Short answer: there is no age limit for EB-3 Unskilled (official name: "Other Workers"). U.S. immigration law sets no minimum or maximum age for the worker. What really matters is a real, permanent, full-time job offer, a certified PERM, and your health and documents at the end. Age matters a lot for your children, though: only unmarried children under 21 can come with you, and the long wait can push a child over that line.
Is there an EB-3 Unskilled age limit?
No. USCIS's EB-3 page lists what an Other Workers case needs: a permanent, full-time job offer from a U.S. employer, an approved labor certification (PERM), and a job that needs less than two years of training or experience. Age is not on that list. A worker of 25 and a worker of 50 go through the same steps and wait in the same line.
Age can still matter in practice, in three ways:
- The employer chooses the worker. Factory, food processing and farm jobs are physical. The employer wants someone who can do the job for years.
- The medical exam. Before the interview every applicant has a medical exam with a panel physician. It checks public-health conditions and vaccinations – not age.
- Your children's ages. This is the part most families miss. See below.
What the employer and the embassy look at instead
| Step | What is checked | Is age a rule? |
|---|---|---|
| Job offer and PERM | Real permanent job, wage, recruitment of U.S. workers | No |
| I-140 (USCIS) | Employer's ability to pay, you meet the job requirements | No |
| Visa Bulletin wait | Your priority date and country of birth | No |
| NVC and interview | Civil documents, police certificates, medical exam, intent to take the job | No, but children's ages decide who can come |
Can my wife and children come with me on EB-3?
Yes. Your spouse and your unmarried children under 21 can receive immigrant visas as your "derivatives". They do not need their own job offer. They use your priority date and wait in your line. They can travel with you or follow you later. Two rules:
- The marriage must exist before you immigrate. A spouse you marry after you get your green card needs a separate family petition.
- A child must be under 21 (by the CSPA calculation below) and unmarried. A child who marries can no longer come as your derivative.
The child age problem: a worked example
The EB-3 Other Workers line is long. In the November 2026 Visa Bulletin, the final action date for "all chargeability" (this includes Bangladesh and Korea) was 1 June 2022 – a wait of about 4 years and 5 months. The whole process takes about 5 years. A 17-year-old at the start can be over 21 at the end.
The Child Status Protection Act (CSPA) helps a little. According to USCIS, the "CSPA age" is the child's age when a visa becomes available minus the time the I-140 was pending. Example (example family, example dates):
- May 2022: PERM filed, priority date May 2022.
- PERM certified in April 2023. I-140 filed in May 2023, approved in July 2023: pending 2 months.
- November 2026: the date is current, a visa is available.
- Daughter: 21 years and 1 month in November 2026, minus 2 months = CSPA age 20 years 11 months – protected.
- Son: 22 years and 6 months, minus 2 months = 22 years 4 months – not protected.
Even a protected child must "seek to acquire" the green card within one year of the visa becoming available; USCIS says submitting the DS-260 (Part 1) counts. Missing this can lose the protection. You can check your own family with our child age (CSPA) calculator.
What if my child ages out?
An aged-out child cannot come on your EB-3 case. After you become a permanent resident you can file a family petition for an unmarried son or daughter (category F2B), but that is a new, separate line with its own wait. This is why the age of every child should be checked before the employer files PERM, not at the interview.
Checklist for older applicants and parents
- Write down every child's date of birth and calculate the age in about 5 years.
- Ask the attorney how long the I-140 is likely to be pending and whether premium processing is used – a faster I-140 means less CSPA time to subtract.
- Check that birth certificates and the marriage certificate are correct now; see our document checklist.
- Follow the Visa Bulletin every month on our Visa Bulletin history page and answer NVC quickly when the date comes.
- Be honest with yourself about the physical job: you must work for the sponsoring employer after you arrive.
FAQ
I am over 45. Can I still apply for EB-3 Unskilled?
Yes. The law has no upper age limit. Whether you are hired is the employer's decision.
Can my parents come with me?
No. Parents are not EB-3 derivatives. Only a U.S. citizen aged 21 or older can petition for parents.
Do my children need to work for the employer too?
No. Derivatives get the same green card without a job offer of their own. More about the full process: EB-3 Unskilled – requirements and process.
This article is general information, not legal advice. Your attorney decides on your case. Dates are from the November 2026 Visa Bulletin and change every month.