This Visa Bulletin has been edited and annotated to make it easier to read, less technical, and (we hope) more useful to you.
Immigrant Visa Dates, Bureau of Consular Affairs
2. The fiscal year limit for family-sponsored preference immigrants for a country is 7% of the total annual family-sponsored and employment-based preference limits, i.e., 25,262 for the Fiscal Year. The yearly limit for a dependent area (e.g. Bermuda) is set at 2%, or 7,320.
2nd: Spouses and Children(who are under 21 and unmarried) are in 2A, and Unmarried Sons and Daughters (who are over 21) of US Legal Permanent Residents (LPR) are in Preference 2B.
2A: The 2A preference is for Spouses and Children of US LPR's.
2B: The 2 "B" Preference is for Unmarried Sons and Daughters (21 years of age or older) of LPR's.
3rd: Married Sons and Daughters of US Citizens.(about 23,000 per year)
4th: Brothers and Sisters of Adult US Citizens.(about 65,000 per year)
4. Family-sponsored and employment based preference visas are issued to eligible immigrants in the order in which petitions are filed. Spouses and children of preference immigrants are entitled to the same status, and the same order of consideration, if accompanying or following to join the principal. (This means that family members can be given immigrant visas also if they travel with or follow to join the person with the approved petition without filing individual petitions themselves. This rule does NOT apply to Immediate Relatives of U.S. citizens each of whom needs an individual petition.
5. On the charts below, the listing of a date for any class indicates that there is a wait for visas; "C" means current, i.e., visas are available for all qualified applicants; and "U" means Unavailable, i.e., no visas are available at this time. (NOTE: Visas are available only for applicants whose priority date is earlier than the cut-off date listed here.)
| ALL AREAS EXCEPT THOSE LISTED | CHINA, Mainland Born | DOMINICAN REPUBLIC | INDIA------ | MEXICO | PHILIPPINES | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PREF | ||||||
| 1st | 01 APR 05 | 01 APR 05 | 01 APR 05 | 01 APR 05 | 01 NOV 92 | 01 SEP 95 |
| 2A | 01 JUL 08 | 01 JUL 08 | 01 JUN 07 | 01 JUL 08 | 01 JUN 07 | 01 JUL 08 |
| 2B | 01 MAY 03 | 01 MAY 03 | 01 MAY 03 | 01 MAY 03 | 15 JUN 92 | 01 MAR 00 |
| 3rd | 01 SEP 01 | 01 SEP 01 | 01 SEP 01 | 01 SEP 01 | 01 MAR 92 | 01 MAY 93 |
| 4th | 01 JAN 01 | 01 JAN 01 | 01 JAN 01 | 01 JAN 01 | 01 MAR 95 | 01 APR 89 |
1st: Priority Workers.
2nd: Members of the Professions Holding Advanced Degrees or Persons of Exceptional Ability.
3rd: Skilled Workers, Professionals, and Other Workers (Other Workers include those in sponsored jobs which require less than two years of training or experience.)
4th: "Special Immigrants"
5th: Employment Creation (Investors)
| ALL AREAS EXCEPT THOSE LISTED | CHINA, Mainland Born | DOMINICAN REPUBLIC | INDIA | MEXICO | PHILIPPINES | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PREF | ||||||
| 1st | C | C | C | C | C | C |
| 2nd | C | 22 NOV 05 | C | 01 OCT 05 | C | C |
| 3rd | 15 AUG 03 | 15 AUG 03 | 15 AUG 03 | 22 NOV 01 | U | 15 AUG 03 |
| Other Workers | 01 JUN 01 | 01 JUN 01 | 01 JUN 01 | 01 JUN 01 | U | 01 JUN 01 |
| 4th | C | C | C | C | C | C |
| 5th | C | C | C | C | C | C |
An increase in applications for visas from older cases can cause the date to move back or become Unavailable. A reduced demand by older causes the Priority Date to move forward or become "C" Current. If the demand stays high and all available visas are used up, a Priority Date may become "U" Unavailable until the next fiscal year begins (October). In the new Fiscal Year some of the Unavailable entries may move forward to last date used in the previous fiscal year (the date used before it became Unavailable.)
