Retrogression, or When the Priority Dates Move Backward
But sometimes, so many people apply after a certain Priority Date is published that the State Department gets overwhelmed, and needs to put on the brakes. It does this by moving the Priority Date in that particular visa category backward.You can find your priority date on the I-797 form mailed by USCIS approving your I-130 petition. Current: In the context of the visa bulletin, “current” means no backlog and no wait time for a green card. A particular priority date becomes “current” once it reaches the front of the line and a green card is available.
Two constraints are placed on the disbursement of these 140,000 EB visas. The first imposes a country-cap limited to 7 per cent of the total, so India is awarded only 9,800 visas for all EB visa categories combined.
Now we understand that to get rid of the EB2 priority date problems, you can go from EB2 to EB1 which is called EB2 to EB1 Porting. The employer can file for the second I-140 under the new EB1 green card. The advantage of this move is that the applicant is able to retain the priority dates.
Qualifying for EB1-1
- You can demonstrate extraordinary ability in your field (sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics) through sustained national or international acclaim.
- The evidence submitted must meet at least 3 out of 10 criteria set byUSCIS , or provide evidence of a truly exceptional single achievement.
No. In order for the priority date to be current, it must be a date prior to the date published in the Visa Bulletin. 16. A few days after DOS publishes the Visa Bulletin each month, USCIS will determine whether applicants must use Chart A – FAD or Chart B – DFF to file an I-485 adjustment of status application.
Priority dates also do not expire. Otherwise, priority dates are good for life. Priority dates cannot be used to cross between employment based cases and family based cases.
For all others in the same boat, currently at New Delhi consulate it is taking 4 weeks to get an interview date for immigrant visas once the priority date is current. You get a date which is 4-5 weeks away, so you have enough time to prepare for medical tests and start planning the travel if everything is cleared.
You will know that your visa is approved only after getting your passport. Flip the pages and you will see the visa printed/pasted on one of the pages. However is your visa is not approved, they will let you know right at the time of interview.
For example, as of March 3, 2020 (the last time we made significant edits to this article), the average waiting time for most green cards is between 9 and 13 months. Often, USCIS will take several months to just mail out your Notice of Decision, and sometimes your green card can take even longer.
To check the status of your immigrant petition:
- If your petition has not yet been approved by USCIS, please visit the USCIS website.
- If USCIS has approved your petition, and notified you that it has been forwarded to the National Visa Center (NVC), please contact NVC.
Mar 24, 2020
The U.S. Department of State released its Visa Bulletin for April 2020. That's a big deal if you're waiting for your priority date to be current so that your green card application can move forward.Our experience suggests that very often an I-485 application will be adjudicated (approved) or issued a request for evidence (if required) within two to four weeks after its priority date being current.
Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker
In fiscal year 2018, NVC received 427,815 approved petitions from USCIS Service Centers. Once a petition is received, it takes about 2 to 4 weeks for NVC to input data into its system and assign a NVC case number. Applicants should wait at least 6 weeks from petition approval before contacting NVC.
All EB-1 countries except for China and India will advance by 2.5 months to October 1, 2018. EB-1 Worldwide is expected to advance rapidly in the coming months and could become current by April 2020, while EB-3 Worldwide is expected to retrogress by March 2020.
This unusual backlog is caused by the high number of applications and approvals in the EB-1 category in the past year. Because the EB-1 category enjoys top priority in the order of immigrant visa numbers, it will continue to be the fastest path for qualified employment-based applicants.
All EB-1 countries except for China and India will become current in May. EB-1 China will advance by five weeks to July 15, 2017, while EB-1 India will advance by three months to August 1, 2015.
Employment-Based, First Preference Category (EB1)
While the cutoff date for EB1 India is expected to remain largely unchanged through at least January 2020, when it does move forward, it could be by as much as 6 to 8 months.Generally, the USCIS processing time for the EB-1 immigrant visa is about 4-6 months. Once the EB-1 has been approved, the USCIS may take about 3-5 months to issue permanent residence (Green Card).
Yes, sometimes people opt to file for both the EB1 and EB2 to increase their chances of approval. However there are a couple of things to keep in mind: Both applications should be consistent with each other. The information should be the same and not contradict each other.
To get rid of the hassles and problems of EB2 priority date, you can change from EB2 to EB1 which is called EB2 to EB1 Porting. If you are applying for EB1, you can adjust your status as soon as I-140 is approved, without any potential changes.
The EB1-1 Visa, or Employment-Based Extraordinary Ability Green Card (First Preference), is part of the EB-1 set of permanent residency US visas. EB1-1 is available to foreign nationals who demonstrate extraordinary ability in their field, whether the sciences, the arts, education, business, or athletics.
Nearly 7,000 green card applications by Indian alien workers were pending—almost 35 times the number in 2018, data from US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) show. The data refers to form I-140, which seeks to make an alien worker eligible for an immigrant visa based on employment.
Now, the “Date for Filing” determines whether or not you can submit the final immigrant visa application, and the “Final Action Date” indicates whether or not it is expected that an immigrant visa number will be available.
Priority date refers to the earliest filing date in a family of patent applications. If an applicant has filed a number of related patent applications, the priority date would be the filing date of the earliest patent filing that first disclosed the invention.
For these types of green card cases, priority dates are used to determine when a foreign national is eligible to file an adjustment-of-status application (form I-485). Priority dates also determine the timing for obtaining an immigrant visa through consular processing (CP).
If USCIS is showing you the "Application Final Action Dates" chart, it means you can't apply to adjust your status until there is a green card available to be released to you.
Select the “Current Visa Bulletin.” Forward to “Family-Sponsored Preferences” to see a table similar to the sample below. Find your family preference category and compare your priority date to the date listed. If your priority date comes before the date listed, your immigrant visa is current.
The F3 visa is a Third Preference Family visa for married children of US citizens. So if your application exceeds the number of visas that are given for that year, your visa will be processed in the next periods.
If the date on the chart is current (“C”), or your priority date is earlier than the date on the chart, you may file your adjustment of status application, if otherwise eligible to do so.
