Monthly report
State of the queues: July 2026
Published Jul 19, 2026. Official figures last captured Jul 20, 2026.
Written and checked by the QueueCheck editorial team. Last checked July 19, 2026. How we verify information
This is the July 2026 edition of the QueueCheck monthly report. Every month we compare the official processing windows that government agencies publish against what they published at the start of the month, list which services moved faster or slower, and put the month's policy changes in one place. The numbers on this page update automatically as new official figures are captured, so what you see reflects the latest data, not the day the report was written.
One reading note before the tables. An official window moving is a statement about the whole queue, not about any single application. A service that got two weeks slower this month has not delayed your case by two weeks; it means the agency now describes its overall workload differently. Use the per-service tracker pages linked in the table to compare your own dates against the current window.
July 2026 at a glance
OfficialOfficial baselines for July 2026 are still being captured, so the tables below show the current published windows. 34 services joined tracking during the month.
Reader timelines are being collected across all tracked services.
United States
| Service | Official window now | Change this month |
|---|---|---|
| Advance Parole travel document | Advance Parole travel document: USCIS Form I-131 covers several travel and parole document types; pending I-485 travel should be tracked separately from refugee, TPS, reentry, and parole requests | Newly tracked this month |
| USCIS work permit (EAD) | USCIS work permit (I-765, adjustment-based (c)(9)): USCIS completes 80% of cases within about 10.5 months at the National Benefits Center and about 12 months at its service centers. Other I-765 categories such as student OPT or renewals differ. | Newly tracked this month |
| Employment-based Green Card | Employment-based Green Card: timing depends on EB category, priority date, country of chargeability, PERM or I-140 stage, I-485 or consular processing, and Visa Bulletin movement | Newly tracked this month |
| US F-1 student visa | US F-1 student visa: admission now follows the program length, capped at four years; use your I-94, I-20, and DSO guidance rather than a single national wait estimate | Newly tracked this month |
| Family-based Green Card | Family-based Green Card: timing depends on relationship category, priority date, country of chargeability, I-130, I-485 or consular processing, and interview stage | Newly tracked this month |
| Global Entry | Global Entry: vetting normally within 2 weeks; extra review can take 12-24 months | Newly tracked this month |
| US Green Card | US Green Card: check the current Visa Bulletin and USCIS case updates | Newly tracked this month |
| H-1B visa lottery | H-1B FY2027: USCIS says the regular cap and master's cap have been reached | Newly tracked this month |
| K-1 fiancé visa | K-1 fiancé visa (I-129F): USCIS completes 80% of fiancé petitions within about 12 months at its service centers. NVC transfer and the consular interview add separate waits after approval. | Newly tracked this month |
| NEXUS | NEXUS: application vetting plus a separate interview wait; extra review can take 12-24 months | Newly tracked this month |
| US passport routine | US passport routine: 4-6 weeks; expedited: 2-3 weeks, processing time only | Newly tracked this month |
| TSA PreCheck | TSA PreCheck: most new enrollments get a Known Traveler Number within about 5 days; allow up to 60 days | Newly tracked this month |
| US urgent passport | US urgent passport: urgent travel and life-or-death passport help are appointment workflows, not a normal mail-in processing queue | Newly tracked this month |
| USCIS N-400 | USCIS N-400: use the official USCIS processing-times tool by field office | Newly tracked this month |
United Kingdom
| Service | Official window now | Change this month |
|---|---|---|
| British citizenship naturalisation | British citizenship naturalisation: decisions usually within 6 months, with the ceremony booked after approval | Newly tracked this month |
| DVSA practical driving test | DVSA practical driving test: 20.9 weeks to 10%+ weekly availability in Great Britain | Newly tracked this month |
| Indefinite Leave to Remain | Indefinite Leave to Remain: 6-month service standard for settlement applications made inside the UK | Newly tracked this month |
| UK passport standard | UK passport standard: within 3 weeks | Newly tracked this month |
| UK Skilled Worker visa | UK Skilled Worker visa: about 3 weeks outside the UK and 8 weeks inside the UK, after biometrics | Newly tracked this month |
| UK spouse and partner visa | UK spouse and partner visas: 12-week service standard for applications made outside the UK | Newly tracked this month |
| UK student visa | UK student visa: about 3 weeks outside the UK and 8 weeks for in-UK applications, after biometrics | Newly tracked this month |
| UK visitor visa | UK Standard Visitor visa: usually 3 weeks after biometrics for applications made outside the UK | Newly tracked this month |
Canada
| Service | Official window now | Change this month |
|---|---|---|
| IRCC Express Entry PR | Canadian Experience Class (Express Entry): About 6 months | Newly tracked this month |
| Parents and Grandparents sponsorship | IRCC Parents and Grandparents Program: new intake paused; existing cases continue; about 30 months outside Quebec and 65 months for Quebec | Newly tracked this month |
| Passport Canada | Passport Canada: 10-20 business days for common in-Canada service channels | Newly tracked this month |
