August 2025 Visa Bulletin: Slight Movement Forward for EB-3 India, Slight Retrogression for Others

The Department of State has just issued the August 2025 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 (Permanent Residency card) or Immigrant Visa appointment:

Table B: Dates for Filing

USCIS will continue to use the Table A Final Action Dates chart for I-485 employment-based filings in August 2025. See: USCIS Visa Bulletin Dates

MU Law Analysis

EB-3 India was the only category to progress forward in August 2025, with forward movement of 1 month.  

EB-2 All Other, EB-2 Mexico, and EB-2 Philippines all retrogressed 6 weeks.  

All remaining categories stayed steady and made no progress.

As August is the penultimate month of the fiscal year, slight retrogression is typical and not a cause for concern. September 2025’s visa bulletin is unlikely to make progress forward and may slow or even retrogress again before the start of the fiscal year in October.

Webinar: Immigration Updates for the Healthcare Industry

MU will be hosting a FREE webinar on Thursday, July 10 at 3PM Eastern for our friends and clients.  Please join us! 

IMMIGRATION UPDATES AND THE STATE OF THE HEALTHCARE INDUSTRY

Join us for an information-packed webinar designed for HR leaders, immigration professionals, and staffing companies navigating today’s complex immigration landscape.

In just half an hour, we’ll deliver critical updates and actionable strategies on:

• 🚦 Green Card Processing Timelines & Prevailing Wage Determinations – how to stay ahead and avoid any delays in filing
• 📈 RFE Rates & Trends under the Trump Administration – and how to minimize your risk
• 💸 "Ability to Pay" Challenges – especially for staffing firms during retrogression, with proven solutions
• 👩‍⚕️ H-1B Options for Registered Nurses – what you need to know now
• 📰 Policy Shifts & Breaking News from Washington – decoded and explained
• 🏛️ Legislative Outlook – what’s coming and how it could impact your workforce strategy

Reserve your spot today!

E-Verify Launches New Report on Revoked EADs

On June 20, 2025, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) launched a new report to allow employers to identify E-Verify cases with Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) that have been revoked.

EADs allow employees to work in a broad range of occupations and industries, including healthcare, IT, and engineering.

 

EAD Revocations by DHS

 

DHS may terminate parole and revoke aliens’ EADs at any time. Employees with revoked EADs may still possess an EAD that appears valid, although their employment authorization has been revoked.

 

In late May 2025, DHS was permitted to terminate parole for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans (CHNV).

 

What Employers Need to Know

E-Verify will no longer provide case alerts for EADs that have been revoked. Instead, employers should generate the Status Change Report upon logging in to E-Verify.

The new Status Change Report allows E-Verify employers to review cases for any employees who presented an EAD for employment verification which has now been revoked by DHS.

DHS has also published EAD Revocation Guidance For E-Verify Employers regarding these changes on E-Verify’s website.

SEVIS Report: Record Number of Student Visa Holders in 2024

In June 2025, ICE released its 2024 Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) by the Numbers Report. This report includes data on international student enrollment at US educational institutions and work authorization for students employed by US companies.

International students are eligible to study in the US on the F-1 visa. As indicated in the report, most F-1 visa holders at universities major in computer science, information technology, and engineering fields. However, students seeking careers in healthcare may study in associate’s, bachelor’s and even master’s programs in majors like Nursing, Medical Technology, and Physical Therapy.

Both Enrollment and Employment Increased in 2024

Foreign student enrollment in the US increased once again in 2024. Over 1.5 million students held active immigration records at US schools in 2024, a 5.3% increase from 2023.

Work authorization is available to certain F-1 students. SEVIS's report states:

• 381,140 students were authorized to work for US employers in 2024.
• Work authorization participation increased by 21% for students enrolled in Optional Practical Training (OPT), which is one type of work authorization for students. OPT participation has now increased four years in a row.
• Work authorization participation increased 54% for students enrolled in STEM OPT (an extension of OPT for students studying in qualifying STEM degree fields).

In 2024, Amazon was the top employer among all F-1 students with work authorization, with tech giants Apple, Google, Meta, Microsoft, and Tesla also among the companies employing the highest numbers of foreign students.

Conclusion

Though scrutiny of student visa issuance has increased as a result of Trump Administration policies in 2025 (as discussed in an MU blog post earlier this year), US universities and employers demonstrated heavy engagement with international students in 2024.

Student visas remain prevalent in the US, and major US employers continue to seek work-authorized foreign student employees. 

July 2025 Visa Bulletin: Mostly steady, scattered progress forward

The Department of State has just issued the July 2025 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 (Permanent Residency card) or Immigrant Visa appointment:

Table B: Dates for Filing

USCIS will continue to use the Table A Final Action Dates chart for I-485 employment-based filings in July 2025. See: USCIS Visa Bulletin Dates

MU Law Analysis

EB-1, EB-2, and EB-3 China all moved forward 1-2 weeks in July 2025.

