How many F3 visas are there per year?

23,400 plus any numbers not needed by F1 and F2.

Can my grandchildren come with me in F3?

Your F3 beneficiary's unmarried children under 21 can come as derivatives.

Why is F3 Mexico so slow?

Mexican demand far exceeds Mexico's share under the per-country limit.

How does F3 (married children of U.S. citizens) move in the Visa Bulletin?

Updated November 12, 2026 · Not legal advice

F3 is for married sons and daughters of U.S. citizens and gets up to 23,400 visas a year plus numbers unused by F1 and F2. Their spouses and minor children come as derivatives, so each case uses several numbers, which is one reason F3 cutoffs are typically many years behind the bulletin month, and further behind for Mexico and the Philippines.

F3: current cutoff dates

See the current bulletin for this month's F3 dates: official Visa Bulletin on travel.state.gov. We do not copy dates by hand, so this page shows them only after our automated fetch has read the official bulletin.

USCIS says family-based adjustment applicants must use the Dates for Filing chart in the November 2026 Visa Bulletin (USCIS filing charts).

F3 at a glance (INA 203(a)(3))
Item	Rule
Annual limit	23,400 plus numbers not required for F1 and F2
Who	Married sons and daughters of U.S. citizens (any age)
Derivatives	Spouse and unmarried children under 21 come along
If divorced	Converts to F1 (or immediate relative if under 21)

Derivatives use numbers too

Every derivative spouse and child uses a visa number from the same F3 allocation, so a few thousand families can use many more numbers than the count of petitions suggests.

Movement history

This table is built month by month from the official bulletins as we read them, so it only shows months we have fetched. Until then, past bulletins are in the official archive.

Quick answers

How many F3 visas are there per year?: 23,400 plus any numbers not needed by F1 and F2.
Can my grandchildren come with me in F3?: Your F3 beneficiary's unmarried children under 21 can come as derivatives.
Why is F3 Mexico so slow?: Mexican demand far exceeds Mexico's share under the per-country limit.

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Sources

Checked: November 12, 2026