US VISA BULLETIN FOR MAY 2024
Introduction
Waiting for your priority date is one of the most important steps in obtaining your green card in the United States.
For immigrants who have invested time, money, and effort in obtaining an immigrant visa, there are many questions that arise, such as “how long will it take my date to be up to date?” or “can I expedite this process?” We offer monthly updates on the latest visa bulletin and analyze changes in dates.
The visa bulletin for May 2024 is here! If you want to know everything you need to know about the projected movements of employment-based categories and family sponsored categories in May, we have it for you.
If you’re one of the many people anxiously awaiting your turn in the immigration lines for employment-based or family-based green cards, here are the timeline changes in May’s visa bulletin.
The Family-Based Preferences
There are four levels of family immigration. These levels are based on the relationship between the sponsoring family member and the beneficiary. There are five chargeability areas for the family immigration category. These are China, India, Mexico, Philippines, and others.
Because of the low number of appointments at overseas consulates, the family-based immigrant visa category sometimes sees low usage numbers. Any unused family-based visa gets added to the EB category.
The Employment-Based Preferences
The USCIS issues employment-based category visas through the job or occupation to five distinct preference levels and seven chargeability areas. These chargeability areas include China, India, Mexico, Philippines, Central America (Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador), Vietnam, and general category.
Changes in filing dates chart
The filing dates chart for family sponsored preference categories remains the same as the previous month. Except for F2B for Mexico, which advances by 1 calendar month to 1 September 2004. F3 worldwide, China, and India will make 3-month advances to June 1.
F4 India will make a 2.2-month advance to June 15. Mexico will make one week advance to April 22. The Philippines gets a 1-month increase to June 1.
The filing dates for employment-based petitions are the same as the previous month.
Changes in final action dates chart
The final action dates chart does not show any change for all the employment-based preferences categories.
On the other hand, the chart below shows the final action dates for family sponsored categories that advanced in almost every category as follows:
Adjustment of Status (AOS) filing dates chart
For AOS in May 2024, the USCIS will resume using the same submission dates for all categories of family-sponsored preferences.
The chart of final action dates for all types of employment-based preferences remains the same when it comes to AOS to the US permanent residency.
Conclusion
When it comes to immigration law, there is no such thing as too much information. The more information you have regarding your immigration status, the more likely it is that you will be able to make well-informed decisions regarding your case. Stay up-to-date by following up on our news alert section, join our newsletter list or visit the USCIS website regularly.
