THE AMERICAN DREAM -USA-NEWSLETTER 08/2001
Published by
THE AMERICAN DREAM – USA Services GmbH, Heinsestr. 16, 13467 Berlin, Germany
THE AMERICAN DREAM, Empire State Building, Ste. 3304, New York, NY 10118, USA
Tel.: +49 180-511 0511, Fax +49 180-511 0 512, http.//www.greencard.info
Copyright 08/01, all rights reserved.
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INTRODUCTORY NOTE: First of all, we would like you to accept our apologies for the rather long period you had to wait for a new newsletter. We will now try to send out our newsletters more often again! This newsletter brings you the results of last year´s lottery program as well as some interesting news on visas for religious workers. Please also check out our new web-links. Please feel free to send us any comments about this newsletter!
Yours sincerely,
H. Zimmermann
CEO, THE AMERICAN DREAM
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The year-2000 lottery (DV-2002) is officially over.
The Kentucky Consular Center in Williamsburg, Kentucky has registered and notified the winners of the diversity lottery. The diversity lottery was conducted under the terms of section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act and makes available 55,000 permanent resident visas annually to persons from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States.
Applicants registered for the DV-2002 program were selected at random from the millions of qualified entries received during the one-month application period that ran from Noon on October 2, 2000 through Noon on November 1, 2000. A total of 3 million (!) applications received inside and outside of the mail-in period were disqualified for failing to properly follow directions. The visas have been apportioned among six geographic regions with a maximum of seven percent available to persons born in any single country. During the visa interview, principal applicants must provide proof of a high school education or its equivalent, or show two years of work experience in an occupation that requires at least two years of training or experience within the past five years. Those selected will need to act on their immigrant visa applications quickly. Applicants should follow the instructions in their notification letter and must fully complete the information requested.
Registrants living legally in the United States who wish to apply for adjustment of their status must contact the Immigration and Naturalization Service for information on the requirements and procedures.
Names of winners are NEVER published by the US State Department. All of our winners have received their original documents from THE AMERICAN DREAM in June. We were happy to welcome 876 winners among our customers. The following is therefore only a statistical breakdown by foreign-state chargeability of those registered for the DV-2002 program.
AFRICA
ALGERIA 1,163
ANGOLA 15
BENIN 70
BOTSWANA 12
BURKINA FASO 14
BURUNDI 0
CAMEROON 775
CAPE VERDE 12
CENTRAL AFRICAN REP. 2
CHAD 19
COMOROS 0
CONGO 76
CONGO, DEMOCRATIC
REPUBLIC OF THE 405
COTE D’IVOIRE 163
DJIBOUTI 10
EGYPT 2,046
EQUATORIAL GUINEA 0
ERITREA 246
ETHIOPIA 4,997
GABON 18
GAMBIA, THE 63
GHANA 6,531
GUINEA 274
GUINEA-BISSAU 2
KENYA 2,408
LESOTHO 0
LIBERIA 1,117
LIBYA 26
MADAGASCAR 3
MALAWI 27
MALI 43
MAURITANIA 43
MAURITIUS 15
MOROCCO 2,056
MOZAMBIQUE 8
NAMIBIA 3
NIGER 45
NIGERIA 6,049
RWANDA 22
SAO TOME AND PRINCIPE 0
SENEGAL 379
SEYCHELLES 2
SIERRA LEONE 5,767
SOMALIA 1,328
SOUTH AFRICA 452
SUDAN 1,820
SWAZILAND 5
TANZANIA 269
TOGO 786
TUNISIA 151
UGANDA 192
ZAMBIA 91
ZIMBABWE 121
ASIA
AFGHANISTAN 208
BAHRAIN 3
BANGLADESH 5,497
BHUTAN 4
BRUNEI 0
BURMA 930
CAMBODIA 267
HONG KONG SPECIAL
ADMIN. REGION 205
INDONESIA 537
IRAN 1,703
IRAQ 117
ISRAEL 199
JAPAN 637
JORDAN 123
KUWAIT 39
LAOS 6
LEBANON 118
MALAYSIA 131
MALDIVES 0
MONGOLIA 69
NEPAL 729
