Visa Cut-off dates for the month of August 2009
FAMILY
PREFERENCES
F1 - Family first preference: Unmarried sons and daughters over the age of 21 years of U.S. Citizens. The cut-off date has moved forward by seven (7) weeks for most of the countries, including India, to January 8, 2003.
F2A - Family second preference: Spouses and minor children, and unmarried sons and daughters of permanent residents. The cut-off date has moved forward by three (3) weeks for most countries, including India, to January 15, 2005.
F2B - Family second preference: Unmarried sons and daughters over 21 of permanent residents. The cutoff date has moved forward by two (2) weeks for most of the countries, including India, to May 1, 2001.
F3 - Family third preference: Married sons and daughters of U.S. Citizens and their spouses and children. The cut-off date has moved forward by one (1) week for most of the countries, including India, to November 1, 2000.
F4 - Family fourth preference: Brothers and sisters of U.S. Citizens. The cut-off date has moved forward by eight (8) weeks for most of the countries, including India, to December 22, 1998.
EMPLOYMENT
PREFERENCES
EB1 - Priority Workers: The cut-off date for this category for all countries including India is CURRENT.
EB2 - Advanced Degree holders: The cut-off date for this category for most countries is CURRENT, and for India, it has moved forward by three (3) years & nine (9) months to October 1, 2003.
EB3 - Professional, Skilled Workers & Other Workers: The cut-off date for this category is UNAVAILABLE for most of the countries, including India.
EB4 (Certain Special Immigrants & Religious Workers) is CURRENT for all countries, including INDIA.
EB5 (Pilot Programs & Targeted Employment Programs) is CURRENT for all countries, including India.
DHS Establishes Interim Relief for Widows of U.S. Citizens
On June 9, 2009, U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano granted deferred action for two years to widows and widowers of U.S. citizens, as well as their unmarried children under 18 years oldwho reside in the United States and who were married for less than two years prior to their spouse's death.
"Smart immigration policy balances strong enforcement practices with common-sense, practical solutions to complicated issues," said Secretary Napolitano.
Secretary Napolita- n o also directed U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to suspend adjudication of visa petitions and adjustment applications filed for widow(er)s where the sole reason for reassessment of immigration status was the death of a U.S. citizen spouse prior to the second anniversary of the marriage.
Additionally, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will defer initiating or continuing removal proceedings, or executing final orders of removal against qualified widow(er)s and their eligible children.
USCIS will also consider favorably requests for humanitarian reinstatement where previously approved petitions for widow(er)s had been revoked because of the law. DHS will soon issue guidance instructing the public on how to apply for this relief.
These directives apply regardless of whether the citizen filed a petition for the alien spouse before death. Orphans, Widows and Widowers Protection Act
On June 11 2009, Senators Menendez (D-NJ), Gillibrand (D-NY) and Leahy (D-VT) introduced the Orphans, Widows and Widowers Protection Act (S. 1427), which addresses the immigration related hardships caused by the death of a sponsoring relative.
Specifically, the bill would: •Protect orphans, parents and spouses of United States citizens by allowing them to continue their applications through the family immigration system in cases where the citizens' or residents' relative died if the individual self-petitions within two years;
•Allow the spouse and minor children of family-sponsored immigrants and derivative beneficiaries of employment based visas to benefit from a filed visa petition after the death of a relative or adjust status on the basis of a petition filed before the death of the sponsoring relative if the application is filed within two years;
•Allow the spouse and minor children of refugees and asylees to immigrate to the U.S. despite the death of the principal applicant and allow them to adjust their status to permanent residence;
•Provide processes to reopen previously denied cases and allow individuals to be paroled into the U.S. in cases where the sponsoring relative died after submitting an immigration application; and
•Promote efficient naturalization of widows and widowers by allowing the surviving spouse to continue with a naturalization application as long as the deceased spouse was a citizen of the United States during the three years prior to filing.
By Michael Phulwani- VISA BULLETIN FOR AUGUST 2009 Information provided by the Visa Office.
