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F1 Mexico: a citizen’s unmarried son or daughter born in Mexico

Enter the priority date from the I-130 to compare it with the Mexico F1 cutoff, which runs on its own line years behind the rest of the world.

Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method and past error

Where will you apply?

Forecast

No reliable forecast

3 years 9 months behind the cutoff. Past forecasts for this case missed too often to publish a date.

Final Action DateSeptember 8, 2008
Date for FilingDecember 1, 2008
I-485 this month (USCIS uses Dates for Filing)Not yet
Past error at 48 months behind (our model)±47 mo., range held 0 %
I-485 family, national average (August 2026)12.4 months
Government fees (paper filing, with work permit and travel permit)$3,005
How this was calculated
  1. The October 2026 Final Action Date for F1, Mexico, is September 8, 2008; your priority date is June 15, 2012, 3 years 9 months later.
  2. For each of the 120 months of the last 10 years, we measured how long this cutoff took to move forward by that same distance. Half the cases took 3 years 4 months; 20% took 1 year 10 months or less; 80% took 4 years 8 months or less.
  3. Back-test from October 2012 to October 2025: for people 48 months behind, the middle estimate was off by a median of 47 months (a naive “last 12 months” rule: 33), and the range held the real date 0 % of the time. That fails our publication rule, so no date is shown.
  4. Fees: I-130 $675 + I-485 $1,440 + I-765 $260 + I-131 $630 (USCIS Form G-1055, edition 10/07/26, and State Department visa fees).

Fee details, line by line

Estimate from public data, not legal advice. Your case may differ (cross-chargeability, CSPA, waivers). For advice, see a licensed immigration attorney or a DOJ-accredited representative. Not affiliated with USCIS or the Department of State. Method and past error

For a son or daughter born in Mexico, unmarried and 21 or older, whose parent is a U.S. citizen, the F1 Final Action Date in the latest Visa Bulletin is September 8, 2008 and the Date for Filing December 1, 2008. The same petition for someone born in most other countries is at January 22, 2020, about 11.4 years further ahead. Mexico has had its own F1 column in every bulletin since 2015. The line was at April 1, 1995 in October 2016 and at November 22, 2005 a year ago, so the past twelve months carried it about 34 months forward, after 35 months the year before; from 2014 to 2023 no October-to-October year gained more than 17. History warns against extrapolating: in July 2005 the Mexico F1 date fell from October 22, 1994 to January 1, 1983 in one bulletin. Our back-test for this case missed by a median of 12 months at one year behind, which fails our test, so the calculator does not print a date.

The Mexico F1 line in four dates

October 2016: April 1, 1995. October 2021: January 15, 1999. October 2025: November 22, 2005. Today: September 8, 2008. In the first five years the line advanced about 3.8 years of priority dates; in the last twelve months alone, about 34 months, including 251 days in the latest bulletin. The queue is now about 18.1 years long, against 6.7 for the worldwide F1 column.

The July 2005 collapse

Mexico F1 has gone backwards 8 times since 2001. The worst came in July 2005, when the cutoff dropped from October 22, 1994 to January 1, 1983: roughly 142 months erased in one bulletin. Families who had been told their date was close found it a decade away. That episode is why we refuse to turn a fast year into a promise.

When naturalization slows a case

Many Mexican F1 cases started as F2B: a resident parent filed for an adult child, then naturalized. Right now F2B Mexico sits at May 15, 2010, ahead of F1 Mexico. A son or daughter converted from F2B therefore moved to the slower line, and the opt-out described in the F2B to F1 guide exists for that situation. The F2B Mexico page tracks the other column.

What the calculator says for a date one year back

Take a priority date of September 8, 2009, one year after the current cutoff. The calculator shows the distance, about 12 months, and the filing status, then says there is no reliable forecast: from October 2012 to October 2025 the range held the real outcome only 44 % of the time. USCIS this month uses the Dates for Filing chart for family cases.

A son or daughter living in Mexico finishes through consular processing once the Final Action Date passes the priority date, and pays the State Department and USCIS immigrant fees listed under consular processing costs. One in the United States can file Form I-485 only with a status that allows adjustment.

