USA Visas

1. This bulletin summarizes
the availability of immigrant numbers during January. Consular officers
are required to report to the Department of State documentarily qualified
applicants for numerically limited visas; U.S. Citizenship and Immigration
Services in the Department of Homeland Security reports applicants for
adjustment of status. Allocations were made, to the extent possible, in
chronological order of reported priority dates, for demand received by December
8th. If not all demand could be satisfied, the category or foreign state
in which demand was excessive was deemed oversubscribed. The cut-off date for an
oversubscribed category is the priority date of the first applicant who could
not be reached within the numerical limits. Only applicants who have a priority
date earlier than the cut-off date may be allotted a number. If it
becomes necessary during the monthly allocation process to retrogress a cut-off
date, supplemental requests for numbers will be honored only if the priority
date falls within the new cut-off date announced in this bulletin.

2. Section 201 of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (INA) sets an annual minimum family-sponsored preference limit
of 226,000. The worldwide level for annual employment-based preference
immigrants is at least 140,000. Section 202 prescribes that the per-country
limit for preference immigrants is set at 7% of the total annual
family-sponsored and employment-based preference limits, i.e., 25,620. The
dependent area limit is set at 2%, or 7,320.

3. INA Section 203(e) provides that
family-sponsored and employment-based preference visas be issued to eligible
immigrants in the order in which a petition in behalf of each has been filed.
Section 203(d) provides that spouses and children of preference immigrants are
entitled to the same status, and the same order of consideration, if
accompanying or following to join the principal. The visa prorating provisions
of Section 202(e) apply to allocations for a foreign state or dependent area
when visa demand exceeds the per-country limit. These provisions apply at
present to the following oversubscribed chargeability areas: CHINA-mainland
born, INDIA, MEXICO, and PHILIPPINES.

4. Section 203(a) of the INA prescribes
preference classes for allotment of Family-sponsored immigrant visas as
follows:

FAMILY-SPONSORED
PREFERENCES

First: (F1)
Unmarried Sons and Daughters of U.S. Citizens: 23,400 plus any numbers not
required for fourth preference.

Second:
Spouses and Children, and Unmarried Sons and Daughters of Permanent Residents:
114,200, plus the number (if any) by which the worldwide family preference level
exceeds 226,000, plus any unused first preference numbers:

A. (F2A)
Spouses and Children of Permanent Residents: 77% of the overall second
preference limitation, of which 75% are exempt from the per-country limit;

B. (F2B)
Unmarried Sons and Daughters (21 years of age or older) of Permanent Residents:
23% of the overall second preference limitation.

Third:
(F3) Married Sons and Daughters of U.S. Citizens: 23,400, plus any
numbers not required by first and second preferences.

Fourth:
(F4) Brothers and Sisters of Adult U.S. Citizens: 65,000, plus any
numbers not required by first three preferences.

On the chart below, the
listing of a date for any class indicates that the class is oversubscribed (see
paragraph 1); “C” means current, i.e., numbers are available for all qualified
applicants; and “U” means unavailable, i.e., no numbers are available. (NOTE:
Numbers are available only for applicants whose priority date is
earlier than the cut-off date listed below.)

*NOTE: For January, F2A
numbers EXEMPT from per-country limit are available to applicants from
all countries with priority dates earlier than 22MAR09. F2A numbers
SUBJECT to per-country limit are available to applicants chargeable to
all countries EXCEPT MEXICO with priority dates beginning 22MAR09 and
earlier than 22APR09. (All F2A numbers provided for MEXICO are exempt from the
per-country limit; there are no F2A numbers for MEXICO subject to per-country
limit.)

5. Section 203(b) of the INA prescribes
preference classes for allotment of Employment-based immigrant visas as
follows:

EMPLOYMENT-BASED
PREFERENCES

First:
Priority Workers: 28.6% of the worldwide employment-based preference level, plus
any numbers not required for fourth and fifth preferences.

Second:
Members of the Professions Holding Advanced Degrees or Persons of Exceptional
Ability: 28.6% of the worldwide employment-based preference level, plus any
numbers not required by first preference.

Third:
Skilled Workers, Professionals, and Other Workers: 28.6% of the worldwide level,
plus any numbers not required by first and second preferences, not more than
10,000 of which to “*Other Workers”.

Fourth:
Certain Special Immigrants: 7.1% of the worldwide level.

