June 2017 Visa Bulletin – EB-1 China and EB-1 India Cutoff Date Introduced

The U.S. State Department has just released the June 2017 Visa Bulletin which is the ninth Visa Bulletin for the FY2017 fiscal year.  The headline in the upcoming month’s Visa Bulletin is introduction of a cutoff date for EB-1 India and EB-1 China.   Because this cutoff date may remain in effect for the next several months, we call on all EB-1 India and EB-1 China applicants who are eligible but have not filed I-485s to do so before the end of May 2017.

Summary of the June 2017 Visa Bulletin – Employment-Based (EB)

EB Category Jun 2017 May 2017 Change
Employment Application Final Action Dates (determines when an I-485 or IV can be approved)
EB-1 ROW, MX, PH Current Current No change
EB-1 India Jan 1, 2012 Current Cutoff date introduced
EB-1 China Jan 1, 2012 Current Cutoff date introduced
EB-2 ROW, MX, PH Current Current No change
EB-2 India Jul 1, 2008 Jun 22, 2008 Forward by 1 week
EB-2 China Mar 1, 2013 Feb 8, 2013 Forward by 3 weeks
EB-3 ROW Apr 15, 2017 Mar 15, 2017 Forward by 1 month
EB-3 India May 15, 2005 Mar 25, 2005 Forward by 7 weeks
EB-3 China Oct 1, 2014 Oct 1, 2014 No change
EB-3 Mexico Apr 15, 2016 Mar 15, 2016 Forward by 1 month
EB-3 Philippines May 1, 2013 Jan 1, 2013 Forward by 4 months
Dates for Filing Employment Visa Applications (determines when an I-485 can be filed)
USCIS will determine and announce within a week – please check back.
EB-1 Current Current No change
EB-2 ROW, MX, PH Current Current No change
EB-2 India Feb 1, 2009 Feb 1, 2009 No change
EB-2 China Oct 1, 2013 Oct 1, 2013 No change
EB-3 ROW Current Current No change
EB-3 India Apr 22, 2006 Apr 22, 2006 No change
EB-3 China Sep 1, 2015 Sep 1, 2015 No change
EB-3 Mexico Current Current No change
EB-3 Philippines Jul 1, 2014 Jul 1, 2014 No change

Please note that USCIS will determine, about a week after this Visa Bulletin is published, whether or not to accept I-485 filings on the basis of these filing dates. Please see the section below.

Summary of the June 2017 Visa Bulletin – Family-Based (FB)

FB Category Jun 2017 May 2017 Change
Family Application Final Action Dates (determines when an I-485 or IV can be approved)
FB-1 ROW, China, India Dec 22, 2010 Dec 8, 2010 Forward by 2 weeks
FB-1 Mexico Sep 1, 1995 Jun 15, 1995 Forward by 2.5 months
FB-1 Philippines Apr 22, 2006 Feb 1, 2006 Forward by 2.5 months
FB-2A ROW, China, India, Philippines Aug 15, 2015 Jul 15, 2015 Forward by 1 month
FB-2A Mexico Jul 22, 2015 Jun 22, 2015 Forward by 1 month
Dates for Filing Family Visa Applications (determines when an I-485 can be filed)
USCIS will determine and announce within a week – please check back.
FB-1 ROW, China, India Jul 22, 2011 Jul 22, 2011 No change
FB-1 Mexico Apr 1, 1996 Apr 1, 1996 No change
FB-1 Philippines Sep 8, 2007 Sep 8, 2007 No change
FB-2A ROW, China, India, Philippines Apr 8, 2016 Apr 8, 2016 No change
FB-2A Mexico Apr 8, 2016 Apr 8, 2016 No change

Please note that USCIS will determine, about a week after this Visa Bulletin is published, whether or not to accept I-485 filings on the basis of these filing dates. Please see the section below.

