Visa Bulletin Predictions
For May 2023 (Coming Soon)

For the millions of people waiting in line in the employment-based and family-based categories, visa bulletin predictions give them an idea of when they will be able to apply for and obtain green cards.

The State Department has issued the April Visa Bulletin.

The government estimates that 197,000 green cards will be available to persons in the employment categories in Fiscal Year 2023, down from 281,507 in FY 2022, but 57,000 higher than the 140,000 mandated by law as the result of 57,000 unused family-based green cards in Fiscal Year 2022.

A legal declaration was issued on September 6, 2022 by Andrew Parker (USCIS) who specializes in EB adjustment of status cases and who coordinates with the U.S. Department of State (DOS).

The State Department Visa Bulletin April 2023 shows backlogs in getting green cards in both the family and the employment-based categories. The time that it will take you to get a green card depends on the category of your petition and your country of birth. The Visa Bulletin is updated on a monthly basis.

You can stay up-to-date with Visa Bulletin by subscribing to our Free E-Mail Newsletter.

Family-Based Categories – Visa Bulletin Predictions for May 2023

These visa bulletin predictions are estimates based on recent movement in the family-based categories and should not be relied upon as legal advice. They indicate how far forward the Final Action Dates may advance in the coming month.

F-1 – Unmarried Adult Sons & Daughters of US Citizens

• Mexico –
• Philippines –
• All Other Countries –

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F-2A – Spouses & Minor, Unmarried Sons & Daughters of LPRs

• Mexico –
• All Other Countries –

F-2B – Unmarried Adult Sons & Daughters of LPRs

• Mexico –
• Philippines –
• All Other Countries –

F-3 – Married Adult Sons & Daughters of US Citizens

• Mexico –
• Philippines –
• All Other Countries –

F-4 – Brother & Sisters of US Citizens

• Mexico –
• India –
• Philippines –
• All Other Countries –

NUMBERS FOR THE FAMILY-BASED PREFERENCE CATEGORIES

F1 Unmarried Adult Sons and Daughters of U.S. Citizens: 23,400 plus any numbers not required for fourth preference.

F2 Spouses and Children, and Unmarried Sons and Daughters of Permanent Residents: 114,200, plus the number (if any) by which the worldwide family preference level exceeds 226,000, plus any unused first preference numbers:

F2A Spouses and Children of Permanent Residents: 77% of the overall second preference limitation, of which 75% are exempt from the per-country limit;

F2B Unmarried Adult Sons and Daughters of Permanent Residents: 23% of the overall second preference limitation.

F3 Married Sons and Daughters of U.S. Citizens: 23,400, plus any numbers not required by first and second preferences.

F4 Brothers and Sisters of Adult U.S. Citizens: 65,000, plus any numbers not required by first three preferences.

 

Employment-Based Categories – Visa Bulletin Predictions for May 2023

These visa bulletin predictions are estimates based on recent movement in the employment-based categories and should not be relied upon as legal advice.

EB-1 Priority Workers

• India –
• China –
• All Other Countries –

EB-2 Members of the Professions Holding Advanced Degrees or Persons of Exceptional Ability

• India –
• China –
• All Other Countries –

The State Department provides the following guidance regarding the EB-2 category:

“Since December 2022, there has been higher than expected number use and demand, mostly due to continued new filings by applicants from all countries with priority dates earlier than the established final action dates. This will necessitate corrective action in the coming months to hold number use within the maximum allowed under the Fiscal Year 2023 annual limit. This situation will be continually monitored, and any necessary adjustments will be made accordingly.”

EB-3 Professionals and Skilled Workers

• India –
• China –
• All Other Countries –

The State Department provides the following guidance regarding the EB-3 category:

“Increased demand in the Employment Third category may necessitate the establishment of a worldwide final action date (including Mexico and Philippines) in the coming months to hold number use within the maximum allowed under the Fiscal Year 2023 annual limit.”

The State Department provides the following guidance regarding the EB-4 category:

“In the December 2022 Visa Bulletin, EB-4 final action and application filing dates were established for Rest of World countries, China, India, and Philippines in response to high demand. Number use and demand in this category have continued to increase, which necessitates further retrogression of the final action dates and application filing dates for Rest of World countries as well as China, India, Mexico, and Philippines, to hold number use within the maximum allowed under the Fiscal Year2023 annual limit.”

The State Department provides the following guidance regarding the EB-5 category:

“In the October 2022 Visa Bulletin, a final action date and application filing date were established in the Employment Fifth Preference Unreserved (including C5, T5, I5, and R5) category for India to keep number use within the maximum allowed under the FY2023 annual limit. Number use and demand has been higher than anticipated at the start of this fiscal year, so further retrogression has become necessary. For March, the final action date for the EB-5 Unreserved category for India is set at 01JUN18.”

NUMBERS FOR THE EMPLOYMENT-BASED PREFERENCE CATEGORIES

EB-1 Priority Workers: 28.6% of the worldwide employment-based preference level, plus any numbers not required for fourth and fifth preferences.

EB-2 Members of the Professions Holding Advanced Degrees or Persons of Exceptional Ability: 28.6% of the worldwide employment-based preference level, plus any numbers not required by first preference.

EB-3 Skilled Workers, Professionals, and Other Workers: 28.6% of the worldwide level, plus any numbers not required by first and second preferences, not more than 10,000 of which to “*Other Workers”.

EB-4 Certain Special Immigrants: 7.1% of the worldwide level.

EB-5 Employment Creation: 7.1% of the worldwide level, of which 32% are reserved as follows: 20% reserved for qualified immigrants who invest in a rural area; 10% reserved for qualified immigrants who invest in a high unemployment area; and 2% reserved for qualified immigrants who invest in infrastructure projects. The remaining 68% are unreserved and are allotted for all other qualified immigrants.

The 7% Per-Country Cap

For the family and employment preference categories, the law imposes a limit on how many immigrants from any particular country can receive green cards in a given year. No country can receive more than 7% of the total number of EB and FB preference visas in a given year. There are no per-country limits for immediate relatives of U.S. citizens.

Because of the numerical caps and per-country caps on certain green-card categories, there are significant waits for some categories, with sharper effects on a few countries.

The wait for U.S. citizens to sponsor their brothers and sisters is more than 15 years for most parts of the world, but is 20 years for siblings from the Philippines and more than 22 years for those from Mexico.

There are millions of people waiting in line abroad for family-sponsored green cards. There are hundreds of thousands of people waiting employment-sponsored green cards. Most of these persons are residing in the US on temporary working visas. However, when their children turn 21 years old, many of them are no longer able to maintain lawful immigration status in the U.S. and risk becoming separated from their families.

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