*Employment Third Preference Other Workers Category: Section 203(e) of the Nicaraguan and Central American Relief Act (NACARA) passed by Congress in November 1997, as amended by Section 1(e) of Pub. L. 105-139, provides that once the Employment Third Preference Other Worker (EW) cut-off date has reached the priority date of the latest EW petition approved prior to November 19, 1997, the 10,000 EW numbers available for a fiscal year are to be reduced by up to 5,000 annually beginning in the following fiscal year. This reduction is to be made for as long as necessary to offset adjustments under the NACARA program. Since the EW final action date reached November 19, 1997 during Fiscal Year 2001, the reduction in the EW annual limit to 5,000 began in Fiscal Year 2002. For Fiscal Year 2021 this reduction will be limited to approximately 150.
B. DATES FOR FILING OF EMPLOYMENT-BASED VISA APPLICATIONS
The chart below reflects dates for filing visa applications within a timeframe justifying immediate action in the application process. Applicants for immigrant visas who have a priority date earlier than the application date in the chart may assemble and submit required documents to the Department of State’s National Visa Center, following receipt of notification from the National Visa Center containing detailed instructions. The application date for an oversubscribed category is the priority date of the first applicant who cannot submit documentation to the National Visa Center for an immigrant visa. If a category is designated “current,” all applicants in the relevant category may file, regardless of priority date.
The “C” listing indicates that the category is current, and that applications may be filed regardless of the applicant’s priority date. The listing of a date for any category indicates that only applicants with a priority date which is earlier than the listed date may file their application.
Visit www.uscis.gov/visabulletininfo for information on whether USCIS has determined that this chart can be used (in lieu of the chart in paragraph 5.A.) this month for filing applications for adjustment of status with USCIS.
Employment-
based |
All Chargeability
Areas Except
Those Listed |
CHINA-
mainland
born |
EL SALVADOR
GUATEMALA
HONDURAS |
INDIA |
MEXICO |
PHILIPPINES |
1st |
C |
01NOV20 |
C |
01NOV20 |
C |
C |
2nd |
C |
01OCT16 |
C |
15MAY11 |
C |
C |
3rd |
C |
01JUN18 |
C |
01JAN14 |
C |
C |
Other Workers |
C |
01JUL09 |
C |
01JAN14 |
C |
C |
4th |
C |
C |
01SEP18 |
C |
C |
C |
Certain Religious Workers |
C |
C |
01SEP18 |
C |
C |
C |
5th Non-Regional Center
(C5 and T5) |
C |
15DEC15 |
C |
C |
C |
C |
5th Regional Center
(I5 and R5) |
C |
15DEC15 |
C |
C |
C |
C |
6. The Department of State has a recorded message with the Final Action date information which can be heard at: (202) 485-7699. This recording is updated on or about the seventeenth of each month with information on final action dates for the following month.
B. DIVERSITY IMMIGRANT (DV) CATEGORY FOR THE MONTH OF FEBRUARY
Section 203(c) of the INA provides up to 55,000 immigrant visas each fiscal year to permit additional immigration opportunities for persons from countries with low admissions during the previous five years. The NACARA stipulates that beginning with DV-99, and for as long as necessary, up to 5,000 of the 55,000 annually allocated diversity visas will be made available for use under the NACARA program. This will result in reduction of the DV-2021 annual limit to approximately 54,850. DV visas are divided among six geographic regions. No one country can receive more than seven percent of the available diversity visas in any one year.
For February, immigrant numbers in the DV category are available to qualified DV-2021 applicants chargeable to all regions/eligible countries as follows. When an allocation cut-off number is shown, visas are available only for applicants with DV regional lottery rank numbers BELOW the specified allocation cut-off number:
Region |
All DV Chargeability Areas Except
Those Listed Separately |
|
---|
AFRICA |
12,000 |
Except: Egypt 7,200 |
ASIA |
5,000 |
Except: Iran 3,000
Nepal 3,950
|
EUROPE |
8,200 |
|
NORTH AMERICA (BAHAMAS) |
5 |
|
OCEANIA |
725 |
|
SOUTH AMERICA,
and the CARIBBEAN |
875 |
|
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-2021 program ends as of September 30, 2021. DV visas may not be issued to DV-2021 applicants after that date. Similarly, spouses and children accompanying or following to join DV-2021 principals are only entitled to derivative DV status until September 30, 2021. DV visa availability through the very end of FY-2021 cannot be taken for granted. Numbers could be exhausted prior to September 30.
