What Changed for Your Case in October 2026

October at a glance

The new fiscal year started on October 1, and with it came a new Visa Bulletin, a change in which chart USCIS accepts for green card filings, a major fee proposal for international students, a stricter rule for one kind of deadline, and two sets of fee changes. Not every item touches every case, so the table sorts them by situation.

If you are filing for or waiting on a green card

A wider window to file

For several months, USCIS required employment-based applicants to wait for the Final Action Dates chart, meaning an I-485 could not be filed until the green card could actually be approved. For October 2026, USCIS has said on its adjustment filing charts page that employment-based applicants must use the Dates for Filing chart instead. That opens filing for EB-2 applicants from most of the world with a priority date before March 15, 2026, EB-1 applicants born in China or India with a date before July 1, 2024, and EB-2 India applicants with a date before January 15, 2015. A pending I-485 lets an applicant request work and travel authorization while waiting. USCIS sets the chart month by month, so the window may not last.

A new cutoff for most EB-2 applicants

The October 2026 Visa Bulletin moved EB-2 for all countries other than China and India from Current to a January 1, 2025 final action date, which covers national interest waiver cases. EB-2 India returned from Unavailable at November 1, 2013, and EB-1 India advanced to February 1, 2023, while EB-1 stayed Current for most of the world. The October Visa Bulletin analysis has every date and what each means for planning.

The I-485 rules that apply to anyone filing now

Anyone using the new filing window files under two changes that took effect September 18: a new edition of Form I-485, with older editions rejected, and a broader public charge test that weighs the totality of an applicant’s circumstances, set out in the USCIS Policy Manual. Self-petitioners in particular should assemble financial evidence before filing, which the public charge analysis covers.

If you are an international student

On October 8, DHS proposed charging schools $70,000 for each first OPT recommendation and $30,000 for any later one, including the STEM extension. It is a proposal, not law, with comments due November 9, and it would apply only to recommendations dated after a final rule takes effect. The practical risk for students is whether schools keep recommending OPT at all. The OPT fee analysis covers the details and the work routes that do not depend on OPT.

If you are filing before a child turns 21

USCIS policy alert PA-2026-15 changes how one kind of deadline works, effective for paper filings received on or after October 23, 2026. Since 2023, if a deadline tied to a birthday, such as filing before a child’s 21st birthday, fell on a weekend or federal holiday, USCIS accepted a filing on the next business day. That grace ends on October 23, after which a birthday-based deadline means the birthday itself. Deadlines counted in days, including responses to requests for evidence, are unchanged and still roll to the next business day. Families with a child near 21 should file well ahead of the birthday rather than counting on a weekend extension.

If you are deciding what to file

Two data points from recent weeks are worth having in hand before choosing a category. USCIS approved 32.2% of EB-1A petitions and 55.3% of national interest waivers in the third quarter of FY2026, while every employer-backed I-140 category cleared 93% or better, according to its published data; the approval odds ranking lays out every category. And standard processing has stretched to roughly 31 months for EB-1A, 29 for NIW, and 14 for O-1 petitions, as tracked on the processing times page, which will be refreshed in mid-October.

Fee changes

EB-5 investors

The EB-5 fee final rule takes effect November 30, 2026, and any filing postmarked on or after that date must carry the new fees. Among the changes, the integrity fees rise 10%, with the I-526E integrity fee moving from $1,000 to $1,100 and the regional center integrity fee from $10,000 to $11,000. Investors with a filing ready should consider submitting before November 30.

Asylum, parole, and TPS applicants

The annual inflation adjustment to the H.R. 1 fees takes effect October 16, 2026. Most of the changes are small, for example the initial asylum, parole, and TPS work permit fees rise from $560 to $570, and filings postmarked on or after October 16 without the correct fee will be rejected.