Courtland C. Witherup

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UPDATE: In November, USCIS will accept EB I-485 applications based on the Department of State’s Dates for Filing chart.

The Visa Bulletin is released monthly by the Department of State and is used to determine when a sponsored foreign national can submit the final step of the green card process. The complete visa bulletin can be found here.

Below is a summary of the November Visa Bulletin, including Final Action Dates and changes from the previous month:

  • China: EB-1 freezes at June 1, 2016, EB-2 advances six weeks to May 15, 2015, and EB-3 halts at June 1, 2015
  • India: EB-1 remains at June 1, 2016, EB-2 stalls at March 26, 2009, and EB-3 freezes at January 1, 2009
  • Philippines: EB-1 stalls at April 1, 2017, EB-2 remains current, and EB-3 slowly creeps forward, advancing seven days to June 8, 2017
  • All Other Countries: EB-1 remains backlogged to April 1, 2017, EB-2 and EB-3-remain current

NOTE: USCIS has not yet announced if it will accept I-485 applications in November based on the Department of State’s Dates for Filing chart.

The Visa Bulletin is released monthly by the Department of State and is used to determine when a sponsored foreign national can submit the final step of the green card process. The complete visa bulletin can be found here.

Below is a summary of the October Visa Bulletin, including Final Action Dates and changes from the previous month:

  • China: EB-1 jumps forward more than four years to June 1, 2016, EB-2 rebounds to April 1, 2015, and EB-3 continues to speed past EB-2 and moves to June 1, 2015
  • India: EB-1 jumps forward more than four years to June 1, 2016, EB-2 moves ahead two years to March 26, 2009, and EB-3 returns to the July 2018 date, advancing six years to January 1, 2009
  • Philippines: EB-1 moves ahead ten months to April 1, 2017, EB-2 returns to current, and EB-3 creeps forward seven months to June 1, 2017
  • All Other Countries: EB-1 remains backlogged, but advances ten months to April 1, 2017, EB-2 and EB-3-both return to current

NOTE: USCIS has not yet announced if it will accept I-485 applications in October based on the Department of State’s Dates for Filing chart. However, the trend over the last several months has been to NOT honor the Dates for Filing chart, and instead only accept I-485 applications based on the Final Action Dates as listed above.

The Visa Bulletin is released monthly by the Department of State and is used to determine when a sponsored foreign national can submit the final step of the green card process. The complete visa bulletin can be found here.

Below is a summary of the September Visa Bulletin, including Final Action Dates and changes from the previous month:

China: EB-1 remains stalled at January 1, 2012, EB-2 retrogresses to January 1, 2013, and EB-3 continues to move forward – advancing four months to November 1, 2014

India: EB-1 remains at January 1, 2012, EB-2 falls behind nearly two years to January 1, 2007, and EB-3 moves back six years to January 1, 2003

Philippines: EB-1 moves ahead one month to June 1, 2016, EB-2 retrogresses to January 1, 2013, and EB-3 moves to November 1, 2016

All Other Countries: EB-1 moves forward one month to June 1, 2016, EB-2 retrogresses to January 1, 2013 and EB-3 falls to November 1, 2016

The September Visa Bulletin includes the following important projections for future movement:

China:  

  • EB-1 backlogs are expected to remain until December, with “limited, if any forward movement” in October and November
  • EB-2 is expected to return to March 1, 2015 in October and move ahead slowly each month after that,
  • EB-3 is expected to return to July 1, 2014 in October and move forward approximately three weeks each month starting in November

India:   

  • EB-1 backlogs are expected to remain until December, with “limited, if any forward movement” in October and November
  • EB-2 is expected to return to March 15, 2009 in October and move forward “up to two weeks” per month beginning in November
  • EB-3 is expected to return to January 1, 2009 in October and may move ahead slowly each month after that

Philippines:       

  • EB-1 backlogs are expected to remain until December, with “limited, if any forward movement” in October and November
  • EB-2 is expected to become current in October and remain current for subsequent months
  • EB-3 is expected to return to June 1, 2017 in October, with “minimal” forward movement after October

All Other Countries:      

  • EB-1 backlogs are expected to remain until December, with “limited, if any forward movement” in October and November
  • EB-2 and EB-3 are expected to become current in October and remain current for subsequent months

NOTE: USCIS has not yet announced if it will accept I-485 applications in September based on the Department of State’s Dates for Filing chart. However, the trend over the last several months has been to NOT honor the Dates for Filing chart, and instead only accept I-485 applications based on the Final Action Dates as listed above.

