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At a glance
According to the State Department’s March Visa Bulletin, cutoff dates for issuance of an immigrant visa will be as follows:
Cutoff dates in the Dates for Filing chart for March will remain unchanged from February 2020, with the exception of EB-5 China, which will advance to December 15, 2016.
In the coming days, USCIS is expected to announce on its own Visa Bulletin web page the cutoff dates for acceptance of adjustment of status applications next month. That announcement will clarify whether USCIS will accept adjustment applications based on the Dates for Filing chart or the Final Action chart.
As the State Department previously predicted, EB-3 Worldwide will retrogress due to continued high demand for immigrant visa numbers. For March 2020, the State Department has imposed a January 1, 2017 cut-off date for all countries except India and China. In the March Bulletin, the agency also predicts that no forward movement is expected in the foreseeable future for these newly retrogressed countries.
In the March Bulletin, the State Department explains that it advanced EB-5 China final action dates by more than five months in an effort to generate demand in this category. Though there has been a high volume of EB-5 petitions filed, there are currently not enough applicants at the green card stage to fully utilize the number of visas available in this fiscal year. Some corrective action may be taken in future months as more EB-5 China cases reach the final stage of green card process.
EB-1
China: June 1, 2017
India: March 1, 2015
All other countries: March 1, 2019
EB-2
China: August 15, 2015
India: May 22, 2009
All other countries: Current
EB-3 Professionals and Skilled Workers
China: March 22, 2016
India: January 15, 2009
All other countries: January 1, 2017
EB-3 Other Workers
China: June 1, 2008
India: January 15, 2009
All other countries: January 1, 2017
EB-4
El Salvador, Guatemala Honduras: July 15, 2016
Mexico: November 15, 2017
All other countries: Current
EB-5
China: May 15, 2015
India: October 22, 2018
Vietnam: January 15, 2017
All other countries: Current
EB-1
China: October 1, 2017
India: March 15, 2017
All other countries: Current
EB-2
China: August 1, 2016
India: July 1, 2009
All other countries: Current
EB-3 Professionals and Skilled Workers
China: March 1, 2017
India: February 1, 2010
All other countries: January 1, 2019
EB-3 Other Workers
China: August 1, 2008
India: February 1, 2010
All other countries: January 1, 2019
EB-4
El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras: August 15, 2016
All other countries: Current
EB-5
China: December 15, 2015
All other countries: Current
This alert is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please contact the immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen.