The U.S. Department of State has released the December 2025 Visa Bulletin (see here), which shows a significant 220-day advancement in the Unreserved EB-5 final action date for pre-RIA Chinese applicants and a 150-day advancement for pre-RIA Indian applicants. All three Reserved EB-5 categories remain “current” for the upcoming month.
The Unreserved EB-5 categories have experienced rapid forward movement since August. For pre-RIA Chinese investors, the final action date has advanced a total of 905 days, advancing from December 8, 2015 to July 15, 2016 in the December bulletin. Pre-RIA Indian applicants have also seen significant progress, with the cut-off date moving from November 15, 2019 on the August bulletin to July 1, 2021 in the latest December bulletin. As seen in FY2025, cut-off dates in the Unreserved EB-5 category could retrogress at any time, so eligible applicants should act promptly to secure their visa numbers.
Chart B (dates for filing) for pre-RIA Chinese applicants advances by 21 days to July 22, 2016 beginning in December. This is the first movement in Chart B for this group since October 2024. USCIS has confirmed that it will continue to accept Chart B for employment-based adjustment of status filings in December.
The Reserved EB-5 categories, including Rural Areas, High Unemployment Areas, and Infrastructure Projects, will continue to remain “current” in December. While USCIS approved more than 1,000 I-526E petitions in Q3 FY2025 (see here), visa availability still appears sufficient to meet demand from the newly documentarily qualified investors. The Note section of the December Visa Bulletin does not signal any upcoming cut-off dates for the Reserved categories, suggesting that these set-aside groups are most likely to remain “current” in January as well.
EB-5 FINAL ACTION DATES (CHART A)
The December Visa Bulletin revealed the following final action dates for EB-5 visa applicants:
-
Unreserved EB-5 Visa Categories:
- China: July 15, 2016 (advanced 220 days from the November Visa Bulletin)
- India: July 1, 2021 (advanced 150 days from the November Visa Bulletin)
- All Other Countries: “Current”
-
Reserved EB-5 Visa Categories:
- All Countries: “Current”
(Chart A on the December 2025 Visa Bulletin)
EB-5 DATES FOR FILING (CHART B)
All Reserved EB-5 categories will remain “current” across the board, confirming that there will NOT be any cut-off dates for applicants in these categories in December.
For the Unreserved EB-5 category, the dates for filing (Chart B) remain “current” for all applicants in the next month, except for those born in China or India:
- For Chinese applicants: July 22, 2016 (advanced 21 days from the November Visa Bulletin);.
- For Indian applicants: April 1, 2022 (unchanged from the November Visa Bulletin).
(Chart B on the December 2025 Visa Bulletin)
USCIS AOS Filing Charts for December 2025
According to USCIS, in December, the agency will continue to accept Chart B (dates for filing) for employment-based adjustment of status (AOS) applications, meaning the window to use Chart B will remain open in the upcoming month. See below for USCIS’ announcement on its website:
Next Month’s Adjustment of Status Filing Charts
For Family-Sponsored Filings:
For all family-sponsored preference categories, you must use the Dates for Filing chart in the Department of State Visa Bulletin for December 2025.
For Employment-Based Preference Filings:
For all employment-based preference categories, you must use the Dates for Filing chart in the Department of State Visa Bulletin for December 2025.
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