IMMIGRANT NUMBERS FOR NOVEMBER 1997
A. STATUTORY NUMBERS (This communication provides priority dates
and other transitional information as taken from the State
Department's Visa Bulletin released October 10, 1997.) On the
following chart, the listing of a date for any class indicates that
the class is oversubscribed; "C" means current, i.e., numbers are
available for all qualified applicants; and "U" means unavailable,
i.e., no numbers are available.
PREFERENCES
FAMILY
All Charge-
ability Areas
Except Those
Listed INDIA MEXICO PHILIPPINES
1st 01FEB95 01FEB95 01MAY93 13OCT86
2A* 22JUN93 22JUN93 22SEP92 22JUN93
2B 01JUN91 01JUN91 01MAY91 01JUN91
3rd 08MAY94 08MAY94 01JAN89 01JUN86
4th 01APR87 15JUL85 01OCT86 08MAR78
*NOTE: For NOVEMBER, 2A numbers EXEMPT from per-country limit are
available to applicants from all countries with priority dates
earlier than 22SEP92. 2A numbers SUBJECT to per-country limit are
available to applicants chargeable to all countries EXCEPT MEXICO
with priority dates beginning 22SEP92 and earlier than 22JUN93.
(2A numbers subject to per-country limit are "unavailable" for
applicants chargeable to MEXICO.)
EMPLOYMENT-BASED
All Charge-
ability Areas
Except Those
Listed INDIA MEXICO PHILIPPINES
1st C C C C
2nd C 01DEC95 C C
3rd C 15DEC94 C C
Other 01APR90 01APR90 01APR90 01APR90
Workers
4th C C C C
Certain 01NOV96 01NOV96 01NOV96 01NOV96
Religious Workers
5th C C C C
Targeted C C C C
Employment Areas/Regional Centers
The Department of State has available a recorded message with visa
availability information which can be heard at (202) 663-1541. This
recording will be updated in the middle of each month with
information on cut-off dates for the following month.
ADDITIONAL HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE NOVEMBER 1997 VISA BULLETIN
B. DIVERSITY IMMIGRANT (DV) CATEGORY
Section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act provides
55,000 immigrant visas each fiscal year to provide immigration
opportunities 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 55,000 visa limit) may be provided to immigrants from any
one country.
For NOVEMBER, immigrant numbers in the DV category are available to
qualified applicants chargeable to all regions/eligible countries
on a CURRENT basis.
(NOTE: All regions/countries will be "Current" for December as
well. For January, a rank cut-off will be establish for Africa and
Asia (regional) as well as Albania (country) to hold issuances
within the numerical limits.
All other areas will remain Current for January. It remains to be
seen if applicant demand will increase sufficiently to require
oversubscription of any other region/country for a subsequent
month.)
Entitlement to immigrant status in the DV category lasts only
through the end of the fiscal (visa) year for which the applicant
is selected in the lottery. The year of entitlement for all
applicants registered for the DV-98 program ends as of September
30, 1998. DV visas may not be issued to DV-98 applicants after
that date. Similarly, spouses and children accompanying or
following to join DV-98 principals are only entitled to derivative
DV status until September 30, 1998. DV visa availability through
the very end of FY-1998 cannot be taken for granted. Numbers could
be exhausted prior to September 30. Once all numbers provided by
law for the DV-98 program have been used, no further issuances will
be possible.
C. RETROGRESSION OF THE INDIA EMPLOYMENT THIRD CUT-OFF DATE
Continued heavy applicant demand for INDIA Employment THIRD
preference numbers (primarily for adjustment of status cases at INS
offices) has required the retrogression of this cut-off date for
November. During FY-98, 2,803 visa numbers are provided by law for
the INDIA Employment Third preference category. Visa demand is
very much in excess of this limit and cut-off date movement is
likely to be slow for the next several months. If later in the
fiscal year the numbers which fall into the Third preference,
the visa cut-off date for that category may be able to move ahead
more rapidly.
Disclaimer: This newsletter is provided as a public service and not intended to establish an attorney client relationship. Any reliance on information contained herein is taken at your own risk. The information provided in this article has not been updated since its original posting and you should not rely on it until you consult counsel to determine if the content is still valid. We keep older articles online because it helps in the understanding of the development of immigration law.