Friday, February 20, 2026

March 2026 Visa Bulletin: Movement Forward and Current EB-2 Categories

The Department of State has just issued the March 2026 Visa Bulletin. This blog post analyzes this month's Visa Bulletin.

Visa Bulletin

Table A: Final Action Dates -- Applications with these priority dates or earlier may be approved for their Green Card (Immigrant Visa):

Table B: Dates for Filing – Form I-485 Applications to Adjust Status with these priority dates or earlier may be filed with USCIS:

USCIS will continue to use Table B: Dates for Filing chart for I-485 employment-based filings in March 2026. See: USCIS Visa Bulletin Dates

MU Law Analysis

The most significant surges forward are for Adjustments of Status under the Dates for Filing Chart, where EB-2 categories for All Chargeability Areas, Mexico and the Philippines are current for the first time since November 2022, and EB-2 India moved forward nearly a year to November 1, 2014.

EB-1 China and India each moved forward 1 month. EB-3 All Chargeability Areas and Mexico moved forward 3 months, and EB-3 Philippines moved forward 2 months.

Interestingly, the visa bulletin confirms that the dates for filing and final action dates advanced significantly in March 2026 as a result of the various immigration restrictions put in place by the Trump administration. The visa bulletin notes that if immigration restrictions are later eased or if visa demand increases, retrogression could be necessary later in the fiscal year. 

Monday, February 16, 2026

2026 H-1B Cap Webinar

MU will be hosting a FREE webinar on Thursday, February 19th at 2PM Eastern for our friends and clients. Please join us! 

Join us for this FREE webinar to learn more about:

  • $100K Fee latest updates
  • H-1B Cap Registration Process/Timeline
  • Weighted Lottery Rule
  • What is a Specialty Occupation?
  • Cap-gap for F-1s as well as CPT/OPT Maintenance

Please join us!

Friday, February 13, 2026

US Healthcare Industry Continues to Push for Exemptions to $100,000 H-1B Fee

In September 2025, President Trump instituted a prohibitive $100,000 fee on new H-1B visas. While lawsuits against the fee have been ongoing, the fee currently remains in effect. Hospitals, medical schools, and other healthcare companies have continued their calls for an exemption from the fee for international healthcare professionals who are essential to the US healthcare system.

In a recent article, the American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC) raised concerns about how the fee is already affecting major staffing decisions for US hospitals approaching national Match Day with graduating medical students on March 20, 2026.

AAMC reports that in a fall survey by the Greater New York Hospital Association (representing 260 hospitals across NY, NJ, CT, and RI), 25% of hospitals said they had paused, deferred, or limited recruitment of physicians requiring H1B visas. Those hospitals currently employ 1,100 H1B medical residents and 800 H1B attending physicians, highlighting the scale of potential disruption.

Importantly, AAMC emphasizes that visaholding physicians do not displace U.S. graduates; in fact, 97.8% of U.S. MD seniors matched into residency positions in 2025.

International medical graduates make up about 25% of all practicing U.S. physicians. In fiscal year 2024 alone, approximately 11,000 new H1B visas were approved for physicians, who disproportionately practice in rural and highpoverty counties and are more likely to work in primary care.

AAMC has cosigned multiple letters, joining medical organizations, institutions of higher education, and health professions education groups, in requesting that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) exempt these groups from the fee. AAMC also sent a letter to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem in December 2025, warning that the proclamation will worsen the nation’s existing workforce shortage, further strain the health care workforce, and ultimately jeopardize patient access to care.

Tuesday, February 3, 2026

FY 2027 H-1B CAP Lottery

The fiscal year 2027 (March 2026) H-1B cap registration period will open at noon ET on Wednesday, March 4, 2026 and close at noon ET on Thursday, March 19, 2026.

H-1B cap registrations are submitted electronically via USCIS’s website. H-1B cap lottery winners are then eligible to submit an H-1B petition between April 1, 2026 – June 30, 2026.

The H-1B cap lottery is open to employees filling positions requiring Bachelor’s degrees, which may include healthcare occupations such as Medical Technologists, Occupational Therapists, Physical Therapists, and even Registered Nurses.

Notable changes to this year’s H-1B cap season are:

USCIS will require a $100,000 payment for new H-1B visa applicants who are outside the US at the time of their cap case filing.

USCIS has announced that lottery selection will be weighted, with more entries for selection given to H-1B candidates with high wages.

For the latest on USCIS’s H-1B changes and to ensure your own H-1B filing strategy, please reach out to your MU attorney.

Monday, January 26, 2026

USCIS Places Hold on Benefit Applications related to Travel Ban

On January 1, 2026, USCIS issued a Policy Memorandum announcing an adjudicative hold on all pending benefit applications filed by individuals from the “high-risk countries” listed in Presidential Proclamations 10949 and 10998 (Trump's Travel Ban).