EB-3 All Other and EB-3 Mexico moved forward nearly 2 months.

EB-3 India moved forward 1 week.

All remaining categories stayed steady and made no progress.

As we approach the end of the fiscal year in September, the visa bulletin is unlikely to make significant progress forward and is expected to slow down or remain steady.

In 2024, EB-3 categories retrogressed significantly in July 2024 and September 2024, so the lack of retrogression in this month’s visa bulletin is a positive sign toward a steady conclusion of the fiscal year.

Trump’s Travel Ban will Exacerbate Healthcare Workforce Shortages in the US

On June 4, 2025, President Donald Trump announced the first travel ban of his second term. The 2025 version of the President’s travel ban restricts visa issuance to nationals of 19 countries.

Specifically, the ban prevents issuance of both temporary visas and permanent Green Cards to nationals of the following countries: Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen.

The ban sets country-specific partial bans on certain visa types for the remaining seven countries: Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.

The ban does not apply to existing Green Card holders, dual nationals (if the individual travels on a passport issued by a country that is not included in the ban), athletes, coaches and immediate relatives traveling for the World Cup, Olympics, or other major sporting event, and immediate family immigrants with clear and convincing evidence of identity and family relationship (e.g., DNA).

The ban will take effect on June 9, 2025, and could impact U.S. employers that rely on global talent, particularly in healthcare and technology, as noted by Boundless Immigration’s blog on the Travel Ban’s negative effect on US employers.

As discussed in an MU blog post earlier this year, immigrants are relied upon extensively in the US healthcare workforce. Citing research analysis by JAMA Network:

• 25% of physicians in the U.S. were born outside of the U.S.
• 17% of the total healthcare workforce, or roughly 3.4 million workers, were born outside the U.S.

The Trump Travel Ban will further restrict visa issuance to foreign-trained healthcare workers who are desperately needed to meet shortages in the US. Current healthcare staffing shortages will be further exacerbated, hospitals will face bottlenecks and healthcare facilities will be unable to meet healthcare needs in the U.S.

Foreign-Trained Nurses Can Help Fill Critical Gaps in the Healthcare Sector

As the U.S. healthcare system grapples with a critical nursing shortage, maintaining lawful, streamlined immigration pathways for foreign-trained nurses is essential to ensuring effective and continuous patient care.

A recently published article by Digital Health Insights (DHI) highlights the severity of this shortage, which is exacerbated by tightening immigration policies and a growing number of nurses leaving the profession.

 

Drawing on data from the Migration Policy Institute, DHI notes that as of 2021, nearly 20%, approximately 2.8 million, of healthcare workers in the United States are immigrants.

 

The total supply of RNs in the U.S. decreased by more than 100,000 from 2020 to 2021, which is the greatest drop in the past 40 years. Between 2020-2022, nursing turnover skyrocketed to 27% nationwide.

 

Due to high demand and Department of State backlogs, foreign-trained nurses who qualify for a Green Card are currently waiting more than two years to enter the U.S. after their cases are approved. An approved case indicates the foreign-trained nurse meets all U.S. requirements to enter the profession and has a U.S. employer sponsor.

 

To address these barriers, DHI proposes innovative solutions, such as extending the National Interest Waiver for Physicians to include other healthcare professionals. Likewise, it suggests that the U.S. follow the example of countries like Canada and the United Kingdom, which have implemented dedicated healthcare visa programs.

 

Meeting the U.S. healthcare workforce shortage—particularly in nursing—requires accessible and effective legal pathways for foreign-trained professionals.

USCIS Releases FY 2026 H-1B Cap Registration Numbers

USCIS recently posted its FY 2026 H-1B cap lottery update, announcing it received 358,737 total registrations in the FY 2026 (March 2025) H-1B cap lottery. The total number of registrations submitted in FY 2026 decreased 25% from FY 2025, when 479,953 total registrations were submitted. 

The H-1B CAP lottery was 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.

The table below provides the total number of H-1B registrations from FY 2021 - 2026:

Fiscal Year	H-1B registrations
2026	358,737
2025	479,953
2024	780,884
2023	483,927
2022	308,613
2021	274,237

 

As indicated by the table, the number of H-1B cap registrations has steadily declined since FY 2024. USCIS credits its final rule Improving the H-1B Registration Selection Process and Program Integrity, which was implemented in 2024 and introduced a beneficiary-centric registration system designed to prevent employers from submitting duplicate registrations for the same individual. 

H-1B registrations once again far outnumbered the 85,000 cap, and a total of 120,141 registrations were selected for FY 2026. Those selected in the lottery have been notified and must file their full H-1B petitions with USCIS by June 30, 2025.

If less than 85,000 CAP petitions are filed by June 30, 2025, USCIS may issue additional selections in a subsequent round of the lottery. Individuals whose registrations are listed in the Registrant’s online account as “Submitted” are not yet rejected in the CAP but are eligible to be chosen in a later round of the lottery.