State Department Projects Significant Movement for EB-2 India Later This Summer

From Fragomen.com, June 6, 2013

The priority date cut-off for EB-2 India could advance as far as February 2008 in the August or September Visa Bulletin, according to Charles Oppenheim, the senior State Department official responsible for visa control. The EB-2 India cut-off date has been stalled at September 1, 2004 since October 2012. 

EB-2 China is likely to advance no more than a few weeks per month through the end of this fiscal year. 

For most countries, including China, priority dates for the EB-3 professional and skilled worker subcategory are projected to advance as far as January 2009 in July, though further progression is unlikely for the remainder of this fiscal year. EB-3 India is expected to advance by up to two weeks per month through the end of the fiscal year. 

Mr. Oppenheim made his projections at the annual symposium of the American Council on International Personnel, held this week. 

What EB-2 India Advancement Means for Employers and Foreign Nationals
If the EB-2 India cut-off date advances as predicted in the coming months, many adjustment applicants with long-pending cases could see their applications adjudicated to completion, and some foreign nationals who were unable to file permanent residence applications when their priority dates were current in the past might have a new opportunity to file. 

The exact cut-off date will not be known until the State Department releases a Visa Bulletin announcing the advancement. The Bulletin is usually issued about three weeks before the month to which it applies. 

When their priority dates become current, adjustment applicants with pending cases may need to provide supplemental documentation so that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services can finalize their cases. Applicants could be asked to provide updated job letters from their employer-sponsors, and may need to attend another biometrics appointment so that new fingerprints can be taken. Applicants should also be prepared for the possibility of an adjustment interview at a local USCIS office. Though interviews are not routine in employment-based cases, agency adjudicators have the authority to refer specific cases for local office interviews. 

Eligible Indian EB-2s who do not have an adjustment application on file with USCIS will need to act quickly if their priority date becomes current because the chance to file an adjustment may be brief. It is not known how many EB-2 India visa numbers will become available when the cut-off date advances, and many available numbers are likely to be captured by cases already on file, including an unspecified number of pending cases that have been upgraded from EB-3 to EB-2.