The Honest Brief · October 2026
EB-2 India reopens, H-1B fee season, and your lottery isn't random anymore
Published:
Your month in honest US-study news — what changed, what it means for you, and the take no consultancy will give you.
This month's news
1. The October 2026 Visa Bulletin reopened EB-2 India — and USCIS confirmed who can file
The first bulletin of FY2027 (October 2026): EB-2 India reopens at a Nov 1, 2013 final action date after three months listed as Unavailable. EB-1 India advances to Feb 1, 2023; EB-3 India holds at Jan 1, 2014; EB-5 Unreserved India returns at Dec 1, 2023. EB-2 rest-of-world retrogressed from Current to Jan 1, 2025.
Then on October 1, USCIS posted the official Dates-for-Filing charts for October adjustment-of-status filings: EB-2 India can file with a priority date before Jan 15, 2015 (EB-1 India: Jul 1, 2024; EB-3 India: Jan 15, 2015; EB-5 Unreserved India: May 1, 2024). Filing ≠ approval — Chart B lets you file and seek EAD/AP on a pending I-485, but the green card still waits on final action dates (EB-2 India: Nov 1, 2013).
2. H-1B fee season: one fee extended, one fee proposed
Two different fees — don't confuse them. (a) The White House proclamation signed September 18, 2026 extended the $100,000 H-1B payment restriction (Proclamation 10973) twelve months, now running through September 21, 2027. A companion executive order directs State, Labor, and DHS to weigh a sponsoring employer's recent and planned layoffs of similarly-situated US workers in H-1B reviews. (b) DHS's proposed $103,265 fee per H-1B cap-subject petition (Federal Register Doc 2026-17324) is still just a proposal — the 30-day comment window closed September 24 with 11,275 comments filed. Nothing is payable; DHS now decides whether to finalize, revise, or withdraw it.
3. A bill that would let H-1B holders renew stamps inside the US — but it is NOT law
On September 29–30, Reps. Suhas Subramanyam (D-VA), Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), and Don Bacon (R-NE) announced the Domestic Visa Renewal Modernization Act (plus co-sponsors Jonathan Jackson and Deborah Ross): it would expand the 2024 domestic visa renewal pilot to H-1B, H-1B1, E, I, L, O, and P holders so they can renew visa stamps inside the US. Companion bills cover State Department staffing and evacuation plans. Headlines screaming "H-1B visa overhaul" are misleading — this is an introduced bill, not law. Nothing changes until it passes Congress and is signed.
4. The end of “duration of status” stays blocked — for now
On September 14, US District Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV (D. Massachusetts) issued a nationwide preliminary injunction stopping DHS's final rule that would have replaced duration of status with fixed admission periods for F-1/J-1 students — one day before it took effect. D/S stays in place while litigation continues; a status conference is scheduled for October 2. Practical fallout: the revised Form I-485 (edition 09/18/26) became mandatory September 18 (old 01/20/25 edition rejected, no grace period), but USCIS is not accepting the new I-539/I-765 editions (09/15/26) — file the old editions, or your filing is rejected, not reviewed. Check the edition date in the lower corner of every page the day you file.
5. Small but real: the social-media check keeps expanding
The F-1 visa social-media screening keeps widening: public profiles have been required for F/M/J since the June 18, 2025 State Department announcement, with expansions through 2026 — and the latest expansion to I/TN/TD categories took effect October 1, 2026. DS-160 still asks for your 5-year handle history. Before your interview: a 10-minute self-audit of every public post.
Sources: U.S. State Department October 2026 Visa Bulletin; USCIS "When to File Your Adjustment of Status Application" page for October 2026 (verified Oct 1); White House proclamation text (Sept 18, 2026); Federal Register Doc 2026-17324; IANS Washington wire (Sept 30); Presidents' Alliance / UC International Services advisories; USCIS newsroom alerts on Forms I-539, I-765, I-485.
From the account
This month's three strongest posts on @honeststudyabroad:
- “October 2026 Visa Bulletin: EB-2 India reopens” (Sept 29) — the month's biggest green-card news: EB-2 India's final action date reopens at Nov 1, 2013 after three months Unavailable, plus the myth-bust that the "reset" still leaves most Indian applicants waiting behind a 2013 priority date.
- “$100K H-1B rule extended to Sept 21, 2027” (Sept 19) — the White House proclamation extension plus the companion order tying employer layoff records to H-1B reviews.
- “$103,265 H-1B proposed fee — comment window closed” (Sept 23/25) — proposal, not law: 11,275 comments filed before the Sept 24 deadline; nothing payable until a final rule with an effective date.
The honest take
Your lottery ticket now has a price tag — and it pays to know it.
The H-1B lottery stopped being random on February 27, 2026. Entries are now weighted by your DOL wage level: a Level I (entry-level) offer gets 1 entry, Level II gets 2, Level III gets 3, Level IV gets 4. Two registrations for the same 85,000 slots are not equal — a higher-paid offer can hold up to four times the entries.
Look at this year's numbers. USCIS got about 211,600 unique registrations for FY2027, down roughly 38% from about 344,000 the year before — yet demand still more than doubled the 85,000 cap. And 71.5% of selected beneficiaries held a US master's degree or higher, up from 57% the prior cycle. The pool is smaller and more credentialed; selection favors higher-paid, higher-degreed workers. Add a $100,000 proclamation fee on certain overseas H-1B entries (extended through September 21, 2027) and a proposed $103,265 per-petition fee still working through rulemaking — and the pattern is plain: employers sponsor the offers they value most.
The practical takeaway: your specialization and your starting offer are not just career choices — they are immigration choices. Courses, projects, and internships that push your first job into a higher wage band can triple or quadruple your lottery entries. A US master's carries more weight than ever. The degree buys your ticket; the wage level decides how many you hold. Plan the coursework like it.
Full guidance, checklists, and every post in one place: honeststudyabroad.pages.dev — and follow @honeststudyabroad for the daily breakdowns.
— The Honest Study Abroad desk
Guidance only — not legal advice. For your specific case, confirm with your DSO or an immigration attorney.
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