The Department of State has issued its tenth visa bulletin for the fiscal year 2021. While all employment based categories have reason to celebrate, India’s EB-3 has made the most significant advancement till date. It has made a rapid jump to 14 months ahead from June’s visa bulletin and become a big source of jubilation for those waiting for their priority dates to progress in this category.
Many highly skilled workers who are sponsored by their employers can submit the final step of the green card process or expect adjudication once the priority date becomes current. The visa bulletin determines this progression and this time, the July 2021 visa bulletin has indeed come with great news, especially for the India EB-3 category.
Having waited indefinitely in the green card backlogs, these workers are hugely benefitted from this progression.
Final Action Dates
Below is a quick look at the various Final Action Dates that have moved forward for both India & China
- EB-1: Remains current
- EB-2: China will advance by seven months, to December 1, 2017, and India will advance by six months, to June 1, 2011.
- EB-3 Professionals and Skilled Workers: Cutoff dates for China will advance four months to January 1, 2019, while India will advance fourteen months to January 1, 2013.
- EB-5: India is current while China will advance by seven weeks to November 8, 2015
With this much movement in the EB-3 category, many EB-2 petitioners will consider downgrading to EB-3. Several immigration lawyers are already busy filing new applications for their clients.
Latest Update On EB-5 Regional Center Program
The Regional Center Program expires on June 30, 2021. And therefore, the July 2021 visa bulletin lists the EB-5 program as “unavailable”. The Congress does have new Bills to reauthorize the Regional Center program on its agenda. However, when Congress will consider this is uncertain. And until and unless they reauthorize it through legislation, immigrant visa issuance and adjustment of status adjudications under this category will cease after June 30, 2021.
Stay tuned to this space as we keep a focused eye on how this Bill progresses through Congress.
Dates For Filing
In the July Dates for Filing chart, the biggest headline is grabbed by EB-2 & EB-3 China. EB-2 will advance significantly to July 1, 2018. This is a six-months jump-ahead. And EB-3 China goes up to July 1, 2019.
China is followed by EB-2 India which advances by four months to December 1, 2011. EB-3 India also advances albeit modestly, by one month to February 1, 2014.
Both India & China remain current in the EB-1 category.
