US: the November visa bulletin leaves EB-5 unchanged, but new fees and amounts are a month away

In brief

• The State Department published the November visa bulletin on 22 October 2026. EB-5 dates in both charts are unchanged from October.
• For China, the EB-5 unreserved quota: final action 1 December 2016, dates for filing 1 March 2021. For India: 1 December 2023 and 1 May 2024.
• The EB-5 set-aside quotas for rural areas, high unemployment areas and infrastructure are current for all countries.
• USCIS confirmed that in November adjustment of status applications in all family and employment categories are accepted under the dates for filing chart.
• From 30 November 2026 the I-526E petition will cost USD 7,850, the I-526 USD 7,615 and the I-829 USD 5,000. From 1 January 2027 the investment amount will be indexed.

EB-5 in November: no change

The State Department publishes the visa bulletin every month. It has two charts. The first shows final action dates: who can already receive a visa or green card. The second shows dates for filing: who can file papers and join the queue for a final decision. If the chart says "current", there is no queue for that country.

In November both EB-5 charts repeat October. After the unreserved quota for India returned in October with a date of 1 December 2023, there was no movement in November. For China the final action date stayed at 1 December 2016 and the filing date at 1 March 2021. All three set-aside quotas are current for everyone. We covered what changed in October and how the quota works in our news story on the October EB-5 bulletin.

For most of our clients the key column is the first one. Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Armenia, Georgia, Europe and the Middle East fall under the general column. For them all EB-5 categories are current: timing depends only on how fast the petition is processed, not on visa limits. Importantly, the queue is counted by country of birth, not by passport: an investor born in China remains in the Chinese queue even with another passport.

What this means for you. If you were born outside China and India, the November bulletin changes nothing for you: there is no EB-5 visa queue. The dates that matter now are different: 30 November and 1 January.

Fees rise from 30 November

On 30 September 2026 USCIS published its final fee rule in the Federal Register. Under it, from 30 November 2026 a first-time I-526E regional centre petition will cost USD 7,850, and a standalone I-526 petition USD 7,615. The I-829 petition to remove conditions will cost USD 5,000. The I-526 and I-526E amounts already include the USD 75 technology fee. The new rates apply to petitions filed on 30 November or later, based on the date USCIS receives the petition.

The practical conclusion: if your petition is nearly ready, filing before 30 November saves on the fee. But rushing for the fee is unwise if source of funds documents are not ready: a weak petition that triggers a request for evidence will cost more. The key EB-5 document is evidence of the source of funds along the whole chain, from earnings to the transfer into the project. The procedure is described in the source of funds guide.

What this means for you. If your petition is ready, file it before 30 November 2026 to lock in the current fee. If not, do not sacrifice the quality of your documents to save money.

From 1 January 2027: a new investment amount

The current EB-5 minimum investment is USD 800,000 in targeted employment areas and infrastructure projects and USD 1,050,000 otherwise. The 2022 reform law provides that from 1 January 2027 the amounts will be adjusted for inflation, and then every five years. USCIS will announce the exact new figures separately. Industry lawyers estimate an increase of around 15-20%, but there is no official figure as of 27 October.

For investors this is the main argument against waiting. Petitions filed before 1 January 2027 are assessed at the amount in force on the filing date. To make it, you need not only to choose a project and transfer funds, but also to collect income documents covering many years, certificates and translations. This usually takes from several weeks to several months. The programme is covered in detail in the EB-5 guide, and the term is explained in the glossary.

What this means for you. If you plan EB-5 within the next year, aim to file before the end of 2026. After 1 January 2027 the investment threshold will rise.

How to choose a project and a quota

Since there is no queue for most countries, the choice of project comes to the fore. The 2022 law requires the investment to create at least 10 jobs per investor, and the money must stay at risk in the project for the period the rules require. The set-aside quotas depend on the type of area. A rural area is outside large metropolitan areas and outside towns of more than 20,000 people. A high unemployment area has unemployment of at least 150% of the national average. An infrastructure project is run by a government entity.