F1 in the October 2026 bulletin

USCIS asks applicants to use the Dates for Filing chart this month to file Form I-485.
CountryFinal ActionDates for FilingChange this month
All other countriesJanuary 22, 2020February 1, 2020no change
China (mainland born)January 22, 2020February 1, 2020no change
IndiaJanuary 22, 2020February 1, 2020no change
MexicoSeptember 8, 2008December 1, 2008▲ 251 days
PhilippinesNovember 1, 2013April 22, 2015▲ 184 days
F1 Mexico: Final Action cutoff by bulletin month since December 2001198419891994199920042002200620102014201820222026
Solid line: Final Action Date. Dashed line: Dates for Filing (since October 2015). A drop is a retrogression.

Every October since 2002

October opens each federal fiscal year, so it is the cleanest point to compare one year with the next.
BulletinFinal Action DateYears behind the bulletin
October 2002November 1, 199110.9
October 2003October 1, 19949.0
October 2004March 22, 199311.5
October 2005January 1, 199312.7
October 2006January 1, 199313.7
October 2007May 1, 199215.4
October 2008September 8, 199216.1
October 2009Unavailable (U)–
October 2010December 15, 199217.8
October 2011March 22, 199318.5
October 2012Unavailable (U)–
October 2013September 22, 199320.0
October 2014June 22, 199420.3
October 2015November 22, 199420.9
October 2016April 1, 199521.5
October 2017March 1, 199621.6
October 2018August 1, 199721.2
October 2019August 8, 199722.1
October 2020January 8, 199822.7
October 2021January 15, 199922.7
October 2022March 15, 200022.5
October 2023April 22, 200122.4
October 2024January 1, 200321.7
October 2025November 22, 200519.9
October 2026September 8, 200818.1

How our forecast did for this case

Back-test from October 2012 to October 2025, each month using only the bulletins known that month.
Distance behind the cutoffMedian error, our modelMedian error, “last 12 months” ruleRange held the real dateStart months testedPublished?
6 months9 months9 months62 %156No reliable forecast
12 months12 months17 months44 %156No reliable forecast
24 months23 months21 months18 %156No reliable forecast
48 months47 months33 months0 %156No reliable forecast

Questions people ask

Why is F1 Mexico so far behind the worldwide F1 date?

Because the per-country limit caps any country at 7% of the preference visas each year, and the number of Mexican sons and daughters of citizens waiting in F1 is far larger than that share. Mexico therefore gets its own column. Birth in Mexico is what counts, not citizenship, so a son born in Mexico but raised elsewhere still waits on this line.

Is F2B Mexico faster than F1 Mexico for a son or daughter?

It can be, and it is the unusual feature of the Mexico columns. When F2B Mexico is ahead, a parent’s naturalization converts the son or daughter into a slower F1 case. The law lets the beneficiary request to stay in F2B. Compare the two dates on this page each month and discuss the choice with an immigration attorney or a DOJ-accredited representative.

Can a spouse born outside Mexico change the F1 Mexico wait?

An F1 beneficiary is unmarried, so there is no spouse to borrow a country from: cross-chargeability through a spouse does not apply here. It becomes relevant only if the son or daughter marries, which converts the petition to F3, where the Mexico line is even older. The F1 Mexico column applies to every Mexican-born F1 beneficiary.

Keep going

F1 (adult son or daughter)

Unmarried sons and daughters 21+ of U.S. citizens: this month’s cutoff, the Mexico and Philippines lines, and the wait.

Mexico

Every Visa Bulletin category for people born in Mexico, with the worldwide date for comparison.

F2B Mexico

Mexican-born unmarried sons and daughters 21+ of green card holders: three fast years and a line now ahead of F1.

F2B to F1 conversion

What a parent’s naturalization does to F2A and F2B petitions, and when staying in F2B is the shorter line.

Chargeability

Which country your green card is counted against, and when a spouse or parent born elsewhere changes the queue.

Official sources and data

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Data for 2026, checked on