A. NUMBER OF IMMIGRANT VISAS AVAILABLE

2. The fiscal year limit for family-sponsored preference immigrants for a country is 7% of the total annual family-sponsored and employment-based preference limits, i.e., 28,016 for the Fiscal Year. The yearly limit for a dependent area (e.g. Bermuda) is set at 2%, or 8,004.

3. FAMILY-SPONSORED PREFERENCES

2nd: Spouses and Children(who are under 21 and unmarried) are in 2A, and Unmarried Sons and Daughters (who are over 21) of Permanent Residents are in 2B.

2A: The 2nd "A" preference is for Spouses and Children of LPR's.

2B: The 2nd "B" Preference is for Unmarried Sons and Daughters (21 years of age or older)of LPR's.

3rd: Married Sons and Daughters of Citizens.

4th: Brothers and Sisters of Adult Citizens.

4. Family-sponsored and employment based preference visas are issued to eligible immigrants in the order in which petitions are filed. Spouses and children of preference immigrants are entitled to the same status, and the same order of consideration, if accompanying or following to join the principal. (This means that family members can be given immigrant visas also if they travel with or follow to join the person with the approved petition without filing individual petitions themselves. This rule does NOT apply to immediate relatives of U.S. citizens each of whom need individual petitions.

5. On the charts below, the listing of a date for any class indicates that there is a wait for visas; "C" means current, i.e., visas are available for all qualified applicants; and "U" means Unavailable, i.e., no visas are available at this time. (NOTE: Visas are available only for applicants whose priority date is earlier than the cut-off date listed here.)

 

FAMILY BASED

	ALL AREAS EXCEPT	CHINA	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
PREF	THOSE LISTED	Mainland Born	-	-	-
1st	08 JUL 96	08 JUL 96	08 JUL 96	01 JUL 93	22 DEC 86
2A	15 OCT 93	15 OCT 93	15 OCT 93	08 DEC 92	15 OCT 93
2B	15 AUG 91	15 AUG 91	15 AUG 91	01 JUN 91	15 AUG 91
3rd	22 SEP 94	22 SEP 94	22 SEP 94	01 MAY 89	15 NOV 86
4th	01 OCT 87	01 OCT 87	22 JAN 86	15 JAN 87	15 APR 78

6. EMPLOYMENT-SPONSORED PREFERENCES

1st: Priority Workers.

2nd: Members of the Professions Holding Advanced Degrees or Persons of Exceptional Ability.

3rd: Skilled Workers, Professionals, and Other Workers (Other Workers include those in sponsored jobs which require less than two years of training or experience.)

4th: "Special Immigrants"

5th: Employment Creation (Investors)

 

EMPLOYMENT BASED

	ALL AREAS EXCEPT	CHINA	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
PREF	THOSE LISTED	Mainland Born	-	-	-
1st	C	22 MAY 97	C	C	C
2nd	C	15 APR 96	22 JUN 96	C	C
3rd	C	01 FEB 94	08 MAY 95	C	C
Other Workers	01 MAR 91	01 MAR 91	01 MAR 91	01 MAR 91	01 MAR 91
4th	C	C	C	C	C
5th	C	C	C	C	C

B. DIVERSITY IMMIGRANT (DV) CATEGORY

Section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act provides 55,000 immigrant visas each fiscal year for persons from countries other than the principal sources of current immigration to the United States. DV visas are divided among six geographic regions. Not more than 3,850 visas (7% of the 55,000 visa limit) may be provided to immigrants from any one country.

The allotment of FY-1998 visa numbers for each region is as follows: Africa, 20,426; Asia, 7,087; Europe, 24,257; North America (Bahamas): 8, South America, Central America, and the Caribbean: 2,407; and Oceania, 815.

For MARCH 1998, DV visas are available to all qualified applicants in the REGIONS OF NORTH AMERICA (BAHAMAS), OCEANIA, and SOUTH AMERICA on a "Current" basis. A cut-off date has been set for Africa, Asia, Bangladesh, Europe, Albania, and Bulgaria.

For the Regions and Countries listed below, during MARCH 98, DV visas are available to those with cut-off rank numbers BELOW the number shown here: AFRICA 27,200, ASIA 10,641 except BANGLADESH 6,002; EUROPE 17,711 except ALBANIA 10,229 and BULGARIA 13,653.

IMPORTANT NOTE FOR DV CASES: Entitlement to immigrant status in the DV category lasts only through the end of the fiscal year for which the applicant is selected in the lottery. The year of entitlement for all applicants registered for Fiscal Year 1998 ends on September 30, 1998. A DV98 lottery registration will give no benefit after that date. FY-1998 Diversity Visa cases must be completed by 30 September 1998. (Note: DV selections from earlier lotteries are no longer valid.)

The Department of State has available a recorded message with visa availability information which can be heard at: area code (202) 663-1541. This recording will be updated in the middle of each month with information on cut-off dates for the following month.

OBTAINING THE MONTHLY VISA BULLETIN: The Department of State's Bureau of Consular Affairs offers the monthly "Visa Bulletin" on the INTERNET. The INTERNET address of the Bulletin is http://travel.state.gov/visa_bulletin.html.

In addition to the INTERNET, the "Visa Bulletin" can be accessed and downloaded from the Consular Affairs electronic bulletin board. Those with a computer and modem should dial (202) 647-9225. No password or special software are required.

Individuals may also obtain the "Visa Bulletin" by FAX. From a FAX phone, dial (202) 647-3000. Follow the prompts and enter in the code 1038 to have the Bulletin FAXed to you.

To be placed on the Department of State's Visa Bulletin mailing list, please write to: Visa Bulletin, Visa Office, Department of State, Washington, D.C. 20522-0113. Only addresses within the U.S. postal system may be placed on the mailing list. Please include a recent mailing label when reporting changes or corrections of address; the Postal Service does NOT automatically notify the Visa Office of address changes. (Obtaining the Visa Bulletin by mail is much slower than the alternatives mentioned above.)

The above dates and numbers are from the Department of State Publication 9514CA/VO released February 98.

The original unedited Visa Bulletin is available at Official Visa Bulletin. (Government internet sites are sometimes not available or are posted later...Don't forget to come back!)