NORTH KOREA 0
OMAN 6
QATAR 4
SAUDI ARABIA 50
SINGAPORE 62
SRI LANKA 757
SYRIA 67
TAIWAN 2,261
THAILAND 363
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES 22
YEMEN 223
EUROPE
ALBANIA 2,331
ANDORRA 0
ARMENIA 843
AUSTRIA 56
AZERBAIJAN 267
BELARUS 775
BELGIUM 30
BOSNIA & HERZEGOVINA 49
BULGARIA 2,489
CROATIA 43
CYPRUS 16
CZECH REPUBLIC 116
DENMARK 26
ESTONIA 61
FINLAND 19
FRANCE 207
Guadeloupe 1
GEORGIA 273
GERMANY 1,090
GREECE 44
HUNGARY 101
ICELAND 9
IRELAND 135
ITALY 95
KAZAKHSTAN 656
KYRGYZSTAN 133
LATVIA 156
LIECHTENSTEIN 0
LITHUANIA 1,483
LUXEMBOURG 2
MACEDONIA, FORMER
YUGOSLAV REP. OF 157
MALTA 2
MOLDOVA 461
MONACO 0
NETHERLANDS 52
Netherlands Antilles 5
NORTHERN IRELAND 11
NORWAY 11
POLAND 4,707
PORTUGAL 17
ROMANIA 1,357
RUSSIA 2,754
SAN MARINO 0
SLOVAKIA 275
SLOVENIA 5
SPAIN 38
SWEDEN 54
SWITZERLAND 105
TAJIKISTAN 107
TURKEY 1,153
TURKMENISTAN 43
UKRAINE 5,511
UZBEKISTAN 1,497
VATICAN CITY 0
YUGOSLAVIA 175
NORTH AMERICA
BAHAMAS, THE 15
OCEANIA
AUSTRALIA 220
FIJI 820
KIRIBATI 0
MARSHALL ISLANDS 0
MICRONESIA, FEDERATED
STATES OF 0
NAURU 0
NEW ZEALAND 138
Cook Islands 3
PALAU 0
PAPUA NEW GUINEA 4
SAMOA 1
SOLOMON ISLANDS 0
TONGA 37
TUVALU 0
VANUATU 0
SOUTH AMERICA, CENTRAL AMERICA, AND THE CARIBBEAN
ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA 2
ARGENTINA 198
BARBADOS 2
BELIZE 0
BOLIVIA 79
BRAZIL 237
CHILE 41
COSTA RICA 8
CUBA 757
DOMINICA 6
ECUADOR 432
GRENADA 4
GUATEMALA 20
GUYANA 32
HONDURAS 12
NICARAGUA 6
PANAMA 6
PARAGUAY 1
PERU 1,181
SAINT KITTS AND NEVIS 2
SAINT LUCIA 3
SAINT VINCENT AND
THE GRENADINES 2
SURINAME 2
TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO 69
URUGUAY 17
VENEZUELA 153
new lottery will take place in October 2001. We invite all our unsuccessful customers and other interested people to try their luck again this year! The chances for correctly filed applications are calculated to be around 1 in 20. This is a better chance than in almost any other lottery. Please visit our online information center at http://www.greencard.info for new regulations and application forms. However, if you are especially qualified and would like individual counselling for your visa case, we may also help you. A list of all available US visas will soon be published on our homepage. We will give you more details in our next newsletter.
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Portability and H-1B Visas
The H-1B visa is the most popular visa for people to come to the USA. It is valid for up to 6 years and can be used by anyone with a college degree who has got a job offer from a US company. In the past, it has been difficult to change the employer when in the USA with such a visa. This will soon change with a new law.
§ 105 of the American Competitiveness in the 21st Century Act of 2000 (“AC21“) provides for H-1B "portability", ie, a person who was previously issued a visa or otherwise provided H-1B status may accept new H-1B employment immediately upon the filing of a new petition by a new employer, subject to the final approval of the petition. An H-1B portability petition is one in which company “B“ files an H-1B petition seeking to employ a worker who already has H-1B status with company “A“. According to the new H-1B law, the worker is authorized for employment with company “B“ on the date the latter files an I-129 petition together with a certified LCA (Labor Condition Application). William Yates, the INS Executive Deputy Associate Commissioner, indicated that the INS is well aware of the problems caused to employers by the collapse of the LCA faxback system (please see below). Accordingly, he indicated that in the context of H-1B portability petitions, the INS will deem the worker authorized for employment upon submission by the new employer of the I-129 petition together with proof of having filed the LCA via the faxback system.
LCA Faxback System: According to Linda Jan Pack, Attorney for the DOL’s Employment Standards Administration, the Department of Labor (DOL) is in clear violation of pertinent law, which mandates that LCA’s be certified and returned within seven days. Ms. Pack indicated that some LCA’s from February 6 and 7 are still not certified. Among the reasons cited for the virtual collapse of the LCA faxback system: (1) The sensitive computer system was picking up background noise on fax transmissions, causing LCA’s to be sent back as “rejected“ for no apparent reason; (2) The sensitive new system was overloaded by the use of the revised three page LCA form—it could barely cope with the old two page form, and the additional page has wreaked havoc; (3) The system could not read the digit “5“ correctly, leading to widespread mixups in the automated processing of the forms; (4) New staff taken on to deal with the mess has not been properly trained, leading to a good deal of human error.
Statistic: The DOL is receiving about 2,000 LCA forms per day.
Service Center Delays: Three of the four Service Centers are taking at least 90 days to process H-1B petitions. According to Tracey O’Reily, INS Chief of Field Operations, the main cause of delays is understaffing at the Service Centers. Ms. O’Reilly said that the INS can’t just recruit and hire new staff: on the one hand, there is no budget for this; on the other, even if there was a budget, it takes about a year for a new hire to pass security clearances, complete training and generally be fully brought into the system.
INS Premium Processing: William Yates (see above) indicated that the INS will begin “premium processing“ of certain I-129 petitions (L-1 and O-1) petitions on or about June 1,2001. H-1B Premium processing will begin July 1st. Under this scheme, the INS will guarantee two week petition processing. The price: $1,000 fee, in addition to the current $110 fee. One minor drawback: A situation will likely be created in which its best adjudicators will be placed on the premium processing team, leading to greater delays and error-ridden adjudication of petitions submitted with the regular fee.
New Service Center: The INS will be creating a fifth Service Center, to be located in Missouri. The Missouri Service Center will be devoted to handling family unity petitions, and particular the 2.3 million LIFE-related requests which have so far been received.
If you have any immigration questions, please contact our immigration lawyer Liam Schwartz directly at liam@americandream.de
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3. Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) faces serious problems
The newspaper "Portland Oregonian" won the 2001 Public Service Pulitzer Prize for its six-part investigative series on the INS. The series focused on problems such as the loss of files, poor training, low pay, and little discipline of agency workers. Calling the INS "The Agency From Hell", the series reported, inter alia, the following:
-Many of the agency’s problems stem from plain old ineptitude, including lost files, sloppy record-keeping, computer problems and foul-ups of nearly epic proportions. Losing files is a “chronic problem,“ as INS Commissioner Meissner conceded in a congressional hearing last year. INS officials admitted to Congress that the agency had lost 80,000 files in 1998 alone -- and those were just the ones they knew about.
-The INS overworks its employees, whose low pay, grueling work conditions and difficult mission demoralize officers. These conditions invite abuse—in fact, one in seven of the agency’s 32,000 employees was the subject of an internal investigation in 1999.
-Millions of people have waited for years while the INS processes applications for citizenship and work permits on computers running mid-1980s software.
-Earlier this year, Portland was widely derided and then dubbed “Deportland“ by an Internet news service after INS officials rejected scores of foreign business people at the airport.
-The INS Vermont Service Center—the destination of all of our L-1 and H-1B petitions filed on behalf of East Coast clients—is described as follows: "Crates of files teeter along the walkways between overstuffed cubicles. Even with new computers, the center relies on time-tested filing techniques. “I don’t know what we’d do without hand trucks and milk crates,“ says Paul E. Novak Jr., director of the INS’ Vermont Service Center. “It’s frustrating for me. It’s frustrating for the customers. It’s heart-breaking, in some cases.“
-One commentator on trying to reach someone by telephone at the INS Service Centers: “When you call it’s like trying to get God on the phone.“ She pauses, and then adds, “God would be more accessible than the INS.“
So now you know why you may have to wait up to 10 years for your visa to become available. What can you do about it? In most cases: Nothing. In some other cases: Pay 1000 US$ to have your case reviewed quickly (see above). Is the INS going to invest this money into improving its efficiency? Let´s at least hope so ;-)
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4. Visa or greencard for "religious" workers
Religious Workers (R-1 Status)
America plays host to a continuous flow of people arriving to temporarily perform work in a religious context. While religious work is commonly associated with Ministers, Rabbis and Nuns, it can also include translators, broadcasters and hospital workers. The R-1 category is often used as the vehicle for the temporary performance of such work in the United States.
NOTE: R-1 should be considered by spouses of temporary workers hoping to independently qualify for a U.S. work permit. See page below.
Eligibility
A Religious Worker is defined as a person who, for the past two years at least, has been a member of a religious organization, and who seeks to perform certain religious duties with an affiliated religious organization in America.
The term “religious organization“ is broadly defined! Any group having the indicia of a bona fide religion, such as a form of ecclesiastical government, a creed of faith, and a form of worship, may qualify for purposes of special immigrant status. The one proviso to this broad definition is that the affiliated U.S. organization must have been given tax exempt status by the United States Tax Authorities. The Catholic Church, the Church of England, Judaism and Islam are examples of such.
There are 4 basic groupings of religious workers eligible for R-1 status.
1. “Minister“: a person duly authorized by a religious organization to conduct religious worship and perform related duties.
2. “Religious Professional“: a person engaged in religious duties, the performance of which requires the attainment of a baccalaureate or higher degree (religious teachers, for example). A religious professional must have an actual degree—the concept of work experience equal to a degree is inapplicable for these purposes.
3. “Religious Occupational Worker“: an individual who carries out religious functions, such as a religious instructor, cantor, missionary or religious translator. This grouping includes broadcasters, counselors and workers in religious hospitals, but does not include clerks or fund raisers.
4. “Religious Vocational Worker“: anyone engaged in a vocation requiring a calling to religious life, as evidenced by a taking of vows. Examples: nuns, monks, and religious sisters.
EXAMPLE: Rudi from Romania has been a practicing rabbi in Bucharest for the past four years. During a meeting with American tourists, he becomes acquainted with the president of a synagogue from suburban Richmond. The synagogue president asks Rudi whether he is interested in temporarily moving to the United States to serve as rabbi of the Richmond synagogues. In the event Rudi accepts this offer, he should qualify for special immigrant status because:
A. The Bucharest and Richmond synagogues are affiliated as both are organizations within the Jewish faith;
B. Rudi has performed the religious duties of a Rabbi at the Bucharest synagogue, qualifying him as a “Minister“ for purposes of religious worker classification;
C. Rudi will temporarily perform similar duties at the United States synagogue.
ADDITIONAL EXAMPLE: Iris from Ireland is an instructor of Catechism at St. Peter’s Church in Shannon. She wishes to be near her brother in New Jersey, but to also continue her religious work. Fortunately for Iris, Our Lady of Carmel Church of Bergen County offers her a chance to lead Catechism instruction. Iris may qualify for this job as a “Religious Occupational Worker“.
Procedure
An application for Religious Worker status is generally submitted directly to the US Consul in the applicant’s home country. There is no formal petition or application form. Instead, the individual should submit the following documentation:
1. A letter from the religious organization in America at which the applicant will work, describing the organization itself and the duties to be performed by the applicant;
2. A certificate that the organization has nonprofit status under Section 501 (c) (3) of the US Internal Revenue Code.
3. A copy of the applicant’s Curriculum Vitae and other documentary qualifications for the given religious position (letter of recommendation, degrees, and the like).
4. Nonimmigrant Visa Application Form OF-156, together with photo and visa fee.
EXAMPLE: The Michigan Center for the Advancement of Islam is a communal school serving children of the Islamic faith. The Center offers Fatima, a UK citizen, the position of Religious School Instructor. The duties of the position include instruction in the Koran, Islamic life cycle subjects, and prayer. Fatima holds a Bachelor in Islamic Studies degree. The position of Religious School Instructor is generally a “religious occupation“ for purposes of R-1 classification, since it relates to a traditional religious function. Assuming the Michigan Center has non-profit status, Fatima should easily qualify as an R-1 Religious Worker.
NOTE: Religious workers may also apply for immigration, as “Special Immigrants“. The R-1 Religious Worker category differs from “Special Immigrant“ status in two substantive ways: (1) “Special Immigrants“ need at least two years prior experience, while R-1 workers need no prior experience; (2) “Special Immigrant“ status involves a sometimes lengthy petitioning process vis a vis the Immigration and Naturalization Service, while R-1 status generally requires a single visit to the local Consulate. These factors make R-1 Religious Worker status an attractive option for spouses of temporary workers (H, L, E and the like) who, in appropriate cases, seek to independently acquire a U.S. work permit.
