In the September 2019 Visa Bulletin issued by the US Department of State, all employment-based classifications are again backlogged.
The US Department of State has released its September 2019 Visa Bulletin outlining per-country priority date cutoffs that regulate immigrant visa availability and the flow of status adjustments and consular immigrant visa application filings and approvals.
In an August 16 meeting addressing the Department of State Liaison Committee, Charles Oppenheim advised that the entire EB-3 category would be made immediately unavailable (U) for the remainder of fiscal year 2019, as annual limits have been reached on all countries for the EB-3 category.
In addition to EB-3 unavailability, the EB-4 and Certain Religious Workers categories are also completely unavailable for all countries.
The bulletin includes both a Dates for Filing Visa Applications chart and an Application Final Action Dates chart. The former indicates when intending immigrants may file their applications for adjustments of status or immigrant visas, and the latter indicates when adjustment of status applications or immigrant visa applications may be approved and permanent residence granted. As in the last several months, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will continue to use the Final Action Dates chart for employment-based (EB) filings for adjustment of status. This means that individuals seeking to file applications for adjustment of status with USCIS in September 2019 must use the Final Action Dates chart below.
To be eligible to receive approval of a pending EB adjustment application in September 2019, a foreign national must have a priority date that is earlier than the date listed below for his or her preference category and country.
Final Action Dates for Employment-Based Preference Class
|
EB |
All Charge- |
China |
El Salvador, |
India |
Mexico |
Philippines |
Vietnam |
|
1st |
01OCT17 (was 01JUL16) |
01JAN14 (was 01JUL16) |
01OCT17 (was 01JUL16) |
U* (was 01JAN15) |
01OCT17 (was 01JUL16) |
01OCT17 (was 01JUL16) |
01OCT17 (was 01JUL16) |
|
2nd |
01JAN18 (was 01JAN17) |
01JAN17 (no change) |
01JAN18 (was 01JAN17) |
08MAY09 (was 02MAY09) |
01JAN18 (was 01JAN17) |
01JAN18 (was 01JAN17) |
01JAN18 (was 01JAN17) |
|
3rd |
U (was 01JUL16) |
U (was 01JUL16) |
U (was 01JUL16) |
U (was 01JAN16) |
U (was 01JUL16) |
U (was 01JUL16) |
U (was 01JUL16) |
|
Other Workers |
01JUL16 (no change) |
22NOV07 (no change) |
01JUL16 (no change) |
01JUL05 (was 01JAN06) |
01JUL16 (no change) |
01JUL16 (no change) |
01JUL16 (no change) |
*Note that “U" means unavailable, i.e., visa numbers are not currently available for issuance.
On the Final Action Dates chart, the India EB-1 cutoff date is now “U,” or unavailable. It is anticipated that this backlog will continue for the rest of the 2019 fiscal year. For China, the EB-1 cutoff date retrogressed 2.5 years to January 1, 2014. The cutoff dates for EB-1 for All Chargeability Areas, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, the Philippines, and Vietnam all advanced 15 months to October 1, 2017.
In EB-2, the cutoff for India will advance by six days to May 8, 2009. The cutoff dates for EB-2 All Chargeability Areas, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, the Philippines, and Vietnam will all advance by one year to January 1, 2018. The EB-2 cutoff for China will remain at January 1, 2017.
The EB-3 cutoff dates for the worldwide allotment, China, India, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, the Philippines, and Vietnam are all unavailable through the end of fiscal year 2019, which ends September 30, 2019.
If you have any questions or would like more information on the issues discussed in this alert, please contact any of the following Morgan Lewis lawyers:
Washington, DC
Shannon A. Donnelly
Eleanor Pelta
Eric S. Bord
Miami
Laura C. Garvin