Do EB-1A and EB-1B share a combined cap?

Yes. EB-1A and EB-1B belong to the same first employment-based preference category, EB-1, and have no separate quotas: they share the same annual visa cap allocated to the category as a whole.

In practice, this means that EB-1A and EB-1B petitions (along with EB-1C, which is also part of the category) compete within the same limit. The numbers available for each profile come from that shared total, not from independent reserves.

As a result, availability can fluctuate over time and may even retrogress at certain points. The document to follow is the Visa Bulletin, published officially, which shows the status of priority dates. Policies can also change, so today’s picture is no guarantee for the future.

Before filing, it is worth checking current availability in the Visa Bulletin and on the USCIS website and, if possible, reviewing your strategy with a specialist, without counting on guaranteed outcomes.

About the author

Victoria Harper

Editor-in-Chief

Meet the author

As a journalist and lead editor at Visto n’ Visa, Victoria helps ensure that immigration topics are covered in a clear, trustworthy, and easy-to-understand way. Her focus is on delivering useful, human, and relevant content for people exploring new paths abroad.