Family Members
The spouse and minor children of an R-1 Religious Worker are entitled to derivative R-2 status. Individuals holding R-2 status are not authorized to work in the United States, all tough they are permitted to study during their stay in America.
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UNEMPLOYMENT RATE STILL LOW: Despite of signs of a worldwide economic recession, the USA still have one of the lowest unemployment rates of the world. The unemployment level is currently at an overall average of 4.5 %. This is despite of large lay-offs especially in the Californian IT-sector. Lucent Technologies just had to announce plans to reduce its workforce by 20.000 employees. Still, there are signs of a recovery and the situation in the US is much better than in most other countries.
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DEATH PENALTY: The Death Penalty Information Center recently issued sweeping criticism of the treatment of foreign nationals facing the death penalty in the US. According to the Center, only four of the 123 noncitizens who have been on US death rows were informed of their right to legal assistance from their consulates, a right guaranteed under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations. In the most recent case, the state of Oklahoma has delayed the execution of a Mexican national who was on death row for ten years Before the Mexican Consulate learned of it. The Center says there are currently 97 foreign nationals on US death rows. The US has come under fire before for Vienna Convention violations. Earlier this year the International Court of Justice found the US violated the Convention in the Arizona execution of two German brothers.
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VIDEO WARNING: This week the Mexican government began showing video warning messages on buses bound for the US border, hoping to reduce the number of people who try to cross the border without authorization. According to the Mexican government, 491 Mexicans died trying to cross the border last year, and already this year more than 160 have died.
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FRENCH ASYLUM SEEKER: Last month an immigration judge granted asylum to a French citizen who claimed that he was persecuted because of his role in uncovering a pedophilia ring. Karim Kamal was found to have acted as a "whistleblower," uncovering corruption in the government of the city of Nice. He claimed that he discovered the ring after his young daughter became ensnared in it. Immigration officials say this is the first time a French citizen has been granted asylum in the US.
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ATTENTION WHEN HIRING A LAWYER: In Texas, the governor recently signed a bill
making the unauthorized practice of immigration law by notaries public a criminal
act. Notaries must now include a clear statement in any advertisements they
make that they are not attorneys and cannot provide legal advice. With this
law, Texas becomes the latest state to crack down on the unauthorized practice
of law by notaries, many of who take advantage of desperate immigrants. They
are able to do this because they advertise themselves as "notarios," which,
in Mexico, is a name given to many licensed attorneys.
FEWER REFUGEES: The US is accepting far fewer refugees annually than authorized by Congress and the White House, even though the number of refugees in the world is increasing dramatically. Last year, the US was authorized to accept 90,000 refugees, but accepted only 72,515. Since 1990, it is estimated, the US has accepted 117,000 fewer refugees than authorized.
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6. SURF THE WEB: INTERESTING SITES
Directory Assistance:
Would you like to know the phone number of a friend in the US? Or do you have
a phone number and don´t know anymore whom it belongs to? You will find the
answers here:
http://www.555-1212.com (a service
fee is imposed) or
http://www.whitepages.com/ (free service !)
Translations
Maybe you should not try to translate any important documents with this page,
but if you would like to read this newsletter in French or Spanish, try to post
it into the following website. Translations are usually surprisingly good.
http://www.systransoft.com
All newspapers
At least ALMOST all newspapers published in the US can be found here. Read the
online version of your favorite city or village newspaper. Some international
newspapers are also listed:
Moving to or within the USA
On this website, you will find a lot of useful information regarding relocation
to or within the US. A "moving calculator" tells you, how your standard of living
will change with the same income in another town. International comparisons
are possible. You can also find hints on how to negotiate with your employer,
where to hire moving trucks etc etc.
http://www.homefair.com
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7. STATE DEPARTMENT VISA BULLETIN (official Version)1. This bulletin summarizes the availability of immigrant numbers during August. Consular officers are required to report to the Department of State documentarily qualified applicants for numerically limited visas; the Immigration and Naturalization Service reports applicants for adjustment of status. Allocations were made, to the extent possible under the numerical limitations, for the demand received by July 10th in the chronological order of the reported priority dates. If the demand could not be satisfied within the statutory or regulatory limits, the category or foreign state in which demand was excessive was deemed oversubscribed. The cut-off date for an oversubscribed category is the priority date of the first applicant who could not be reached within the numerical limits. Only applicants who have a priority date earlier than the cut-off date may be allotted a number. Immediately that it becomes necessary during the monthly allocation process to retrogress a cut-off date, supplemental requests for numbers will be honored only if the priority date falls within the new cut-off date.