Fifth:
Employment Creation: 7.1% of the worldwide level, not less than 3,000 of which
reserved for investors in a targeted rural or high-unemployment area, and 3,000
set aside for investors in regional centers by Sec. 610 of Pub. L. 102-395.

On the chart below, the
listing of a date for any class indicates that the class is oversubscribed (see
paragraph 1); “C” means current, i.e., numbers are available for all qualified
applicants; and “U” means unavailable, i.e., no numbers are available. (NOTE:
Numbers are available only for applicants whose priority date is
earlier than the cut-off date listed below.)

*Employment Third Preference Other
Workers Category: Section 203(e) of the Nicaraguan and Central American Relief
Act (NACARA) passed by Congress in November 1997, as amended by Section 1(e) of
Pub. L. 105-139, provides that once the Employment Third Preference Other Worker
(EW) cut-off date has reached the priority date of the latest EW petition
approved prior to November 19, 1997, the 10,000 EW numbers available for a
fiscal year are to be reduced by up to 5,000 annually beginning in the following
fiscal year. This reduction is to be made for as long as necessary to offset
adjustments under the NACARA program. Since the EW cut-off date reached November
19, 1997 during Fiscal Year 2001, the reduction in the EW annual limit to 5,000
began in Fiscal Year 2002.

6. The Department of State has a recorded
message with visa availability information which can be heard at: (202)
663-1541. This recording is updated on or about the tenth of each month with
information on cut-off dates for the following month.

B. DIVERSITY
IMMIGRANT (DV) CATEGORY

Section 203(c) of the INA
provides up to 55,000 immigrant visas each fiscal year to permit additional
immigration opportunities for persons from countries with low admissions during
the previous five years. The NACARA stipulates that beginning with DV-99, and
for as long as necessary, up to 5,000 of the 55,000 annually-allocated diversity
visas will be made available for use under the NACARA program. This
resulted in reduction of the DV-2012 annual limit to 50,000. DV visas
are divided among six geographic regions. No one country can receive more than
seven percent of the available diversity visas in any one year.

For January,
immigrant numbers in the DV category are available to qualified DV-2012
applicants chargeable to all regions/eligible countries as follows. When an
allocation cut-off number is shown, visas are available only for applicants with
DV regional lottery rank numbers BELOW the specified allocation cut-off
number:

Entitlement to immigrant status in the DV
category lasts only through the end of the fiscal (visa) year for which the
applicant is selected in the lottery. The year of entitlement for all applicants
registered for the DV-2012 program ends as of September 30, 2012. DV visas may
not be issued to DV-2012 applicants after that date. Similarly, spouses and
children accompanying or following to join DV-2012 principals are only entitled
to derivative DV status until September 30, 2012. DV visa availability through
the very end of FY-2012 cannot be taken for granted. Numbers could be exhausted
prior to September 30.

C. ADVANCE
NOTIFICATION OF THE DIVERSITY (DV) IMMIGRANT CATEGORY RANK CUT-OFFS WHICH WILL
APPLY IN FEBRUARY

For February,
immigrant numbers in the DV category are available to qualified DV-2012
applicants chargeable to all regions/eligible countries as follows. When an
allocation cut-off number is shown, visas are available only for applicants with
DV regional lottery rank numbers BELOW the specified allocation cut-off
number:

D. CHINA-MAINLAND
BORN AND INDIA EMPLOYMENT-BASED SECOND PREFERENCE VISA AVAILABILITY IN THE
COMING MONTHS

The China and India Employment Second
preference cut-off date has been advanced at a rapid rate in recent months. As
previously noted, this action was intended to generate significant levels of new
filings for adjustment of status at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
(USCIS) offices. USCIS has reported that the rate of new filings is currently
far below that which they had anticipated, prompting an even more aggressive
movement of the cut-off date for January and possibly beyond. While this action
greatly increases the potential for an eventual retrogression of the cut-off at
some point during the year, it also provides the best opportunity to utilize all
numbers available under the annual limit.

E. ANNUAL REPORT OF
IMMIGRANT VISA APPLICANTS IN THE FAMILY-SPONSORED AND EMPLOYMENT-BASED
PREFERENCES REGISTERED AT THE NATIONAL VISA CENTER AS OF NOVEMBER 1,
2011

This information is available on the
Consular Affairs www.travel.state.gov web site. Once at that site, select
“Visas” from along the top line, then on the left side select “Visa Statistics”,
then Immigrant Visas”, then under the Hot Items select the “Annual IV Waiting
List Report”.