June 2024 US Visa Bulletin: Minimal movement in EB Green Card categories despite advancement for family-based visas

Much like the May bulletin, next month’s chart shows little progress for the EB Green Card applicants. For India and China, the EB-1 dates remain stuck at March 1, 2021, and September 1, 2022, respectively.

Key Takeaways of June 2024 US Visa Bulletin

As always, ‘dates for filing’ indicate the timeline of the application’s eligibility. If your priority date falls on or before the cut-off date listed against your country’s visa category, you may proceed to the next steps of the application process.

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On the other hand, ‘final action dates’ reflect when your application will be processed and the estimated time for approval.

Unlike the EB categories, family-based preferences have welcomed significant movement. In the F1 category, Mexico faces an advancement of over two months. For the other countries (except the Philippines), the dates remain stuck at July 8, 2015. Similarly, for F2A, Mexico sets a progressing example, with its priority dates leaping forth by nearly three months.

On the contrary, the F3 priority dates jointly jump forward across countries. However, only Mexico witnesses any movement on the F2B index. Lastly, dates for F4 categories of Mexico and the Philippines have also moved along, while India, China and the rest of the world are stick by their respective unchanged dates.

Family-based Applications:

Family-Sponsored categories:

F1: Unmarried sons + daughters of US citizens [23,400 + numbers left out by fourth preference].

Second: Spouse and children + unmarried sons and daughters of permanent residents

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

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

F3: Married Sons + Daughters of US Citizens – 23,400 + numbers left out by first and second preferences.

F4: Brothers and Sisters of Adult US Citizens – 65,000 + surplus numbers of first three preferences.

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Final Action Dates for family-sponsored applications:

Dates for filing family-based visa applications:

Employment-Based preferences

1st: Priority Workers – 28.6% global employment-based preference level + surplus numbers of fourth and fifth preferences.

2nd: Members of the Professions Holding Advanced Degrees / Persons of Exceptional Ability – 28.6% of worldwide employment-based preference level + numbers left out by the first.

3rd: Skilled Workers, Professionals and Other Workers – 28.6% of global level + numbers left over by the first and second preferences, with 10,000 allotted to ‘Other Workers’.

4th: Certain Special Immigrants – 7.1% of the global level, with 32% set aside as follows: 20% for qualified immigrants investing in a rural area + 10% for qualified immigrants investing in high unemployment areas + 2% for qualified immigrants in infrastructure projects. The remaining 68% is unreserved and set aside for all eligible immigrants.

5th: Employment Creation – 7.1% of the worldwide level

Final Action Dates for Employment-based cases:

Dates for filing Employment-based visa applications: