Department of Labor information:
DOL Latest News
On the Department of Labor front, regulatory updates underscored a heightened focus on programmatic integrity and updated agency protocols. Concurrently, a major operational update from USCIS rippled through the employment-based immigration sector: the agency implemented a new security vetting protocol requiring updated biometrics and the resubmission of fingerprints for a vast majority of pending adjustment of status applications if their previous biometrics were captured prior to late April. This new background check mandate is expected to temporarily extend overall adjudication timelines for pending I-485 files.
Meanwhile, the DOL continued to push through its backlog of PERM reconsiderations and appeals, moving into reviews for requests submitted in late 2025, and urged employers to initiate the multi-stage PERM labor recruitment process as early as possible to buffer against extended federal processing queues.
May 2026
May 2026 BDV Immigration Update
Following the rapid advancements seen in the early spring, May brought a deliberate shift toward stabilization. The immigration landscape experienced a temporary plateau as federal agencies paused to assess visa demand and processing volumes. Despite the broader regulatory slowdown, internal productivity at BDV remained high. The team focused on keeping pending applications strictly organized and maintaining case readiness so that clients are fully prepared to act the moment the next window of opportunity opens.
BDV Approvals (April 2026):
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Green Card approvals
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Labor Certification (PERM) approvals
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I-140 approvals
USCIS Visa Bulletin
The June 2026 Visa Bulletin has been released, and USCIS will continue to enforce the Final Action Dates chart (Chart A) for all employment-based adjustment of status filings. The June bulletin brought mixed news for EB-3 applicants, showing slight forward progress for China and India, while major backlogs triggered sharp retrogression in other high-demand tiers like EB-2 India.
June Visa Bulletin is OUT - no movement
Final action dates: 01FEB22 ( no movement)
Dates for filing: 1AUG22 (no movement)
USCIS has not published yet which chart it will use in June for I-485 filing. If USCIS chooses to use Final Action Dates for I-485 filing, we will be in the same position as we are in May. If USCIS uses Dates for Filing, we will be in the same position as we were in April, which would allow us and Envoy filed cases that were not filed in April due to lack of time or unresponsiveness of FNs.