C. THE DIVERSITY (DV) IMMIGRANT CATEGORY RANK CUT-OFFS WHICH WILL APPLY IN MARCH
For March, immigrant numbers in the DV category are available to qualified DV-2021 applicants chargeable to all regions/eligible countries as follows. When an allocation cut-off number is shown, visas are available only for applicants with DV regional lottery rank numbers BELOW the specified allocation cut-off number:
Region |
All DV Chargeability Areas Except
Those Listed Separately |
|
---|
AFRICA |
14,000 |
Except: Egypt 10,000 |
ASIA |
6,200 |
Except: Iran 3,800
Nepal 4,200 |
EUROPE |
9,400 |
|
NORTH AMERICA (BAHAMAS) |
6 |
|
OCEANIA |
900 |
|
SOUTH AMERICA,
and the CARIBBEAN |
1,175 |
|
D. FOR THE LATEST INFORMATION ON VISA PROCESSING AT U.S. EMBASSIES AND CONSULATES DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC, PLEASE VISIT THE BUREAU OF CONSULAR AFFAIRS WEBSITE AT TRAVEL.STATE.GOV
E. VISA AVAILABILITY IN THE COMING MONTHS
FAMILY-sponsored categories (potential monthly movement)
Worldwide dates:
F1: Up to two weeks
F2A: Current
F2B: Up to two weeks
F3: Up to three weeks
F4: Up to two weeks
EMPLOYMENT-based categories (potential monthly movement)
Employment First:
Worldwide: Current
China: Up to six months
India: Up to six months
Employment Second:
Worldwide: Current
China: Up to three weeks
India: Up to two weeks
Employment Third:
Worldwide: Current
China: Up to one month
India: Up to three weeks
Mexico: Current
Philippines: Current
Employment Fourth: Current for most countries
El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras: Up to three months
Mexico: Up to one month
Employment Fifth: The category will remain “Current” for most countries
China: No forward movement
Vietnam: Up to three weeks
The above final action date projections for the Family and Employment categories indicate what is likely to happen on a monthly basis through May. The determination of the actual monthly final action dates is subject to fluctuations in applicant demand and a number of other variables impacting processing.
F. ANNUAL REPORT OF IMMIGRANT VISA APPLICANTS IN THE FAMILY-SPONSORED AND EMPLOYMENT-BASED PREFERENCES REGISTERED AT THE NATIONAL VISA CENTER AS OF NOVEMBER 1, 2020
The National Visa Center has provided the totals of applicants who are registered in the various numerically-limited immigrant categories for processing at overseas posts. This information is available on the Consular Affairs www.travel.state.gov website. The direct link to the item is:
https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/legal/visa-law0/visa-statistics/immigrant-visa-statistics.html
G. OBTAINING THE MONTHLY VISA BULLETIN
To be placed on the Department of State’s E-mail subscription list for the “Visa Bulletin”, please send an E-mail to the following E-mail address:
listserv@calist.state.gov
and in the message body type:
Subscribe Visa-Bulletin
(example: Subscribe Visa-Bulletin)
To be removed from the Department of State’s E-mail subscription list for the “Visa Bulletin”, send an e-mail message to the following E-mail address:
listserv@calist.state.gov
and in the message body type: Signoff Visa-Bulletin
The Department of State also has available a recorded message with visa final action dates which can be heard at: (202) 485-7699. The recording is normally updated on/about the 17th of each month with information on final action dates for the following month.
Readers may submit questions regarding Visa Bulletin related items by E-mail at the following address:
VISABULLETIN@STATE.GOV
(This address cannot be used to subscribe to the Visa Bulletin.)
Department of State Publication 9514
CA/VO: January 11, 2021