LawFlash

US Department of State Issues November 2015 Visa Bulletin

October 19, 2015

The new bulletin shows no movement in filing date cutoffs and little movement in approval date cutoffs for those chargeable to India and China.

The November 2015 Visa Bulletin shows little change from the October 2015 Visa Bulletin issued on September 25. The new category of filing date cutoffs remains exactly the same as in October, and only a few visa categories in the Application Final Action Dates chart have changed. This alert addresses employment-based classifications.

Application Final Action Dates for Employment-Based Preference Cases

The application final action cutoff dates for employment-based preference classification show movement in the following categories (changes shown in BOLD):


Employment-
Based

All Chargeability
Areas Except
Those Listed

China (mainland born)

India

Mexico

Philippines

1st

C

C

C

C

C

2nd

C

01FEB12

01AUG06

C

C

3rd

15AUG15

01JAN12

01APR04

15AUG15

15JUN07

Other Workers

15AUG15

01APR06

01APR04

15AUG15

15JUN07

4th

C

C

C

C

C

Certain Religious Workers

C

C

C

C

C

5th
Nonregional
Center
(C5 and T5)

C

22NOV13

C

C

C

5th
Regional
Center
(I5 and R5)

C

22NOV13

C

C

C

Movement in the Employment-Based Second Preference (EB-2) Classification

China second preference advanced to February 1, 2012 (one month): An individual chargeable to China in the second preference category may have his or her adjustment of status (AOS) or immigrant visa application approved if the person’s priority date is prior to February 1, 2012.

India second preference advanced to August 1, 2006 (15 months): An individual chargeable to India in the second preference category may have his or her AOS or immigrant visa application approved if the person’s priority date is prior to August 1, 2006.

Movement in the Employment-Based Third Preference (EB-3) Classification

China third preference advanced to January 1, 2012 (2.5 months): An individual chargeable to China in the third preference category may have his or her AOS or immigrant visa application approved if the person’s priority date is prior to January 1, 2012.

India third preference advanced to April 1, 2004 (three weeks): An individual chargeable to India in the third preference category may have his or her AOS or immigrant visa application approved if the person’s priority date is prior to April 1, 2004.

Philippines third preference advanced to June 1, 2007 (five months): An individual chargeable to the Philippines in the third preference category may have his or her AOS or immigrant visa application approved if the person’s priority date is prior to June 1, 2007.

Movement in the Employment-Based Fifth Preference (EB-5) Classification

China fifth preference Nonregional Center (C5 and T5) advanced to November 22, 2013 (five weeks), and China fifth preference regional center (I5 and 45) is now available for those individuals whose EB-3 cases were filed prior to November 22, 2013.

Dates for Filing Employment-Based Visa Applications

Application filing date cutoffs are as shown below:

Employment- Based

All Chargeability Areas Except
Those Listed

China (mainland born)

India

Mexico

Philippines

1st

C

C

C

C

C

2nd

C

01JAN13

01JUL09

C

C

3rd

01SEP15

01OCT13

01JUL05

01SEP15

01JAN10

Other Workers

01SEP15

01JAN07

01JUL05

01SEP15

01JAN10

4th

C

C

C

C

C

Certain Religious
Workers

C

C

C

C

C

5th Nonregional
Center (C5 and T5)

C

01MAY15

C

C

C

5th Regional Center
(I5 and R5)

C

01MAY15

C

C

C


First and fourth preference classifications remain current for all chargeable categories, as does the classification for certain religious workers.

Employment-based second preference classification for those chargeable to the worldwide quota, Mexico, and the Philippines remains current.

Employment-based fifth preference classification for the worldwide classification, India, Mexico, and the Philippines remains current.

Contacts

For more information, or if you have any questions regarding the issues discussed in this Immigration Alert, please contact any of the following lawyers:

Washington, DC
Eleanor Pelta
Eric S. Bord