Visa is meant for exceptionally skilled immigrants.
AB Wire
The EB-1 visa, which is for exceptionally skilled professionals and has been the best bet for those seeking quick permanent residency or a Green Card, is going to retrogress soon for Indian and Chinese nationals.
The US State Department has announced through its immigration bulletin that from August 1, 2016, the priority date for EB-1 visa would retrogress for Indian and Chinese applicants to January 1, 2010.
This effectively means that those Indian and Chinese nationals who are working on a EB-1 visa, file for a Green card by July 31, 2016, they would get a Green Card almost immediately, as the priority dates are current till the end of July. But those who file from August 1 onwards, it could be wait for a few months or years depending on how soon the priority dates move forward.
However, this would pertain to only the Indian and Chinese nationals. The priority date for nationals from elsewhere globally, the EB-1 visa date would remain current.
The EB-1 is for immigrants of extraordinary ability, outstanding professors or researchers, and certain executives at multinational companies.
A total of 12,253 Indians and 6,239 Chinese were granted EB-1 visas in 2015. It’s not known, how many applicants from that pool applied for permanent residency.
Retrogression, the term used by Department of Homeland Security to push the date backwards for filing for a Green Card, has been few and far apart. Since 1991, the priority date for EB-1 has retrogressed from “current” for India three times and for China six times.
The good news for EB-1 applicants is that new allocations for filing for a Green Card begins on October 1, 2016. It’s likely that the priority date for Indian and Chinese nationals would move forward closer.
In the EB-2 category, the new priority date, as per the August bulletin, has been set at February 1, 2014, with a predicted return to current in October, 2016. The cutoff date for India in the EB-2 category advanced by two weeks from November 1, 2004 to November 15, 2004.
In the EB-3 category, worldwide chargeability, along with El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico, advanced two weeks from March 1, 2016 to March 15, 2016. The cutoff date for India advanced from October 22, 2004 to November 8, 2004, while the cutoff date for the Philippines advanced by three months from February 15, 2009 to May 15, 2009.
In the EB-4 category, the State Department imposed a cutoff date for India of January 1, 2010. The Department notes that the EB-4 category for India will become current in October, 2016.