Section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act provides 50,000 immigrant visas each fiscal year for persons from countries other than the principal sources of current immigration to the United States. DV visas are divided among six geographic regions. Not more than 3,850 visas (7% of the 50,000 visa limit) may be provided to immigrants from any one country.
The allotment of DV visa numbers for each region is approximately as follows: Africa, 20,426; Asia, 7,087; Europe, 24,257; North America (Bahamas): 8, South America, Central America, and the Caribbean: 2,407; and Oceania, 815.
In JULY 2010, DV 2010 visas are available to qualified applicants with cut-off dates BELOW the numbers shown below.
AFRICA 54,100 Except EGYPT below 24,500; ETHIOPIA below 25,100 NIGERIA below 18,850; ASIA 23,500; EUROPE 32,000; NORTH AMERICA (Bahamas) 5; OCEANIA OC 1,300; SOUTH AMERICA, CENTRAL AMERICA, and the CARIBBEAN 1,500.
IMPORTANT NOTE FOR DV CASES: Entitlement to immigrant status in the DV category lasts only through the end of the fiscal year for which the applicant is selected in the lottery. The year of entitlement for all applicants registered for Fiscal Year DV 2009 ended September 30, 2009. A DV2009 lottery registration giveS no benefit after that date.
Instructions for DV Lottery 2011 are at the link here. Use your Internet Browser backbutton to return to this page.
(Editor's Note, not part of the official Visa Bulletin.) ADVANCE DV AVAILABILITY: if an advance cut-off date published in the VISA BULLETIN is below the rank number of a selected DV applicant, the applicant can file a DV visa application with a consul or can submit an Adjustment of Status application (if in the US and if qualified to adjust) before the date on which the rank number will be reached if the date is shown in advance in the Visa Bulletin. Recent Bulletins have been publishing dates one month in advance.
As an example, if a selected DV applicant has a DV rank number of Europe 14,499 and the January Visa Bulletin shows that the rank Cut-Off number for Europe will be 14,500 in March, then the applicant can apply on or after 01 February. This allows more time for processing the DV application.
Caution: Since it can take several months to process an application for a DV visa, if a qualified applicant has not submitted the application papers several months before September 30, there is a possiblity that processing will not be completed by the last day of the Fiscal Year and the DV case will expire. The time needed for processing depends on where the visa application is submitted.
The following DV Advance Dates are taken from the official Visa Bulletin.
ADVANCE NOTICE OF DV VISA AVAILABILITY
In AUG 2010, DV 2010 Visas will be available to qualified applicants with cut-off dates BELOW the numbers shown below.
AFRICA 64,300 Except EGYPT below 26.000; ETHIOPIA below 25,625 NIGERIA below 22,000; ASIA 28,700; EUROPE: CURRENT (All EU rank numbers can be processed); NORTH AMERICA (Bahamas) 5; OCEANIA CURRENT; SOUTH AMERICA, CENTRAL AMERICA, and the CARIBBEAN: CURRENT.
[Editors Note not part of the official Visa Bulletin: For DV 2010 totals selected by country, see DV "Totals By Country" on this web site.]
Do you have a general question about preferences or dates? Send e-mail to rmadison@lawcom.com
The Department of State has available a recorded message with visa availability information which can be heard at: area code (202) 663-1541. This recording is changed in the middle of each month with information on cut-off dates for the following month.
OBTAINING THE MONTHLY VISA BULLETIN: The Department of State's Bureau of Consular Affairs offers the monthly "Visa Bulletin" on the INTERNET. The INTERNET address of the Bulletin is http://travel.state.gov/frvi_bulletin.html
To be placed on the Department of State's E-mail subscription list, send your e-mail address to: listserv@calist.state.gov. In the body of the message type: "Subscribe Visa-Bulletin First Name/Last Name
Example: Subscribe Visa-Bulletin Robert Smith
The above dates and numbers are from the Department of State Publication 9514 CA/VO released 9 Jun 2010
The original unedited Visa Bulletin and archive of past Bulletins is available at Official Visa Bulletin Use your browser "Back" button to return here.
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© Richard Madison 2010. No copyright is claimed for information published by the US government.
Last edit 11 Jun 2010