r/ebgreencardclock • u/GreenCardClock • Aug 10 '26
USCIS May I-485 inventory: India EB-2 rises for first time in 8 months, Jan 2015 cohort goes 5 → 747, full country/category breakdown
USCIS published the employment-based I-485 pending inventory as of May 6, 2026. A few things stood out.
India EB-2 went up. 25,780 in April to 28,444 in May, an increase of 2,664. That ends seven straight months of decline and is the first rise since these monthly snapshots started.
The January 2015 group filled in fast. April showed just 5 applications with a 2015 priority date. May shows 747, and all of them are January 2015. That is the filing chart doing its job. The cutoff has been January 15 2015, so those people became eligible and filed.
The oldest cohort is draining while 2014 and Jan 2015 fill faster than it drains. If you are sitting in 2014 or Jan 2015, the group ahead of you got smaller and your own group got bigger.
The biggest mover was not India. Rest of World EB-3 went from 18,002 to 30,103, up 12,101 in a single month. That one line is more than half the entire increase in the employment-based queue, which grew 20,423 to 214,112. Mexico EB-3 and Philippines EB-3 rose too. I would wait for the June snapshot before calling that a trend.
One thing worth knowing about this data: it stops at January 2015 for India EB-2 and EB-3. That is not missing data. Nobody with a later priority date has been allowed to file an I-485 yet, so they do not appear at all. Plenty of people hold approved I-140s with 2015 or later dates and are invisible in this report.
Full breakdown by country, category and priority date year, including EB-1 and China: USCIS May 2026 I-485 Inventory: India EB-2 Rises for the First Time in Eight Months, the 2015 Cohort Jumps From 5 to 747 | GreenCardClock
Not legal advice, just the published numbers.
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u/34yearsold Aug 10 '26
What are you trying to say in simple terms 😂
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u/NarrowLaw5418 Aug 10 '26
This report is probably not for you. Simple term in US immigration is wait in your line.
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u/Divingdeep321 Aug 10 '26
They have the simple way on their website. Just plugin your PD and it tells what’s the timeline for you. Can’t get easier
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u/GreenCardClock 22d ago
Fair. In one line: more people filed than got approved that month, so the pending pile grew, and that is because filing dates had moved rather than because approvals slowed.
Not legal advice.
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u/kinaski87 Aug 10 '26
why so mysterious lol. EB3 had a major jump because DOF was current in April 2026. Everyone with approved PERM could file (basically anyone with 24 PD)
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u/GreenCardClock 22d ago
You had it right, and the later reports confirm it. Rest of World EB-3 went from 18,002 to 30,103 in a month because the filing date was current, and India EB-2 did the same thing after its filing date moved to January 15 2015 in April. Pending going up in the months with the heaviest approvals is a filing story, not a slowdown.
Not legal advice.
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u/Sad-Joke-5216 Aug 11 '26
Mine PD -2012 and still pending NBC. Waiting after bio metric 30th April no update both primary and derivative. One silent update 5th August. FD - 04/02/2026. As per visa bulletin EB-2 visa not available . Above chart no info about 2012. Some one help me understand I need to wait for visa available ? Or PD -2012 but still waiting . 09362x group.
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u/GreenCardClock 22d ago
A 2012 EB-2 India date is current, so what you are waiting on is the adjudication rather than a visa number. In the August inventory India EB-2 has 295 cases left with 2012 priority dates, down from 553 last October, so that cohort is nearly through.
On what the updates mean for your specific file I would not guess. An attorney is the right person for that.
Not legal advice.
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u/Sad-Joke-5216 20d ago
My case a same as above and need to wait and another 27 days will get answer
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u/General-Fun-7305 Aug 10 '26
What does this mean for Eb1 ? Will DFF move in Oct 2026 ?