A blog about U.S. immigration matters by Paul Szeto, a former INS attorney and an experienced immigration lawyer. We serve clients in all U.S. states and overseas countries. (All information is not legal advice and is subject to change without prior notice.)

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Wednesday, September 21, 2016

EB Applicants May Use the Filing Date Chart to File I-485 in October

USCIS announced that the agency will adopt the Filing Date Charts in October 2016's Visa Bulletin for both Family-based and Employment-based petitions.  This is the first time in many months that USCIS adopts the State Department's Filing Date Chart in visa bulletin.  A new batch of visa numbers will become available in October, the first month of the fiscal year. 

Employment-based green card applicants should check their priority date to determine if they can submit their I-485 application for adjustment of status in October.  When November comes, things may not be the same any more.

3 comments:

Joe said...

So, what are the implications of this? I'm on the F2A category and I am currently waiting for a visa to become available (PD: April 2015). I am going through consular processing since I am not in U.S.

Does form I-485 has anything to do with my case? Does this means by any chance that there's going to be a significant jump on the final action date? Please, let me know...

Paul Szeto said...

The I-485 can only be filed if the applicant is in the United States. If you are outside, you need to apply for an immigrant visa at an America consulate, which is part of the Department of State, and DOS always follows the Filing Date Charts anyway. Your priority date seems current - you can just proceed through the "consular processing" mechanism.

Joe said...

Thank you. Guess I'll just have to wait for this month-to-month movement to reach my priority date.