2. Section 201 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) sets an annual minimum family-sponsored preference limit of 226,000. The worldwide level for annual employment-based preference immigrants is at least 140,000. Section 202 prescribes that the per-country limit for preference immigrants is set at 7 % of the total annual family-sponsored and employment-based preference limits, i.e., 25,620. The dependent area limit is set at 2 %, or 7,320.
3. Section 203 of the INA prescribes preference classes for allotment of immigrant visas as follows:
FAMILY-SPONSORED PREFERENCES
First: Unmarried Sons and Daughters of Citizens: 23,400 plus any numbers not required for fourth preference.
Second: 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, and any unused first preference numbers:
A. Spouses and Children: 77 % of the overall second preference limitation, of which 75 % are exempt from the per-country limit;
B. Unmarried Sons and Daughters (21 years of age or older): 23 % of the overall second preference limitation.
Third: Married Sons and Daughters of Citizens: 23,400, plus any numbers not required by first and second preferences.
Fourth: Brothers and Sisters of Adult Citizens: 65,000, plus any numbers not required by first three preferences.
EMPLOYMENT-BASED PREFERENCES
First: Priority Workers: 28.6 % of the worldwide employment-based preference level, plus any numbers not required for fourth and fifth preferences.
Second: 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.
Third: 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.“
Fourth: Certain Special Immigrants: 7.1 % of the worldwide level.
Fifth: Employment Creation: 7.1 % of the worldwide level, not less than 3,000 of which reserved for investors in a targeted rural or high-unemployment area, and 3,000 set aside for investors in regional centers by Sec. 610 of P.L. 102-395.
4. INA Section 203(e) provides that family-sponsored and employment-based preference visas be issued to eligible immigrants in the order in which a petition in behalf of each has been filed. Section 203(d) provides that spouses and children of preference immigrants are entitled to the same status, and the same order of consideration, if accompanying or following to join the principal. The visa prorating provisions of Section 202(e) apply to allocations for a foreign state or dependent area when visa demand exceeds the per-country limit. These provisions apply at present to the following oversubscribed chargeability areas: CHINA-mainland born, INDIA, MEXICO, and PHILIPPINES.
5. On the chart below, the listing of a date for any class indicates that the class is oversubscribed (see paragraph 1); “C“ means current, i.e., numbers are available for all qualified applicants; and “U“ means unavailable, i.e., no numbers are available. (NOTE: Numbers are available only for applicants whose priority date is earlier than the cut-off date listed below.)
|
Priority Dates for Family Based Immigrant Visas |
|||||
|
|
All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed | CHINA—mainland-born | INDIA | MEXICO | PHILIPPINES |
| Family |
|
|
|
|
|
| 1st | U | U | U | U | U |
| 2A* | 01JAN95 | 01JAN95 | 01JAN95 | U | 01JAN95 |
| 2B | 01JAN93 | 01JAN93 | 01JAN93 | U | 01JAN93 |
| 3rd | U | U | U | U | U |
| 4th | 01JUL89 | 01JUL89 | 01JUN88 | 01JUL89 | 15SEP79 |
*NOTE: For August, 2A numbers EXEMPT from per-country limit are available. 2A numbers SUBJECT to per-country limit are available to applicants chargeable to all countries EXCEPT MEXICO with priority dates earlier than 01JAN95. (All 2A numbers provided for MEXICO are exempt from the per-country limit; there are no 2A numbers for MEXICO subject to per-country limit.)
|
Priority Dates for Employment-Based Immigrant Visas |
|||||
|
|
All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed | CHINA – mainland-born | INDIA | MEXICO | PHILIPPINES |
|
Employment-Based |
|
|
|
|
|
| 1st | C | C | C | C | C |
| 2nd | C | C | C | C | C |
| 3rd | C | C | C | C | C |
| Other Workers | C | C | C | C | C |
| 4th | C | C | C | C | C |
| Certain Religious Workers | C | C | C | C | C |
| 5th | C | C | C | C | C |
| Targeted Employment Areas/Regional Centers | C | C | C | C | C |
The Department of State has available a recorded message with visa availability information which can be heard at (202) 663-1541. This recording will be updated in the middle of each month with information on cut-off dates for the following month.
