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Last Updated On: September 29, 2023 | Published On: April 16, 2018
As we gradually approach summer, we take our monthly look at the latest visa bulletin provided by the Department of State to see where the green card final action dates have moved. Keep reading if terms such as “final action dates” and “priority dates” are new for you. If you are already familiar with how a green card works, you can go straight to the report.
So, if you are interested in getting a green card but have never encountered the monthly visa bulletins, here are some definitions to get you up to speed.
Priority Date – This is the date that the USCIS receives your green card petition (not the date that you file it). This is the date that you should keep in mind when looking over the May visa bulletin report.
Final Action Date – These dates are what you will see listed below. Each month, these dates have the potential to change. They could move forward, stay in place, or retrogress (move backward). Once the final action date in your category matches or passes your priority date, the latter will be considered “current” and you will be able to adjust your status or make an appointment for consular processing.
There is a limited number of green cards that are made available each year to each country. Some countries (especially those that are more populated) petition for more visas than the limit, which creates a backlog. If your priority date will not be current for several years, then your country has oversubscribed its category.
If the final action date for your category and country has a “C” in it, then your priority date is current as soon as the USCIS receives your petition and you can move forward when your petition is approved without waiting.
And now, without further ado, here are the dates for both family-based and employment-based green cards according to the May visa bulletin for 2018.
The family-based category of green cards is dependent on which family member can sponsor you. This category is divided into four preference levels and five chargeability areas (countries). These are China, India, Mexico, the Philippines, and all other countries (we’ll call this the general category).
F-1: Children and Dependents of U.S. Citizens
F-2A: Spouses and Unmarried Children Under 21 of Green Card Holders
F-2B: Children Over 21 of Green Card Holders
F-3: Married Children of U.S. Citizens
F-4: Siblings of U.S. Citizens
The green cards that are based on employment require you to work in the U.S. either through an employer or on your own. This newest visa bulletin has officially added a new chargeability area to the six that previously existed for employment green cards. There are now a total of seven chargeability areas and five preference levels. The areas include China, India, Mexico, the Philippines, Central America (which is El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala), Vietnam, and the general category.
EB-1: Workers of Extraordinary Achievement, Outstanding Researchers and Professors, and Multinational Executives and Managers
EB-2: Advanced Degree Holders and Workers With Exceptional Ability
EB-3: Professional, Skilled, and Unskilled “Other” Workers
EB-4: Special Workers
EB-5: Investors
As we discussed earlier, the Department of State has added Vietnam to the list of individual chargeability areas. According to the May visa bulletin, this was because Vietnam will oversubscribe the EB-5 category. It states that “the Vietnam Employment Fifth preference category will remain subject to a final action date for the foreseeable future.”
Additionally, the Special Immigrant category (which has only 50 available visas) may become unavailable in the coming months, according to the bulletin.
Remember that retrogression is due to having too many applicants from one country petition for the same green card. Unfortunately, outside of “porting” your status (essentially filing a petition for a green card of a higher preference level), there is no way to shorten the amount of time you will have to wait.
There are many benefits of being in-the-know when it comes to your immigration situation. The landscape is constantly changing, so you can save time, effort, and money by staying on top of the latest info like the May visa bulletin. One way to do this is to subscribe to the Department of State’s newsletter by emailing [email protected] with the message “Subscribe Visa Bulletin”.