NSC Instructions on Transferring Earlier Priority Dates Posted Jun 24, 2005 ©MurthyDotCom Recently, the Nebraska Service Center (NSC) provided instructions on how to notify them regarding an earlier priority date (PD) when filing the I-140 and I-485 for an individual. It is possible to transfer a PD from one employment-based green card case to another, filed for the same individual, if the first case has reached the point where the 1-140 petition has been approved. Similarly, it is possible, in certain limited situations, to transfer a priority date from an approved I-130 petition to a later family-based filing. On occasion, however, it is difficult to make the service centers aware that the beneficiary has an earlier priority date. ©MurthyDotCom NSC Tips on Highlighting the Earlier PD ©MurthyDotCom The NSC, on June 14, 2005, provided instructions for a person filing a petition and requesting an earlier priority date based upon a previous case. A brightly-colored, flagged sheet of paper should be included to indicate that there is an earlier priority date. A copy of the prior I-797 Approval Notice of the I-140 petition should be inserted directly behind the brightly-colored sheet of paper. Though the NSC did not indicate where this should go in the filing, it is generally best to put such requests on the top of the filing or directly behind the cover sheet, to maximize the chance that it will be seen and acknowledged. This will avoid a rejection of the file, based on the priority date not being current, and a needless delay in processing the new filing. ©MurthyDotCom Use Similar Strategy with Other Service Centers ©MurthyDotCom Although the service centers at California, Texas, and Vermont have not specifically provided tips like NSC, it would be wise to follow a similar method to highlight the earlier PD when filing at the other service centers. This will best ensure that the I-140/I-485 is accepted for processing in a timely manner and likely will be processed earlier than those cases that must wait to be approved only when the PDs become current again. ©MurthyDotCom Should Notification of Previously-Filed Cases be Sent? ©MurthyDotCom It is worth considering a similar strategy for an earlier-filed case in which a person may have an earlier priority date that was not indicated before to the appropriate USCIS Service Center. Though EB3 numbers are unavailable to all but Schedule A workers starting July 1, 2005 (which is expected to last at least until October 1, 2005) it is best to notify the USCIS of an earlier priority date for any case at the time of the I-485 petition filing and for earlier-filed cases that may have eligibility for an earlier PD. Anyone unfamiliar with the unavailability of numbers for EB3s should review our June 17, 2005 MurthyBulletin article, EB3 Numbers Unavailable from July 1, 2005 Except for Schedule A Workers. ©MurthyDotCom When the USCIS prioritizes its workload, a case that is not properly identified as having an earlier priority date may not be processed as quickly as it would be if the case was properly identified. Moreover, eligibility for filing and approval can depend upon the priority date. Thus, if a person is eligible for an earlier date, this needs to be brought to the attention of the USCIS in an obvious and clear manner. © 2005 The Law Office of Sheela Murthy, P.C. All Rights Reserved
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