B. DIVERSITY IMMIGRANT (DV) CATEGORY
Section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act provides a maximum of up to 55,000 immigrant visas each fiscal year to permit immigration opportunities for persons from countries other than the principal sources of current immigration to the United States. DV visas are divided among six geographic regions. No one country can receive more than seven percent of the available diversity visas in any one year.
For August, immigrant numbers in the DV category are available to qualified DV-2001 applicants chargeable to all regions/eligible countries as follows. When an allocation cut-off number is shown, visas are available only for applicants with DV regional lottery rank numbers BELOW the specified allocation cut-off number:
All DV Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed Separately
Region
AFRICA: AF 29,150, Except: Ethiopia AF24,100
ASIA: AS 13,800
EUROPE: EU 28,000, Except: Albania EU 14,000
NORTH AMERICA (BAHAMAS): NA 18
OCEANIA: OC 1,000
SOUTH AMERICA, CENTRAL AMERICA, and the CARIBBEAN: SA 2,500
Entitlement to immigrant status in the DV category lasts only through the end of the fiscal (visa) year for which the applicant is selected in the lottery. The year of entitlement for all applicants registered for the DV-2001 program ends as of September 30, 2001. DV visas may not be issued to DV-2001 applicants after that date. Similarly, spouses and children accompanying or following to join DV-2001 principals are only entitled to derivative DV status until September 30, 2001. DV visa availability through the very end of FY-2001 cannot be taken for granted. Numbers could be exhausted prior to September 30. Once all numbers provided by law for the DV-2001 program have been used, no further issuances will be possible.
C. ADVANCE NOTIFICATION OF THE DIVERSITY (DV) IMMIGRANT CATEGORY RANK CUT-OFFS WHICH WILL APPLY IN SEPTEMBER
For September, immigrant numbers in the DV category are available to qualified DV-2001 applicants chargeable to all regions/eligible countries as follows. When an allocation cut-off number is shown, visas are available only for applicants with DV regional lottery rank numbers BELOW the specified allocation cut-off number:
All DV Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed Separately
Region
AFRICA: AF CURRENT
ASIA: AS CURRENT
EUROPE: EU CURRENT Except: Albania EU 15,482
NORTH AMERICA (BAHAMAS): NA CURRENT
OCEANIA: OC CURRENT
SOUTH AMERICA, and the CARIBBEAN: SA CURRENT
D. RETROGRESSION AND UNAVAILABILITY OF FAMILY-SPONSORED PREFERENCE
CUT-OFF DATES
As many readers have already noticed, all of the Employment-based IV categories have became “current“ while all of the Family-sponsored categories have either retrogressed or become “unavailable“.
The retrogression and unavailability in the Family cut-off dates is the result
of extremely heavy Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) demand for numbers
throughout the past year. For several years, INS demand for Family and Employment
numbers was reduced as they focused heavily on processing naturalization cases
rather than adjustment cases. The Visa Office was thus forced to advance the
cut-off dates very rapidly in order to ensure that all of the numbers available
during those years could be used. Once INS began requesting more such numbers
for the eligible cases, the scenario changed. The Visa Office has been unable
to advance the monthly Family cut-off dates because the amount of demand being
received on a monthly basis has exceeded the amount of numbers available for
visa issuance and adjustment of status.
The INS is so close to reaching the FY-2001 numerical limits in the Family-sponsored
categories that retrogression of the cut-off dates and unavailability of several
categories is the only way to keep visa number use within the limits. Current
indications are that additional retrogressions or unavailability are likely
for September, the final month of FY-2001. With the start of the new fiscal
year in October, any cut-off date that has retrogressed or become unavailable
will return to the latest cut-off date established during FY-2001.
Note that the Employment-based categories are “current“ and are expected to remain “current“ in the foreseeable future for the following reasons: 1) the FY-2001 Employment annual limit is at an all time high (approximately 190,000); 2) the American Competitiveness in the 21st Century Act removed the per-country limit if there were otherwise unused numbers available, and 3) this Act also established a “pool“ of (approximately 130,000) unused Employment-based numbers from FY-1999 and FY-2000 that could be used if the annual Employment numerical limit is reached.
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In the next newsletter we will tell you about the K-visa for fiancées and
other ways to get a greencard by marrying a US citizen. Furthermore, a lot more
new and interesting websites and legislation updates. Any other suggestions?
Please contact us:
info@americandream.de
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