EB-3 China Ahead of EB-2/EB-1 China – End of Downgrading on the Horizon

Clients and readers who are interested in EB China will note that EB-3 China continues to have a more favorable cutoff date than EB-2 China (and not EB-1 China as well) by a number of months (EB-3 China is at October 1, 2014 while EB-2 China is March 1, 2013 and EB-1 China is at January 1, 2012).

However, the Department of State is reporting that large demand in EB-3 China has caused the numbers for this category to increase significantly and it is expected that there will be a retrogression in EB-3 China in the July or August 2017 Visa Bulletin.

While there may be many individuals who can still benefit from the EB-3 China downgrade, the fact that there is significant demand and the anticipated EB-3 China retrogression means that the EB-3 China downgrade option may not be so attractive any longer.

Our office is happy to consult applicants who are in this situation and are considering filing under EB-3 to take advantage of the more advanced EB-3 China cutoff dates.   Please contact us if we can help.

Introduction of EB-1 India/China Cutoff Date

As we warned last month in our May 2017 Visa Bulletin alert,  the Department of State is introducing a cutoff date for the EB-1 India and EB-1 China – of January 1, 2012.     It is expected that this cutoff date will remain in place until October 1, 2017 so we are alerting all EB-1 India and EB-1 China applicants who have not filed I-485 (but are eligible to do so) to consider doing so during the month of May 2017 and before the June 2017 Visa Bulletin becomes effective on June 1, 2017.

 

Upcoming Introduction of EB-2 ROW/Mexico/Philippines Cutoff Date

The Department of State is warning that they are also likely to introduce a cutoff date for the EB-2 ROW, Mexico and Philippines categories (which have almost always been current) over the following few months.   It is likely that a cutoff date will be introduced for EB-2 ROW/Mexico/Philippines before July 2017.

Once such cutoff date is introduced, applicants who are affected will not be able to complete their green card process either at the US Consulate or by filing or getting an approval of I-485 adjustment of status application until their priority date becomes current again.   It is expected that these categories will be current again after October 1, 2017.   Applicants who may be affected by this cutoff date introduction should consider monitoring closely the upcoming Visa Bulletins for the  next few months and be ready to move forward with a prompt I-485 filing or wait until October 1 when it is anticipated that the dates will be current again.

Current Date?

Our office stands ready to assist in the applicable process to take advantage of the significant restructuring in the way the cutoff dates are determined and published.  There are many applicants across many of the employment and family categories who can now process their (and their family members’) I-485 Adjustment of Status applications from within the U.S. or process their immigrant visa at a U.S. Consulate abroad.

Please do not hesitate to contact us if our office can help you take advantage of this (very time-sensitive for some) opportunity to file I-485 applications. We are also happy to provide a free quote for preparing and filing your I-485 application.

Further Updates and News

We invite you to subscribe to our free weekly immigration newsletter to receive timely updates on this and related topics. We also invite you to contact us if our office can be of any assistance in your immigration matters or you have any questions or comments about the June 2017 Visa Bulletin. Finally, if you already haven’t, please consider our Visa Bulletin Predictions tool which provides personalized predictions and charts helping you understand when a particular priority date may become current and what are the movement patterns.

By | Last Updated: May 20th, 2017| Categories: Articles, EB-1, EB-2, EB-3, I-485, News, News Alert, Visa Bulletin|

About the Author: Dimo Michailov

Dimo Michailov
Dimo has over 15 years of experience in US immigration including employment-based immigration benefits, corporate compliance and family based immigration. He represents corporate and individual clients in a wide range of cross-border immigration matters including mobility of key foreign executives and managers, specialized knowledge workers, and foreign nationals with extraordinary ability.

The Capitol Immigration Law Group has been serving the business community for over 15 years and is one of the most widely respected immigration law firms focused solely on U.S. employment-based immigration.   Disclaimer:  we make all efforts to provide timely and accurate information; however, the information in this article may become outdated or may not be applicable to a specific set of facts.  It is not to be construed as legal advice.