Last month, USCIS abruptly enacted the adjudicative hold, as discussed by MU in December 2025, but that hold has now been made official USCIS policy.

 

USCIS’s adjudicative hold applies to cases filed by individuals who list a country from the Travel Ban as either their country of birth or country of citizenship. USCIS does not specifically list the form types affected by the hold, nor how long the hold will be in effect.

 

Furthermore, USCIS will re-review approved benefit requests such as Green Cards for individuals from Travel Ban countries. This may include interviews or re-interviews to reassess Green Card eligibility.

 

Are there any exceptions?

 

The following case types are exempt from USCIS’s adjudicative hold:

  • Green card replacements (Form I-90);
  • Replacement naturalization/citizenship documents (Forms N-565, N-600);
  • Certain work permit categories (Form I-765);
  • Benefit requests filed by professional athletes—including coaches and relatives—for the purpose of attending the World Cup, Olympics, or other major sporting event; and
  • Case types that would serve a U.S. national interest.

If you have specific questions or concerns about this Policy Memorandum, do not hesitate to reach out to your MU attorney.

Tuesday, January 20, 2026

DOS Freezes Visa Issuance to Nationals of 75 Countries

On January 14, 2026, the Department of State announced a visa freeze for nationals of 75 countries.

The pause applies only to consular Green Card issuances. This means it does not affect temporary visas issued abroad or Changes of Status or Adjustments of Status filed within the US.

Dual nationals who have citizenship in at least one non-paused country are exempt from the pause.

 

Pursuant to its pause, effective January 21, 2026, DOS will not issue immigrant visas to applicants who are nationals of the following countries:

 

Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belize, Bhutan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Burma, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Colombia, Cote d’Ivoire, Cuba, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominica, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, The Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Haiti, Iran, Iraq, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kuwait, Kyrgyz Republic, Laos, Lebanon, Liberia, Libya, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Nepal, Nicaragua, Nigeria, North Macedonia, Pakistan, Republic of the Congo, Russia, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, and Yemen

 

DOS asserts the pause is required to ensure that immigrants from the affected countries do not become public charges in the US.

 

The DOS visa freeze is being enacted in addition to several other policies already in effect to restrict immigration, including the Travel Ban and USCIS's own Travel Ban restrictions.

 

If you are filing benefit requests as a national of one of the countries above, consult with your MU attorney to discuss your best strategies for filing.

Wednesday, January 14, 2026

February 2026 Visa Bulletin: Movement Forward for Most EB-3 Categories

The Department of State has just issued the February 2026 Visa Bulletin. This blog post analyzes this month's Visa Bulletin.

Visa Bulletin

Table A: Final Action Dates -- Applications with these priority dates or earlier may be approved for their Green Card (Immigrant Visa):

Table B: Dates for Filing – Form I-485 Applications to Adjust Status with these priority dates or earlier may be filed with USCIS:

USCIS will continue to use Table B: Dates for Filing chart for I-485 employment-based filings in February 2026. See: USCIS Visa Bulletin Date

MU Law Analysis

EB-3 All Chargeability, EB-3 Mexico, and EB-3 Philippines are the only categories to progress forward in February 2026, with forward movement of 5.5 weeks.

All remaining categories stayed steady and made no progress.

Thursday, January 8, 2026

WEBINAR: H-1B Visa Updates

MU will be hosting a FREE webinar on Tuesday, January 13th at 2PM Eastern for our friends and clients.  Please join us! 


Join us for this FREE webinar to learn more about:

  • H-1B $100k Payment Litigation Updates
  • H-1B Cap Weighted Lottery
Please join us!

Tuesday, January 6, 2026

DHS Issues Final Rule for Weighted Selection of the Highest Wages in H-1B Cap

On December 29, 2025, DHS published a Final Rule in the Federal Register, amending the way in which USCIS will select candidates in the H-1B Cap Lottery.  

Instead of the existing random lottery system, USCIS will implement a weighted selection process that prioritizes allocating H-1B visas to higher-skilled and higher-paid workers according to their Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) wage levels.

Each worker’s OEWS wage level, which ranges from Levels I to IV, will determine how many registration entries that candidate will receive. Higher wage levels receive more entries—four for Level IV, three for Level III, two for Level II, and one for Level I—resulting in higher-paid positions having greater odds of selection while still allowing all wage levels to participate.

Although DHS received nearly 17,000 public comments on its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPR), issued back in September 2025, DHS published this Final Rule without any modifications. DHS notes that some commenters suggested that DHS should consider an exemption for healthcare occupations, especially in rural or shortage areas. However, DHS declined to carve out exemptions for certain industries or give additional weight for registrations in “critical sectors.”

The Final Rule is effective February 27, 2026, and will be in place for the H-1B Cap Registration Season for the 2027 Fiscal Year.