| October 2025 | 1 January 2023 | 15 May 2023 | Advanced134 days |
| January 2024 | 1 August 2022 | 1 January 2023 | Advanced153 days |
| October 2023 | 1 June 2022 | 1 August 2022 | Advanced61 days |
| January 2023 | Current | 1 June 2022 | Retrogressed from Current |
| March 2021 | 1 November 2020 | Current | Became Current |
| December 2020 | 1 September 2020 | 1 November 2020 | Advanced61 days |
| October 2020 | 1 July 2018 | 1 September 2020 | Advanced793 days |
| August 2020 | 1 November 2017 | 1 July 2018 | Advanced242 days |
| July 2020 | 1 October 2017 | 1 November 2017 | Advanced31 days |
| January 2020 | 1 September 2017 | 1 October 2017 | Advanced30 days |
| October 2019 | 1 October 2017 | 1 September 2017 | Retrogressed30 days |
| October 2018 | Current | 1 October 2017 | Retrogressed from Current |
| October 2015 | not published | Current | First published |
How to read this page
What a priority date is
A priority date is the date that fixes your place in the queue for an immigrant visa number. For most family-sponsored categories it is the date the petition was filed; for employment-based categories that require labour certification, it is the date that certification was filed. It is printed on the I-797 receipt or approval notice. Your priority date does not move — the cut-off moves toward it.
Congress caps how many immigrant visas may be issued each year, both in total per category and per country of chargeability. When more people want a category than the cap allows, a queue forms, and State publishes a cut-off date each month: the priority date it has reached. If your priority date is earlier than the cut-off, your turn has come in that chart.
Why China (mainland-born) has its own column
Chargeability is normally your country of birth — not your citizenship or where you live. State gives China (mainland-born) its own column because demand from applicants chargeable there exceeds the per-country limit, so its queue is tracked separately and its cut-offs are usually further behind than the "all other countries" column. Applicants from countries without their own column are all counted together in that column instead.
The two charts are not interchangeable
Final Action Dates is when a visa can actually be issued or a green card approved. Dates for Filing is when the application may be submitted; it is usually the earlier and more optimistic of the two, and being past it does not mean a visa can be issued. Which chart U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will accept for adjustment-of-status filings is announced by USCIS each month and is not decided by State or by this site. The Dates for Filing chart was introduced in October 2015 and does not exist for any earlier bulletin.
What Current and Unavailable mean
Current (printed C) means there is no backlog at all: every priority date in the category is being acted on. Unavailable (printed U) means no visas are being issued in the category at all that month — usually because the annual limit has been reached. Neither is a date, and neither can be compared to one, so this site never plots them on a date axis and never projects from them.
Retrogression: the cut-off can move backward
A cut-off is not a promise and does not only move forward. When more people apply than the annual limit allows — often after a period of rapid advancement draws in filings — State pulls the cut-off back to an earlier date. This is called retrogression, and it can undo years of progress in a single bulletin. It has happened 359 times across the whole published record this site holds. The largest on record is F3 for Mexico in August 2006, which moved back 12.79 years in one month. Retrogressions on this page are marked on the chart with a ▼ mark and listed in the movement tables with a ↓ glyph — never by colour alone.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the EB-1 priority date cut-off for China (mainland-born) in the July 2026 Visa Bulletin?
- The Final Action Dates cut-off is 1 June 2023 and the Dates for Filing cut-off is 1 December 2023. State printed those cells as "01JUN23" and "01DEC23". A priority date earlier than 1 June 2023 has been reached in the Final Action chart.
- What is the difference between Final Action Dates and Dates for Filing for EB-1?
- They answer different questions and they are not interchangeable. Final Action Dates is when a visa can actually be issued or a green card approved. Dates for Filing is when the application may be submitted — it is usually the earlier and more optimistic of the two, and being past it does not mean a visa can be issued. For EB-1 and China (mainland-born) in the July 2026 bulletin they read 1 June 2023 and 1 December 2023 respectively. Which chart U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services accepts for adjustment-of-status filings is announced by USCIS each month and is not decided by this site. The Dates for Filing chart did not exist before October 2015.
- What is a priority date?
- A priority date is the date that fixes your place in the queue for a visa number. For most family-sponsored and employment-based categories it is the date the petition was filed with the government (for employment categories requiring labour certification, it is the date that certification was filed). It is printed on the I-797 receipt or approval notice. The Visa Bulletin publishes a cut-off date each month for each category and country of chargeability; if your priority date is earlier than the cut-off, your turn has come in that chart. Your priority date never changes on its own — the cut-off moves toward it.
- Has the EB-1 cut-off for China (mainland-born) ever moved backward?
- Yes. Moving backward is called retrogression, and it happens when more people apply in a category than the annual limit allows, forcing State to pull the cut-off back to an earlier date. This combination has retrogressed 11 times in the published record — 8 in the Final Action Dates chart and 3 in the Dates for Filing chart. The largest was in September 2019, when the Final Action cut-off moved back from 1 July 2016 to 1 January 2014 — 912 days, or about 2.5 years, in a single bulletin.
- When will a priority date in EB-1 become current for China (mainland-born)?
- Nobody can tell you that, and this site does not claim to. What can be measured is the pace: over the trailing published bulletins the Final Action Dates cut-off has advanced by an average of about 16.5 days per bulletin. The tool on this page projects the published cut-off of 1 June 2023 forward at that pace to estimate which bulletin would reach a given priority date. That is an estimate and assumes the pace holds. It is not a prediction and not a guarantee: cut-off dates routinely stall, and they can move backward without warning. This is not legal advice.
- Where does this EB-1 history come from, and how far back does it go?
- Every figure is the one the U.S. Department of State printed in its monthly Visa Bulletin, kept alongside the exact cell text it came from. This page carries 254 Final Action Dates bulletins back to January 2005 and 130 Dates for Filing bulletins back to October 2015. The Visa Bulletin is a work of the U.S. Government and is in the public domain (17 U.S.C. section 105). 5 months are absent from the public record in that span (March 2009, September 2009, October 2009, November 2009, October 2012); they are shown as a break in the chart and are never filled in from a neighbouring month.
Source and method
Every figure on this page is read from the U.S. Department of State's monthly Visa Bulletin — the July 2026 edition for the current cut-offs, and each bulletin's own edition for the history. The Visa Bulletin is a work of the U.S. Government prepared by federal employees in the course of their duties, and is therefore in the public domain under 17 U.S.C. §105. This site is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to the U.S. Department of State or any government agency.
This page carries 384 published cut-off cells for EB-1 / China (mainland-born) and 73 recorded changes across both charts. Each cell is stored with the exact text State printed for it (the 01JUN23 shown above is the source's own), so every figure here is traceable back to the bulletin it came from.
5 months in the December 2001 to July 2026 span are absent from the public record — March 2009, September 2009, October 2009, November 2009, October 2012. They are recorded as gaps and shown as breaks in the charts above, never filled in from a neighbouring month.
Data version visa-bulletin-derived-v1 · 291 bulletins, December 2001 to July 2026 · Next monthly bulletin. The State Department publishes one bulletin per month, typically mid-month for the following month; past bulletins are immutable once published.