Visa Bulletin | August 2021

When applying for a Green Card, waiting for your priority date to become current is a part of the process. If you have already filed your petition, you’re probably wondering how long it will take or if there is a way to speed up the process. Luckily, thanks to the visa bulletin you can see which green card applications can move forward, and you’ll be able to determine your place on the waiting list. The date you filed your Petition for Alien Relative (Form I-130) or Petition for Alien Worker (Form I-140) is your priority date, and it represents your place in line.

What is a Visa bulletin?

Each month, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issues a visa bulletin for that particular month. More specifically, a visa bulletin provides information about the green card applications which can move forward, based on the date when you filed the petition.

Accordingly, you should keep in mind that there is a limit to the number of green cards which can be issued annually. Therefore, the two main categories of green card applications include:

• family-based green cards;
• employment-based green cards.

Annually, there are 366,000 green cards available: 226,000 family-based green cards and 140,000 employment-based green cards. The two charts are presented for these two categories: application final action dates chart and dates for filing visa applications chart. Thus, a visa bulletin typically consists of four charts, two for family-sponsored green cards and two for employment-based immigration.

Hence, the Dates for Filing represent the earliest dates green card applicants may apply for a green card. Similarly, Final Action Dates represent the dates when a green card number will be available for the applicant with a current priority date that month.

Moreover, if you are currently living in the United States and waiting to apply for the Adjustment of Status, you will look at the final action dates chart. However, if you live outside of the United States and are waiting for consular processing, you should focus on the dates for filing chart.

Good to Know

For instance, it is important to mention that there is a limit on the number of green cards that can be issued based on the country of origin, the so-called country cap. Namely, one country of origin cannot have more than 7% of green cards available to it in any category. As a result, in the countries which have large populations, such as India and China where a lot of people are applying for green cards, the waiting line is usually long and it can take around ten years for their date to become current.

Below, you can find the Visa Bulletin for August 2021 with final action dates and dates for filing visa applications.

Family-sponsored preferences

F-1: Unmarried Children (age 21 and older) of U.S. Citizens
F-2A: Spouses and Unmarried Children (under age 21) of U.S. Green Card Holders
F-2B: Unmarried Children (age 21 or older) of U.S. Green Card Holders
F-3: Married Children of U.S. Citizens
F-4: Siblings of U.S. Citizens

C - current, authorized for issuance
U - unauthorized

Employment-based preferences

First: Extraordinary People, Outstanding Researchers and Professors, and Multinational Executives and Managers
Second: Exceptional People and Advanced Degree Holders
Third: Bachelor’s Degree Holders, Skilled Workers, and Unskilled Workers
Fourth: Special Immigrants
Fifth: Investors

C - current, authorized for issuance
U - unauthorized

We hope that this information is useful to you. Furthermore, the information provided in a visa bulletin can seem too complex to understand sometimes. However, with a straightforward guide, you’ll be able to stay up to date with the most recent changes.

VisaExpress is here to help with any information you may need regarding your green card application process. That is, the immigration-based process is case-specific. In other words, every aspect of your situation should be taken into consideration.

Fortunately, in case you’re unsure what visa you should apply for, you can simply visit our Visa Selection form and with a few clicks see what visa type is best for you. Or if you prefer, you can contact us and we’ll get back to you in the shortest time possible.