June 2019 Visa Bulletin: EB1 India Retrogresses, EB5 India Retrogression Coming Soon

The June 2019 Visa Bulletin has been released by the U.S. Department of State (DOS). The most notable movement is that the employment-based, first preference (EB1) category for India retrogresses significantly, albeit only temporarily. In addition, the latest visa bulletin cautions that the employment-based, fifth preference (EB5) category likely will retrogress severely in the July 2019 Visa Bulletin.

Visa Bulletin Summary

All cutoff dates listed refer to the dates in the final action (FA) chart, unless otherwise specified.

EB1 Category

Due to high demand in the EB1 category for India, the cutoff date in June 2019 retrogresses by more than two years, to January 1, 2015. This category should return to at least a February 22, 2017, cutoff date at the start of fiscal year 2020 (FY2020), which begins on October 1, 2019.

Meanwhile, the cutoff date for EB1 China remains at February 22, 2017. EB1 for all other countries of chargeability advances to an April 22, 2018, cutoff date.

Employment-Based, Second Preference (EB2) Category

EB2 India inches forward by a few days, to April 19, 2009. EB2 China advances to August 1, 2016. EB2 for all other countries of chargeability remains current.

Employment-Based, Third Preference (EB3) Category

EB3 India’s cutoff date remains at July 1, 2009. EB3 China moves up by a few weeks, to September 15, 2015. EB3 Philippines moves ahead to November 1, 2018. EB3 for all other countries of chargeability remains current.

EB3 Other Workers

With the exception of China, the cutoff dates for EB3 other workers are the same for each country as their respective EB3 cutoff date. For China, the cutoff date for EB3 other workers remains set at September 1, 2007.

Employment-Based, Fourth Preference (EB4) Category

In the EB4 category, Mexico advances to October 1, 2018. EB4 for El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras moves up to March 22, 2016. The category remains current for all other countries.

EB5 Category

EB5 China advances to October 1, 2014. The EB5 Vietnam cutoff date advances to October 1, 2016. The category remains current for all other countries.

Still, the big news for the EB5 category is that EB5 India is poised to retrogress, likely in July. It is predicted that a 2017 cutoff date will be set in the July 2019 Visa Bulletin. In August 2019, it will retrogress further, to match the EB5 China cutoff date. Then, at the start of FY2020, the cutoff date should move back to a summer or fall 2017 cutoff date. EB5 Vietnam will suffer similar retrogression in August, and then advance to a fall or early winter 2016 cutoff date in October 2019.

Conclusion

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