The Visa Bulletin is released monthly by the Department of State and is used to determine when a sponsored foreign national can submit the final step of the green card process. The complete visa bulletin can be found here.

Below is a summary of the August Visa Bulletin, including Final Action Dates and changes from the previous month:

  • China: EB-1 remains backlogged to January 1, 2012, EB-2 moves forward – advancing two months to March 1, 2015 – and EB-3 leaps ahead eighteen months to July 1, 2014
  • India: EB-1 remains stuck at January 1, 2012, EB-2 freezes at March 15, 2009, and EB-3 advances two months to January 1, 2009
  • Philippines: EB-1 retrogresses to May 1, 2016, EB-2 remains current, and EB-3 springs ahead six months to June 1, 2017
  • All Other Countries: EB-1 retrogresses to May 1, 2016, while EB-2 and EB-3 remain current

NOTE: USCIS has not yet announced if it will accept I-485 applications in August based on the Department of State’s Dates for Filing chart. However, the trend over the last several months has been to NOT honor the Dates for Filing chart, and instead only accept I-485 applications based on the Final Action Dates as listed above.

The Visa Bulletin is released monthly by the Department of State and is used to determine when a sponsored foreign national can submit the final step of the green card process. The complete visa bulletin can be found here.

Below is a summary of the July Visa Bulletin, including Final Action Dates and changes from the previous month:

  • China: EB-1 remains backlogged to January 1, 2012, EB-2 jumps ahead four months to January 1, 2015, while EB-3 reverses course and retrogresses to January 1, 2013
  • India: EB-1 remains stalled at January 1, 2012, EB-2 continues to creep forward, moving to March 15, 2009, and EB-3 leaps ahead six months to November 1, 2018
  • Philippines: EB-1 and EB-2 remain current, while EB-3 remains backlogged to January 1, 2017
  • All Other Countries: All EB categories are current

NOTE: USCIS has not yet announced if it will accept I-485 applications in July based on the Department of State’s Dates for Filing chart. However, the trend over the last several months has been to NOT honor the Dates for Filing chart, and instead only accept I-485 applications based on the Final Action Dates as listed above.

The Visa Bulletin is released monthly by the Department of State and is used to determine when a sponsored foreign national can submit the final step of the green card process. The complete visa bulletin can be found here.

Below is a summary of the June Visa Bulletin, including Final Action Dates and changes from the previous month:

  • China: EB-1 holds steady at January 1, 2012, EB-2 stalls at September 1, 2014, and EB-3 remains June 1, 2015
  • India: EB-1 remains backlogged to January 1, 2012, EB-2 creeps ahead four days to December 26, 2008, and EB-3 remains May 1, 2008
  • Philippines: EB-2 remains current, while EB-3 remains January 1, 2017
  • All Other Countries: All EB categories are current

NOTE: USCIS has not yet announced if it will accept I-485 applications in June based on the Department of State’s Dates for Filing chart. However, the trend over the last several months has been to NOT honor the Dates for Filing chart, and instead only accept I-485 applications based on the Final Action Dates as listed above.

The Visa Bulletin is released monthly by the Department of State and is used to determine when a sponsored foreign national can submit the final step of the green card process. The complete visa bulletin can be found here.

Below is a summary of the May Visa Bulletin, including Final Action Dates and changes from the previous month:

  • China: EB-1 remains backlogged to January 1, 2012, EB-2 creeps forward one month to September 1, 2014, and EB-3 freezes at June 1, 2015
  • India: EB-1 remains backlogged to January 1, 2012, EB-2 remains at December 22, 2008, and EB-3 advances three months to May 1, 2008
  • Philippines: EB-2 remains current, while EB-3 stalls at January 1,2017
  • All Other Countries: All EB categories are current

NOTE: USCIS has not yet announced if it will accept I-485 applications in May based on the Department of State’s Dates for Filing chart. However, the trend over the last several months has been to NOT honor the Dates for Filing chart, and instead only accept I-485 applications based on the Final Action Dates as listed above.

The Visa Bulletin is released monthly by the Department of State and is used to determine when a sponsored foreign national can submit the final step of the green card process. The complete visa bulletin can be found here.

Below is a summary of the March Visa Bulletin, including Final Action Dates and changes from the previous month:

  • China: EB-1 retrogresses to January 1, 2012, EB-2 advances eight months to August 1, 2014, and EB-3 leaps ahead six months to June 1, 2015
  • India: EB-1 reverts to January 1, 2012, EB-2 creeps forward another week to December 22, 2008, and EB-3 jumps forward more than a year to February 1, 2008
  • Philippines: EB-2 remains current and EB-3 advances seven months to January 1,2017
  • All Other Countries: All EB categories are current

NOTE: USCIS has not yet announced if it will accept I-485 applications in April based on the Department of State’s Dates for Filing chart. However, the trend over the last several months has been to NOT honor the Dates for Filing chart, and instead only accept I-485 applications based on the Final Action Dates as listed above.

In a letter dated February 23, 2018, the US Embassy in Paris notified “Golden Arrow” participants that the program to expedite E-2 visa issuance for critical employees of large French corporations is coming to an end. The Golden Arrow program allows employees of select pre-approved French companies to quickly schedule and obtain E-2 visas for employment in the United States in executive, managerial and essential skills positions. Golden Arrow employers are large, established French-owned companies with significant operations in the United States and France. Golden Arrow enables participants’ employees to skip the Embassy’s normal lengthy review process to determine if the company qualifies as an E-2 treaty investor. This allows the US Embassy in Paris to focus on the individual applicant’s qualifications and background, rather than the company’s.

Effective March 12, 2018, all E-2 visa applicants in Paris will follow the same application procedures. According to the Embassy’s letter, Golden Arrow “did not significantly decrease processing times for applicants.” Since processing times for participants were generally less than 3 business days, it is unclear how the Embassy expects processing times to speed up once the program is eliminated. Starting on March 12th,  all applicants, including employees of current Golden Arrow companies, will need to submit (and US Embassy officials will need to review) extensive documentation regarding the ownership, income and overall operations of companies that clearly qualify as E-2 Treaty Investors. As of this writing, the Embassy’s website has not yet been updated to reflect the new application process. However, it is difficult to see how this change will not result in visa issuance delays for critical employees of large, established French corporations.

The letter issued by the Embassy in Paris hints at a wider policy change within the US Department of State. Many consular posts around the world allow large, established companies to pre-register in order to avoid duplicate efforts with each E-2 visa application. These programs are critical for large corporations that rely on the ability to quickly move critical employees to the United States for temporary assignments. E-2 visas are based on long-standing treaties between the United States and dozens of countries, most of which are close allies and trading partners. Because these same treaties are relied upon by US companies to transfer US citizens to foreign assignments, further restrictions on E-2 visas will almost certainly lead to reciprocal curtailing of visa availability for US companies and their US citizen employees. It remains to be seen whether other US embassies around the world will follow suit and end similar E-2 registration programs. We will post further updates when they become available.

The Visa Bulletin is released monthly by the Department of State and is used to determine when a sponsored foreign national can submit the final step of the green card process. The complete visa bulletin can be found here.

Below is a summary of the March Visa Bulletin, including Final Action Dates and changes from the previous month:

  • China: EB-1 remains current, EB-2 jumps ahead another two months to December 8, 2013, and EB-3 advances two months to November 15, 2014
  • India: EB-1 remains current, EB-2 creeps forward one week to December 15, 2008, and EB-3 moves forward one month to January 1, 2007
  • Philippines: EB-2 remains current and EB-3 advances two months to May 1, 2016
  • All Other Countries: All EB categories are current

NOTE: USCIS has not yet announced if it will accept I-485 applications in March based on the Department of State’s Dates for Filing chart. However, the trend over the last several months has been to NOT honor the Dates for Filing chart, and instead only accept I-485 applications based on the Final Action Dates as listed above.