VISA BULLETIN FOR FEBRUARY 2016

The U.S. Department of State (DOS) March 2016 Visa Bulletin shows advancement in the employment-based third preference (EB-3) worldwide category. The final action (FA) cutoff date in the employment-based second preference category for India also advances, but at a slower pace than in recent months. The EB-1 and EB-4 categories remain current in the March 2016 Visa Bulletin. DOS predicts that EB-1 will remain current in upcoming months.

EB-4 is also expected to remain current for most countries. The EB-2 category remains current in the FA chart, except for India and China. India’s FA cutoff date advances by two and a half months, to October 15th, 2008. China’s FA EB-2 cutoff date moves by five months, to August 1st, 2012. EB-2 China also moves forward by five months in the dates for filing (DF) chart, to June 1st, 2013. EB-2 India’s DF cutoff date is still stuck at July 1st, 2009.

The DOS predicts that EB-2 worldwide will remain current for several months. EB-2 India is expected to advance by up to three months per month through June. EB-2 China is predicted to advance by up to five months per month during the same time period. The EB-3 worldwide category FA cutoff date advances by three months, to January 1st, 2016. The same FA cutoff date continues to apply to EB3 Mexico. India’s EB-3 cutoff date advanced by a month in the FA chart, to July 15th, 2004. In the FA chart, China advances by eight months, to June 1st, 2013. The cutoff date for EB-3 China in the DF chart advanced to May 1st, 2015. The EB-3 FA cutoff date for the Philippines moved forward to March 15th, 2008.

The DOS explained that the rapid advancement in EB-3 worldwide and Mexico over the past ten months is expected to generate a a great deal of demand. Once that demand occurs, the cutoff date movement may likely slow. The DOS expects the EB-3 India cutoff date in the FA chart to advance by up to one month each month through June 2016. China is expected to advance by up to five months per month during the same period.

The EB-3 “other workers” FA cutoff dates continue to match the general EB-3 cutoff dates, with the exception of China. China’s EB-3 other worker FA cutoff date advances by just over a month, to February 1st, 2007. In the DF chart, EB-3 China moves up by seven months, to August 1st, 2007.

The EB5 category continues to be current throughout, with the exception of China. China’s EB5 FA cutoff date advances by just a few days, to January 22, 2014.