AILA (The American Immigration Lawyers Association) has posted additional information regarding the anticipated retrogression of visa availability for the EB-2 category for individuals born in China and India. The May Visa Bulletin which will be published in April will show a cut-off date of August 15, 2007. This means that any individuals born in China or India with priority dates on or after August 15, 2007 will not be able to file their applications for adjustment of status as of May 1, 2012 until the numbers advance again which is anticipated to occur in October. Furthermore, individuals with priority dates on or after August 15, 2007 who are chargeable to China or India and who have pending applications for adjustment of status on file with the USCIS will have their cases held up for final adjudication until the priority dates advance. USCIS has indicated that they will continue to “preadjudicate” pending cases so that they are ready to approve cases once priority dates again advance. Only individuals with “current” priority dates can file for adjustment of status or be granted permanent resident status. Please refer to our FAQ on retrogression:

The Department of State has only provided information at this time related to EB-2 China and India cutoffs. We will need to wait for the actual bulletin to be issued to determine the impact on all other categories and countries.

If your priority date is on or after August 15, 2007 and  is “current” for the March and April visa bulletins and you were born in China or India and you have not yet filed your application for adjustment of status, you need to proceed with filing immediately because you will not be able to file in May.

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