June Visa Bulletin: No advancements in EB categories

Priority cutoff dates will not advance in employment-based categories with the exception of a four-day advancement in the India EB-2 category, according to the State Department’s June Visa Bulletin.

Key points:

• For both China EB-1 and India EB-1 categories, the cutoff date will remain Jan. 1, 2012.
• China EB-2 and EB-3 will also not move from last month, remaining at Sept. 1, 2014 and June 1, 2015, respectively.
• India EB-2 will advance four days to Dec. 26, 2008, while India EB-3 will not move from last month, remaining at May 1, 2008.
• Philippines EB-3 will remain at Jan. 1, 2017.

Additional notes: All EB-1 and EB-2 categories other than those for China and India will remain current. The EB-3 categories for El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, Mexico, Vietnam and All Other Chargeability Areas will also remain current. After significant movement in April, advancement slowed in May and will largely remain static in June.

Application Final Action Dates for Employment-Based Preference Cases:

The State Department also released its Dates for Filing chart for June. Applicants seeking to file for adjustment of status are reminded that the chart does not take effect unless U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services confirms that it does via a web posting in the coming days. USCIS has been using the Final Action Dates chart in recent months, but could opt to use the Dates for Filing chart. BAL will update clients once the State Department confirms whether the chart can be used in June.

This alert has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice group. For additional information, please contact berryapplemanleiden@bal.com.