For an investor in the general column, choosing a set-aside quota brings two advantages. First, the investment in a targeted area is lower: USD 800,000 instead of USD 1,050,000. Second, the law requires USCIS to prioritise petitions for rural projects. But a project should not be chosen on the quota alone: the developer's reliability, the debt structure, the exit plan and the documents proving job creation matter more.

Before investing, the regional centre and project should be checked as carefully as any major transaction: the centre's track record, approvals of its previous projects, the financial model and the terms on which money is returned. EB-5 money is returned no earlier than several years later, and the return terms are set out in the project documents, not in marketing materials.

What this means for you. A targeted area saves USD 250,000 and speeds up rural projects, but what matters most is the reliability of the project itself. Choose it on the documents, not on the quota.

What affects how long a green card takes

For an investor with no queue, the time to a green card depends on how fast USCIS and the consulate work. Petition processing times vary and depend on the petition type, the project and the completeness of the documents. The most common cause of delay is a request for evidence, usually about the origin of the money or how it reached the project. So a strong petition from the outset saves more time than any rush.

If the investor is already lawfully in the US, for example on an E-2, L-1 or O-1 visa, they can file for adjustment of status together with the petition when the date is current. This gives the right to work and travel while the case is pending. If the investor lives outside the US, after the petition is approved the case goes to the National Visa Center and then to the consulate; timing depends on the workload of the particular consulate.

What changed in other categories

In employment and family categories the November bulletin brought movement. Among employment visas, EB-2 and EB-3 for countries not listed separately moved most noticeably: by three months and one month. Family categories F1, F2B, F3 and F4 in the general column advanced by roughly a year. This matters for those obtaining a green card through an employer or relatives rather than investment.

Investors have other visa options too. The E-2 visa gives the right to live and run a business in the US but is available only to citizens of treaty countries, so it is often combined with a second passport, for example from Grenada or Turkey. See our articles on the E-2 visa through a Grenadian passport and the E-2 visa through a Turkish passport. For company executives there is the L-1A visa, and for people with extraordinary ability the O-1 visa. Note that USCIS is preparing a rule that could end deference to prior approvals when such visas are extended; see our news story on the proposed USCIS rule.

What this means for you. If you are obtaining a green card through an employer or family, check your category in the new chart: many dates moved forward in November.

How to read the bulletin and what to do next

For an investor in the general column, the process looks like this. First an I-526E or I-526 petition is filed. If the investor is lawfully in the US and the filing chart date is current, they can file for adjustment of status at the same time and receive work and travel authorisation while the case is pending. If the investor is outside the US, after the petition is approved they attend a consular interview. After two years of conditional green card status, an I-829 is filed to remove conditions.

For families, the EB-5 petition includes a spouse and children under 21. In some cases a child's age can be fixed at the petition filing date, so families with teenagers should not delay. General rules on status for the family are in the guide to citizenship and status for the whole family. Documents from Russia and other countries will need a translation and an apostille, and it is best to order a criminal record certificate in advance.

Taxes are a separate issue: with a green card a person becomes a US tax resident and declares worldwide income. This should be thought through before filing; an overview is in our tax guide. If part of the capital needs to be regularised before investing, we can help with capital legalisation.

What to do

A country overview is on the United States page, and routes to North America are compared in the US and Canada guide. How other countries' passports help with US visas is covered in the articles on the US visa with a Vanuatu passport and Argentina and the US. An online consultation will help assess your plan; all BRIDGES services are on the home page.

How this article was prepared

Sources: the US Department of State visa bulletin for November 2026, published on 22 October 2026; the USCIS announcement on the chart for adjustment of status applications in November; the USCIS final fee rule published in the Federal Register on 30 September 2026; the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022; analyses of the bulletin by US immigration lawyers. The estimate of the 2027 investment increase is the view of industry lawyers; there is no official figure. This article does not replace a consultation.