January Visa Bulletin Update: USCIS to Honor Employment-Based Filing Dates Next Month

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At a glance

• In January, USCIS will accept employment-based adjustment applications from foreign nationals with a priority date that is earlier than the Dates for Filing listed in the State Department's January Visa Bulletin.
• The USCIS decision to honor the Dates for Filing chart means that some foreign nationals with priority dates that are backlogged may still submit green card applications in January.

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Employment-Based Priority Date Cut-offs for January 2019

To be eligible to file an employment-based adjustment application in January, employer-sponsored foreign nationals must have a priority date that is earlier than the date listed below for their preference category and country.

Because the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has chosen to honor the Department of State Dates for Filing chart, rather than the Final Action Dates chart it customarily uses for submission of green card applications, some foreign nationals who are subject to priority date backlogs in the Final Action Dates chart may still be eligible to submit green card applications in December. This marks the fourth consecutive month USCIS has chosen to honor Dates for Filing; prior to that, it last did so in November 2016.

As a reminder, the EB-4 Non-Minister Religious Worker and EB-5 Regional Center programs are set to expire on December 21, 2018. Unless Congress reauthorizes these programs, applications in these subcategories will not be adjudicated beyond that date.

DATES FOR FILING CUT-OFF DATES FOR JANUARY 2019

EB-1
China and India: October 1, 2017
All other countries: June 1, 2018

EB-2
China: September 8, 2015
India: May 22, 2009
All other countries: Current

EB-3 Professionals and Skilled Workers
China: January 1, 2016
India: April 1, 2010
Philippines: August 1, 2017
All other countries: Current

EB-3 Other Workers
China: June 1, 2008
India: April 1, 2010
Philippines: August 1, 2017
All other countries: Current

EB-4
El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras: May 1, 2016
All other countries: Current

EB-5
China: October 1, 2014
Current for all other countries and subcategories

This alert is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please contact the immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen.