July 2021 Visa Bulletin Released
The Department of State (DOS) has issued its July 2021 Visa Bulletin. Priority dates for both employment-based and family-based petitions are detailed below.
As part of a greater public outreach effort, DOS will continue hosting discussions about the Visa Bulletin with the Chief of the Visa Control section, Charlie Oppenheim, on their YouTube Channel. The next Chats with Charlie is on Friday, June 18 at 10 AM PST / 1 PM EST to discuss the July Visa Bulletin.
Employment-based Movement
The EB-1 category remains open (“current” or “C” in DOS talk) worldwide, including for Indian and Chinese nationals. The EB-2 and EB-3 categories also remain open for most nationals except for nationals of China and India. EB-2 and EB-3 for Indian and Chinese nationals continue to have meaningful forward movement, with dramatic forward movement for Indian nationals in the EB-3 category.
The priority date for EB-2 advances by six months for Chinese and Indian nationals.
The priority date for EB-3 advances by four months for Chinese nationals and by 14 months for Indian nationals.
Here’s a chart for ease of reference:
Family-based Movement
Overall, most family-based categories will have slight forward movement.
For the F-1 category, the priority date moves forward by fourteen days for most nationals. The priority date for Mexican nationals advances by 5 months and the priority date for nationals of the Philippines remains the same as the previous month.
For the F2-A category, immigrant visas continue to be available for all nationals.
For the F2-B category, the priority date advances by twenty-four days for most nationals. The priority date for Mexican nationals advances by four months and twenty-four days, and for nationals of the Philippines the priority date remains the same as the previous month.
For the F-3 category, there will be a two month advancement for most nationals. The priority date for Mexican nationals advances by three months and twenty-one days, and for nationals of the Philippines the priority date remains the same as the previous month.
Finally, for the F-4 category, there will be a two month advancement for most nationals. The priority date moves forward by three months and one week for nationals of India and three months and two weeks for nationals of Mexico. There is a two week advancement for nationals of the Philippines.
By way of reminder, the categories are:
F-1 category: unmarried sons and daughters of U.S. citizens
F2-A category: spouses and children under 21 of lawful permanent residents
F2-B category: unmarried adult children (over 21) of lawful permanent residents
F-3 category: married sons and daughters of U.S. citizens
F-4 category: siblings of U.S. citizens
WHAT DATES IN THE VISA BULLETIN SHOULD YOU USE FOR FILING YOUR ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS APPLICATION WITH USCIS?
If USCIS determines that there are more immigrant visas available for a fiscal year than there are known applicants for such visas, then USCIS will state here that you may use the Dates for Filing Visa Applications chart in the Department of State Visa Bulletin, which usually has dates earlier than the Final Action Dates noted above. Otherwise, USCIS will indicate on its website that you must use the Application Final Action Dates chart (above) to determine when you may file your adjustment of status application in the United States.
For July 2021, USCIS has confirmed the Final Action dates (above) chart should be used for all employment-based categories.
For family-based categories, USCIS has announced that F2A applicants may file using the Final Action Dates chart (above). Applicants in all other family-sponsored preference categories must use the Dates for Filing chart provided below.
If the priority date for your employment or family-based category is before the date listed above and you are in the United States, you may file your application to adjust status along with the applications for employment authorization and travel permission (assuming you have no bars to admissibility) with USCIS in July.
The entire visa bulletin is available on the State Department’s website, which includes the diversity visa lottery.
If you would like more information on how to understand the monthly visa bulletin, please check out our blog post on this topic.
This alert is for informational purposes only. Please contact us if you would like to discuss these developments further.