Showing posts with label executive action on immigration reform. Show all posts
Showing posts with label executive action on immigration reform. Show all posts

Wednesday, September 9, 2015

USCIS Announces Revised Procedures for Determining Visa Availability for Applicants Filing for Adjustment of Status, I-485. Two Charts in Monthly DOS Visa Bulletin.

On September 09 2015, USCIS Announces Revised Procedures for Determining Visa Availability for Applicants Waiting to File for Adjustment of Status.

USCIS, in coordination with Department of State (DOS), is revising the procedures for determining visa availability for applicants waiting to file for employment-based or family-sponsored preference adjustment of status. The revised process will better connect USCIS procedures with the US Department of State (DOS) procedures, which are used for foreign nationals who seek to become U.S. permanent residents by applying for immigrant visas at U.S. consulates and embassies abroad.

The Visa Bulletin revisions implement November 2014 executive actions on immigration announced by President Obama and Secretary of Homeland Security Johnson, as detailed in the White House report, Modernizing and Streamlining Our Legal Immigration System for the 21st century, issued in July 2015

What is Changing.

Two charts per visa preference category will be posted in the DOS Visa Bulletin:
  • Application Final Action Dates (dates when visas may finally be issued); and
  • Dates for Filing Applications (earliest dates when applicants may be able to apply).
Each month, in coordination with DOS, USCIS will monitor visa numbers and post the relevant DOS Visa Bulletin chartApplicants can use the charts to determine when to file their Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status.

To determine whether additional visas are available, USCIS will compare the number of visas available for the remainder of the fiscal year with:
  • Documentarily qualified visa applicants reported by DOS;
  • Pending adjustment of status applications reported by USCIS; and
  • Historical drop off rate (for example, denials, withdrawals, abandonments).



DOS publishes current immigrant visa availability information in a monthly Visa Bulletin

See here