The U.S. Department of State has released its December 2024 Visa Bulletin imposing per-country cut-off dates that regulate immigrant visa availability and the flow of Adjustment of Status (AOS) applications and consular Immigrant Visa application interviews and approvals. In order to be “current,” the priority date held by a person applying for permanent residence must be before the cut-off date specified in the monthly Visa Bulletin.
The Visa Bulletin includes both a Dates for Filing chart and a Final Action Dates chart. The Final Action Dates chart indicates when a priority date is current and I-485 AOS applications or Immigrant Visa applications may be approved and permanent residence granted. The Dates for Filing chart, when followed by USCIS, indicates when intending immigrants may file their AOS applications with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
The December Visa Bulletin’s Dates for Filing chart retains all the cut-off dates in all the Employment-Based (EB) categories from the October and November Visa Bulletins. Immigrant visas remain immediately available for EB-1 Rest of World, Mexico, and Philippines. EB-1 India remains at 04/15/2022 and the EB-2 and EB-3 India categories remain at 01/01/2013 and 06/08/2013, respectively. The EB-2 categories for Rest of World, Mexico, and Philippines stay at 08/01/2023 and EB-2 China is unchanged at 10/01/2020. The EB-3 categories for Rest of World, Mexico, and Philippines also remain at 03/01/2023. EB-3 China is also unchanged at 11/15/2020 under the Dates for Filing chart.
The December 2024 Final Action Dates chart also remains largely unchanged from November 2024 for most EB categories and countries of chargeability, with only very minor forward movement in the India EB-2 and EB-3 categories (07/15/2012 to 08/01/2012 and 11/01/2012 to 11/08/2012, respectively).
Dates for Filing Chart Will Control in December 2024
Each month, USCIS chooses either to follow the Final Action or the Dates for Filing chart. For December 2024, USCIS will follow the Dates for Filing chart for Employment-Based AOS application filings. Thus, to be eligible to file an Employment-Based (EB) AOS application, a foreign national must have a priority date that is earlier than the date listed below for his or her preference category and country of chargeability. The “C” listing indicates that the category is “current” and that applications may be filed with any priority date.
| Employment- Based | All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed | CHINA-mainland born | INDIA | MEXICO | PHILIPPINES |
| 1st | C | 01JAN23 | 15APR22 | C | C |
| 2nd | 01AUG23 | 01OCT20 | 01JAN13 | 01AUG23 | 01AUG23 |
| 3rd | 01MAR23 | 15NOV20 | 08JUN13 | 01MAR23 | 01MAR23 |
T&S Takeaway
The fact that no cut-off date movement has occurred in any EB category under the Dates for Filing chart (with only very minor forward movement in the Final Action Dates chart for India EB-2 and EB-3) suggests that the Department of State is continuing its practice, announced last year, of adjusting cut-off dates on a quarterly rather than monthly basis. This means that the cut-off dates on the January Visa Bulletin may change, since January marks the start of a new quarter. The December Visa Bulletin makes no comment in this regard.
The attorneys of Tafapolsky & Smith LLP will monitor and analyze all developments affecting immigrant visa availability, including all statements made by State Department officers before the publication of the relevant Visa Bulletin and will provide immediate updates on any significant developments.
