Backlogs

FY2012 China and India EB-2 Limits Reached

The annual limits for FY2012 China and India EB-2 have now been reached. On April 11, 2012, the State Department (DOS) notified USCIS that they would authorize no further visas for those EB-2 categories. (more…)

EB-2 Retrogression India, China: May 2012

The May 2012 Visa Bulletin announces EB-2 retrogression for India and China. Due to the rapid forward movement of the EB-2 cut-off date in recent months, demand for China and India EB-2 numbers increased dramatically during that period, and at a much faster rate than DOS expected. Therefore, they have retrogressed the EB-2 cut-off date to August 15, 2007, in an attempt to hold number use within annual limits while maintaining availability for countries that have not yet reached their EB-2 per-country limit. The November 2011, January 2012, and February 2012 Visa Bulletins have each included notices alerting readers to the possibility of an EB-2 retrogression. (more…)

EB-2 Priority Dates Retrogression: India, China

EB-2 priority dates for China (mainland born) and India for the remainder of FY2012 will retrogress substantially, according to Charles Oppenheim, Chief of the Department of State Immigrant Visa Control and Reporting.  More specifically, upon publication of the May 2012 Visa Bulletin, China and India EB-2 priority dates will retrogress to August 15, 2007. Demand in the EB-2 India and EB-2 China categories continues to increase at a very high rate, and therefore, it must be slowed to retain visa numbers for individuals born in other countries. (more…)

Fairness for High Skilled Immigrants Act (H.R. 3012) Passed in House

The Fairness for High Skilled Immigrants Act (H.R. 3012) passed in the US House of Representatives November 29, 2011, by a vote of 389 to 15, with considerable bipartisan support. The Act would eliminate the US employment-based per-country cap on green cards entirely by fiscal year 2015, and it also raises the family-sponsored per-country green card cap from 7% to 15%. After it passed, the Fairness for High Skilled Immigrants Act then moved to the US Senate, where it was immediately halted the following day, November 30, 2011, by Senator Grassley (R-IA), who placed a hold on it. (more…)