Business Immigration Insights

The August Visa Bulletin brings no surprises.

Below is a summary that includes Final Action Dates and changes from the previous month, but first – some background if you’re new to these blog posts.  If you’re an old hand at the Visa Bulletin, feel free to skip the next paragraph.

The Visa Bulletin is released monthly by the US Department of State (in collaboration with US Citizenship and Immigration Services).  If your priority date (that is, the date you got a place on the waiting list) is earlier than the cutoff date listed in the Bulletin for your nationality and category, that means a visa number is available for you that month.  That, in turn, means you can submit your DS-260 immigrant visa application (if you’re applying at a US embassy abroad) or your I-485 adjustment of status application (if you’re applying with USCIS).  If you already submitted that final step and your category then retrogressed, it means the embassy or USCIS can now approve your application because a visa number is again available.

Now for the August VB – not much to report this month.  As we noted last month, the State Department significantly retrogressed EB-3 All Other Countries in line with its June prediction.  That retrogression sticks with us.  Last month’s happy surprise – the near 1-year leap forward in EB-1 India – also sticks.

Conversely, the State Department’s predicted retrogression in EB-3 All Other Countries still hasn’t materialized, but see NOTE 1 below.  With only 1 more Visa Bulletin to go this fiscal year, the category may “go dark” in September.

India is the only country that will see some modest movement in August, and in only 2 categories:

• EB-3 Professionals and EB-3 Other Workers will advance 1 month, to October 22, 2012
• Other categories will freeze:
  • EB-1 at February 1, 2022
  • EB-2 at June 15, 2012

There’s no change from July for China; all categories are on hold:

• EB-1 stuck at November 1, 2022
• EB-2 at March 1, 2020
• EB-3 Professionals and EB-3 Other Workers at September 1, 2020, and January 1, 2017, respectively

Likewise, All Other Countries remains unchanged from last month:

• EB-1 remains current
• All other categories stall:
  • EB-2 at March 15, 2023
  • EB-3 Professionals at December 1, 2021 (see NOTE 1 below)
  • EB-3 Other Workers stalls January 1, 2021 (except Philippines, stuck at May 1, 2020) (see NOTE 1 below)

NOTE 1:  This month’s Bulletin predicts that continued high demand and number use in EB-3 All Other Countries will result in retrogression or make the category “Unauthorized” (aka “Unavailable”) for any visa issuance at all in September.

NOTE 2:   USCIS will accept I-485 applications in August based on Final Action Dates, not the more favorable Dates for Filing chart.  Note that the Dates for Filing chart applies only to I-485 applications with USCIS.  Immigrant visa applications with US embassies are always based on the Final Action Dates chart.