A Five-Year Review of the Immigrant Visa Bulletin
Under U.S. immigration law, a limited number of green cards can be issued annually for family members and employment, resulting in substantial backlogs and wait times. The Department of State publishes a monthly Visa Bulletin with “priority dates” that show a person’s place in line based on their petition filing date. Each year, I prepare two charts to track progress over the last five years in employment and family-based categories. I focus on the October Visa Bulletin, as it marks the start of the fiscal year and the replenishment of green card allocations.
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October 2024 Visa Bulletin Released
The Department of State (DOS) has issued its October 2024 Visa Bulletin.
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New Program for Undocumented Spouses and Children of US Citizens Takes Effect
The Department of Homeland Security announced that it would immediately start accepting applications under the Keeping Families Together program, which allows certain undocumented spouses and children of U.S. citizens to obtain work authorization and legal permanent resident (“LPR”) status while remaining in the United States.
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September 2024 Visa Bulletin Released
The Department of State (DOS) has issued its September 2024 Visa Bulletin.
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USCIS Conducted a Second H-1B Lottery
USCIS announced last week that it need to select additional H-1B lottery registrations from the registrations that were not selected in March 2024, in order to meet the annual limit (“cap”) of 65,000 H-1B visas allocated for this fiscal year, which begins October 1, 2024.
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Temporary Relief for Certain Lebanese and Somalis in the U.S.
As the political situation in Lebanon deteriorates and the humanitarian crisis in Somalia worsens, President Biden and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have implemented temporary relief for certain Lebanese nationals in the U.S.
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Temporary Protection for Yemenis Extended and Expanded
Due to the extraordinary humanitarian conditions in Yemen, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has announced the extension and redesignation of Yemen for Temporary Protected Status (“TPS”) until March 3, 2026.
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August 2024 Visa Bulletin Released
The Department of State (DOS) has issued its August 2024 Visa Bulletin. Compared to previous months with significant movement, this month shows a slowdown in the forward movement of priority dates for both the employment-based and family-based immigrant visa categories. No categories will retrogress in August.
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Biden Announces New Program for Undocumented Spouses of U.S. Citizens
President Biden has recently proposed a program that would allow certain undocumented spouses of U.S. citizens (and their children) to obtain work authorization and legal permanent resident (“LPR”) status while remaining in the United States.
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Temporary Protection for Haiti Extended and Expanded, and Employment Authorization under TPS Extended for El Salvador, Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua, and Sudan
Due to the ongoing urgent humanitarian situation in Haiti, Secretary of Homeland Security, Alejandro N. Mayorkas, has announced the extension and expansion of Haiti for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) until February 3, 2026.
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