October 2024 Newsletter
Welcome to our October 2024 Immigration Newsletter, which covers select immigration developments this past month.
We start with our analysis of the State Department's monthly immigrant visa bulletin. October marks the beginning of the US government's fiscal year, typically bringing new visa numbers and progress for most immigrant visa applicants. Unfortunately, the year has started with most categories showing little forward movement. The one exception is the employment-based preference category 3 for professionals and skilled workers, which advances nearly two years for all countries.
Each year after the October Visa Bulletin is released, I prepare two charts that illustrate the progress over the past five years in both employment and family-based categories. These patterns can be helpful for planning the journey to permanent residence. More information and charts are below.
As for other updates, USCIS has published the procedures for Liberians covered by Deferred Enforced Departure to obtain employment authorization valid through June 30, 2026; USCIS announced that it will automatically extend green cards by 36 months upon the filing of a renewal application; and starting December 1, citizens of Qatar will be eligible to visit the United States for business or leisure for up to 90 days visa-free under the Visa Waiver Program.
Finally, in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, I interviewed Peruvian-American poet, Renzo Del Castillo, about how he used poetry to express the immigrant experience for my podcast series, Inside Immigration. More information below.
We hope you find our updates helpful. Please contact us if you would like to discuss any of these developments further.
October 2024 Visa Bulletin Released
The Department of State (DOS) has issued its October 2024 Visa Bulletin. October 1 marks the start of a new fiscal year, so all the immigrant visa categories typically benefit from new visa numbers, and most immigrant visa applicants see progress in their place in line for permanent residence.?
The most significant development is the advancement of almost two years in the EB-3 category for nationals of all countries excluding India and China. EB-3 India advances by seven days, and the priority date for EB-3 China will retrogress by five months.?All other employment-based categories have little to no movement.?Family-based final action dates show little movement except for the F-2A category, and nationals of Mexico, who will see forward movement in all categories.?
The good news is that USCIS will honor the Dates for Filing Chart for both employment and family-based petitions in October. Most of these dates have advanced and tend to be further ahead than the Final Action Dates, so beneficiaries of immigrant visa petitions can get their applications filed and obtain interim benefits until the government can actually approve their green card application.???
Read more here.
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A Five-Year Review of the Immigrant Visa Bulletin
Under U.S. immigration law, a limited number of green cards can be issued annually for family members and employment. Because the demand for green cards far exceeds the number of green cards that can be granted each year, there are substantial backlogs and wait times. The Department of State publishes a monthly Visa Bulletin with priority dates to show a person’s place in line based on their petition filing date.
Each year, I prepare two charts to track the progress of these priority dates over the last five years in employment and family-based categories. I focus on the October Visa Bulletin, as it marks the start of the fiscal year and the replenishment of green card allocations. The October Visa Bulletin is very important because it usually sets the tone for the year ahead.??
Read more here.
Qatar Added to Visa Waiver Program
Starting December 1, 2024, citizens of Qatar will be eligible to visit the United States for business or leisure for up to 90 days without a visa. They will be admitted under the Visa Waiver Program (“VWP”).?
Read more here.
Writing about our experiences can give us a better understanding of our past, present and future. In this episode, we look at expressing the immigrant experience through creative work, such as poetry and writing. I invited Renzo Del Castillo, author of a collection of poems titled Still, to discuss how he used poetry to process his experiences immigrating to the United States. I hope this conversation inspires you to write about your journey to the United States!
Listen to the podcast here.
Thank you for reading! Please do not hesitate to contact us if you would like to discuss any of these developments further.