Overview of Jan 2024 Visa Bulletin

Overview of Jan 2024 Visa Bulletin

The January 2024 Visa Bulletin was published on the 4th Dec 2023 . We see a huge forward movement in EB-1 for India and China and some forward movement in the other employment-based categories as January is the second quarter of the Fiscal year.

Employment-Based Final Action Dates

EB1 Category Final Action Dates :

• The cutoff date for EB1 India moves ahead to September 1 2021. This is a jump of 3 years and 8 months.
• For China, the cutoff date advances to July 1, 2022
• The EB1 category remains current Worldwide.

(EB2) Category Final action Dates : 

• In the EB2 category, the cutoff date for India moves up to March 2012, a jump of 2 months
• For China, the cutoff date moves ahead to June 2020
• The EB2 cutoff date for all other countries advances to November 2022, a 3-month and 17-day forward movement.

(EB3) Category Final Action Dates : 

• For EB3 India advances to June 1, 2012, which is a jump of 1 month.
• China’s EB3 date moves up to September 1, 2020.
• The EB3 cutoff date for all countries is August 1, 2022, a forward movement of 8 months.

EB3 Other Workers :

• In the EB3 other workers category, India’s cutoff date is set at June 1, 2012.
• For China, the cutoff date moves ahead to January 1, 2017.
• The EB3 other workers’ cutoff date for the Philippines advances to May 1, 2020.
• For all other countries of chargeability, the cutoff date moves to September 1, 2020.

Employment-Based, Fourth Preference (EB4) Category :

• In the EB4 category, the dates worldwide move to May 15, 2019, a jump of 4 months and 14 days

Employment-Based, Fifth Preference (EB5) Category :

• In the EB5 category, India’s unreserved (i.e., EB5 immigrant visa numbers not set aside for rural, high unemployment, and infrastructure projects) date surges forward to December 1, 2020.
• China’s unreserved cutoff moves up to December 8, 2015.
• EB5 remains current for all other EB5 categories and countries.

Employment-Based Dates for Filing Chart

EB1 Category Dates for filing:

• The cutoff date for EB1 India moves to January 1, 2021 . This is a jump for India of 1 year and 6 months.
• For China, the cutoff date advances to July 1, 2023. Forward movement of 5 months.
• The EB1 category remains current Worldwide. No Forward Movement

(EB2) Category Dates for filing : 

• In the EB2 category, the cutoff date for India remains at May 15, 2012.
• For China, the cutoff date remains at June 1, 2020.
• The EB2 cutoff date for all other countries advances to February 15, 2023, a jump of 1 month and 14 days.

(EB3) Category Dates for filing : 

• For EB3 India remains at August 1, 2012.
• China’s EB3 date moves up to June 1, 2021, a jump of 10 months.
• the EB3 cutoff date for all countries remains at February 1, 2023.

(EB4) Dates for Filing :

• In the EB4 category, the dates worldwide moves ahead to September 1, 2019, a jump of 6 months

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 the first three preferences.

A-Final Action Dates for Family-Sponsored Preference Cases

B-Dates for Filing Family-Sponsored Visa Applications

 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: A significant 7.1% global level is dedicated to visas, with 32% exclusively allocated for various categories. Of this, 20% is reserved for qualified immigrants who invest in rural areas, while 10% is set aside for those investing in high-unemployment areas. Additionally, 2% of visas are designated for qualified immigrants investing in infrastructure projects. The remaining 68% are available for all other eligible immigrants seeking opportunities.
5.  Section 203(b) of the INA prescribes preference classes for the allotment of Employment-based immigrant visas as follows:

A-Final Action Dates for Employment-Based Preference Cases

 B- Dates For Filing Of Employment-Based Visa Applications

B- Diversity Immigrant (DV) Category For January

Section 203(c) of the INA offers up to 55,000 immigrant visas per fiscal year, creating opportunities for individuals from countries with low admissions in the past five years to immigrate. Under the NACARA program, starting with DV-99, up to 5,000 of the 55,000 diversity visas allotted annually will be reserved. Consequently, the annual limit for DV-2024 will be reduced to around 54,850. These DV visas are distributed among six geographic regions, with no country receiving more than seven percent of the available diversity visas in a given year.
For February, immigrant numbers in the DV category are accessible to qualified DV-2024 applicants from all regions and eligible countries, subject to allocation cut-off numbers. Applicants with DV regional lottery rank numbers below the specified allocation cut-off number are eligible for visas.

C- The Diversity (DV) Immigrant Category Rank Cut-Offs Will Apply In February.

For February, immigrant numbers for the DV category are accessible to eligible DV-2024 applicants from all regions and countries. Please note that visas are only available for applicants with DV regional lottery rank numbers BELOW the specified allocation cut-off number.

Next Visa Bulletin:  The February 2024 Visa Bulletin is expected to bring significant changes as new visa allocations for FY 2024 become available.
The Law Offices of Prashanthi Reddy PLLC will keep updating their Immigration blog with new information as it arises.