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 Permanent Residents are in 2B.
2A: The 2 "A" preference is for Spouses and Children of 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 Citizens.(about 23,000 per year)
4th: Brothers and Sisters of Adult 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 | INDIA------ | MEXICO | PHILIPPINES | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PREF | |||||
| 1st | 15 MAR 02 | 15 MAR 02 | 15 MAR 02 | 08 AUG 92 | 22 MAR 93 |
| 2A | 01 OCT 03 | 01 OCT 03 | 01 OCT 03 | U | 01 OCT 03 |
| 2B | 01 NOV 99 | 01 NOV 99 | 01 NOV 99 | 15 APR 92 | 15 MAR 97 |
| 3rd | 08 JUN 00 | 08 JUN 00 | 08 JUN 00 | 08 SEP 92 | 01 APR 91 |
| 4th | 08 SEP 97 | 22 FEB 97 | 22 FEB 97 | 08 JAN 95 | 08 MAR 86 |
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 | INDIA | MEXICO | PHILIPPINES | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PREF | |||||
| 1st | C | C | C | C | C |
| 2nd | C | 01 JUN 06 | 01 JUN 06 | C | C |
| 3rd | U | U | U | U | U |
| Other Workers | U | U | U | U | U |
| 4th | C | C | C | C | C |
| 5th | 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 AUGUST 2008, DV 2008 visas are available to qualified applicants with cut-off dates BELOW the numbers shown below.
AFRICA below 47,000 Except EGYPT below 31,000; ETHIOPIA below 22,800; AND NIGERIA below 16,600; ASIA CURRENT; EUROPE CURRENT; NORTH AMERICA (Bahamas) CURRENT; OCEANIA OC CURRENT; SOUTH AMERICA, CENTRAL AMERICA, and the CARIBBEAN CURRENT.
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 2007 ended on September 30, 2007. A DV2007 lottery registration gives no benefit after that date.
(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 SEPTEMBER, DV 2008 Visas will be available to qualified applicants with cut-off dates BELOW the numbers shown below.
AFRICA below 62,300 Except NIGERIA below 18,450; ASIA CURRENT; EUROPE CURRENT; NORTH AMERICA (Bahamas) CURRENT; OCEANIA OC CURRENT; SOUTH AMERICA, CENTRAL AMERICA, and the CARIBBEAN CURRENT.
[Editors Note not part of the official Visa Bulletin: For DV 2008 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 08 July 2008
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 2008. No copyright is claimed for information published by the US government.
Last edit 14 July 2008