On September 12, the Department of State released the latest Visa Bulletin for October 2008. The cut-off dates in EB-2 for applicants born in mainland China moved almost two years back while the cut-off dates in EB-2 for applicants born in India moved almost three years back. EB-3 made an advancement for all chargeability areas. EB-1 remains unchanged.
The following are cut-off dates for employment-based immigration petitions. The dates in parentheses are the cut-off dates for September 2008.
For people born in mainland China:
EB-1: Current (Current)
EB-2: April 1, 2004 (August 1, 2006)
EB-3: October 1, 2001 (Unavailable)
For people born in India:
EB-1: Current (Current)
EB-2: April 1, 2003 (August 1, 2006)
EB-3: July 1, 2001 (Unavailable)
For all chargeability areas except China, India, Mexico, and Philippines:
EB-1: Current (Current)
EB-2: Current (Current)
EB-3: January 1, 2005 (Unavailable)
Despite advances in the EB-2 category in the past months, this month’s cut-off dates for people born in mainland China and India retrogressed further. Since October is the first month of the new fiscal year, this month’s further retrogression may reflect attempts to prevent early oversubscription of visa applications for employment-based petitions. Additionally, the recent step back in cut-off dates for the EB-2 category for these chargeability areas may reflect the Department of State’s conservative approach in the face of slow economy and financial crisis within the U.S.
The cut-off dates for the EB-3 category moved from unavailable to available; however, the cut-off dates for those born in mainland China and India remain seven years retrogressed. A statement in the recent bulletin states that the USCIS does not anticipate significant forward movement, if any at all, in the near future.
It is important to take into consideration of the current visa bulletin when choosing an immigration path. As like now, the EB-1 does not commonly have retrogression in the visa bulletin and there are visa numbers available for applicants from all chargeability areas. Therefore, EB-1 presents a significant advantage for applicants born in mainland China and India, who do not have visa numbers available in the EB-2 category. In the past, we have encountered some misunderstandings about the requirements for the EB-1 category. It is not necessarily true that the EB-1 category requires a doctoral degree. Instead, what is important is the applicant’s qualification, including publications, citations, awards, and so on. Our firm has helped many aliens without a doctoral degree successfully apply for green cards in EB-1(b).
While in practice, the NIW category does have slightly lower requirements in comparison to EB-1(b), it is in the EB-2 category and significantly more restrained by visa retrogression. Applicants from mainland China and India cannot file I-485 applications while visa numbers are unavailable and given the current retrogression, it may seem that the NIW category is a disadvantage. However, we believe that this is not necessarily the case. The visa bulletin cut-off dates are hard to predict, and there is good chance for immigration reform bill to be passed after the presidential election. Therefore, it is important to place yourself in the waiting line, so when visa numbers become available, you can immediately file the I-485 petition.
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Founded in 1996, Zhang & Associates, P.C. offers legal services to clients nationwide in all aspects of U.S immigration law. We have successfully handled thousands of immigration cases.
At Zhang & Associates, P.C., our attorneys and supporting professionals are committed to providing high-quality immigration and non-immigration visa services. We specialize in NIW, EB-1, PERM, and I-485 cases. In the past twelve years, we have successfully helped thousands of clients get green cards. If you plan to apply for a green card, please send your CV to Attorney Jerry Zhang (info@hooyou.com) for a free evaluation.
Zhang & Associates, PC.
Houston ∙ New York ∙ Chicago ∙ Austin
Tel：1-800-230-7040, 713-771-8433
Email: info@hooyou.com
website：http://www.hooyou.com
(09/17/2008)
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