| IRCC spousal sponsorship | Canada spousal sponsorship: IRCC's published service standard is about 12 months for most new spousal permanent-residence applications | Newly tracked this month |
| Canada study permit | Canada study permit: published times vary by country of application, commonly between about 4 and 16 weeks | Newly tracked this month |
| Canada visitor visa | Canada visitor visa (TRV): processing times are published by country of application and vary widely; check the IRCC tool for your country | Newly tracked this month |
Australia
| Service | Official window now | Change this month |
|---|---|---|
| Australian bridging visas | Australian bridging visas: BVB page says there are no processing times available; travel rights, work conditions, and expiry rules depend on the bridging visa and underlying application | Newly tracked this month |
| Australian parent visa 143 | Australian parent visas: Home Affairs queue estimates show about 15 years for contributory parent visas and 33 years for parent or aged parent visas | Newly tracked this month |
| Australian partner visa | Australian partner visas: Home Affairs publishes percentile times by subclass and stage; many grants take a year or more | Newly tracked this month |
| Australian passport | Australian passport: 98% of routine passports within 6 weeks | Newly tracked this month |
| Australian skilled visas (189/190) | Australian skilled visas (189/190): Home Affairs publishes percentile times by subclass; time waiting for an invitation is separate and not included | Newly tracked this month |
| Subclass 485 visa | Subclass 485 Post-Higher Education Work: 50% in 59 days, 90% in 4 months | Newly tracked this month |
The Visa Bulletin cycle in July 2026
For US Green Card applicants the most important monthly document is the State Department Visa Bulletin, and the July 2026 bulletin is the current edition for fiscal year 2026. The bulletin controls when family-sponsored and employment-based applicants can move forward, sorted by preference category and country of chargeability. It publishes two charts: final action dates, which control when a case can be approved, and dates for filing, which control when adjustment-of-status paperwork can be submitted if USCIS accepts that chart for the month.
Two practical steps every bulletin reader should repeat monthly. First, read your own preference category and country line in both charts rather than the headline summaries, because movement is uneven across categories. Second, if you are adjusting status inside the United States, check the USCIS adjustment-of-status filing chart page for the month, because USCIS decides separately which chart it will accept. The August 2026 bulletin follows on the same cycle; the State Department publishes each new bulletin in the second half of the prior month, so check the official page below for the newest edition before you act.
What changed in July 2026
The July 2026 Visa Bulletin set this month's Green Card lines
Family-sponsored and employment-based cut-off dates for July come from the current bulletin. If your priority date became current, your next step depends on whether you are consular processing or adjusting status inside the United States.
How to read the July 2026 bulletinTPS work permits for six countries expired on July 17, 2026
Employment authorization tied to several Temporary Protected Status designations reached its end date mid-month, which affects both workers and employers running reverification.
Which countries and what to do nowEAD renewals no longer get the automatic extension
USCIS ended the automatic extension of employment authorization for renewal applications, which makes the current I-765 processing window the number that decides whether a worker faces a gap.
What the end of auto-extension meansThe FY2027 H-1B cap was reached
USCIS announced it has received enough registrations for the fiscal year 2027 H-1B cap, which closes the main route for new lottery hopefuls until next spring.
What cap-reached means for registrantsYour dates make next month's report better
Official numbers cannot show what applicants actually experience month by month. Sharing your application and decision dates on the service page you are waiting on helps the next reader see the real pace. Under a minute, dates only, nothing personal.
Find your serviceQuestions people actually ask
Where do the numbers in this report come from?
Every figure in the official tables is captured from a government source: USCIS processing times, the HM Passport Office, UK Visas and Immigration, IRCC, the Australian Department of Home Affairs, and the trusted traveler program pages. Each row links to the tracker page where the citation for the current figure is shown.
Why does a service show as newly tracked instead of showing a change?
A month-over-month comparison needs a figure from before the month started. Services QueueCheck began tracking during the month show the current official window without a comparison, and they join the delta table in the next edition.
Can this report predict when my own application will be decided?
No. Official windows describe agency workload across many applications, and waits shared by readers describe individual experiences. Both are queue context. Your own decision depends on your case, and official notices about your application always outrank anything here.
When does the next edition come out?
A new edition is published in the first week of each month covering the month that just ended. The tables on the current edition keep updating with the latest official figures until then.