Number 69
Volume IX
Washington, D.C
A. STATUTORY NUMBERS
1. This bulletin summarizes the availability of immigrant numbers during June. Consular officers are required to report to the Department of State documentarily qualified applicants for numerically limited visas; U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in the Department of Homeland Security reports applicants for adjustment of status. Allocations were made, to the extent possible, in chronological order of reported priority dates, for demand received by May 7th. If not all demand could be satisfied, 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. If 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 announced in this bulletin.
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. 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.
4. Section 203(a) of the INA prescribes preference classes for allotment of Family-sponsored immigrant visas as follows:
FAMILY-SPONSORED PREFERENCES
First: (F1) Unmarried Sons and Daughters of U.S. 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, plus any unused first preference numbers:
A. (F2A) Spouses and Children of Permanent Residents: 77% of the overall second preference limitation, of which 75% are exempt from the per-country limit;
B. (F2B) Unmarried Sons and Daughters (21 years of age or older) of Permanent Residents: 23% of the overall second preference limitation.
Third: (F3) Married Sons and Daughters of U.S. Citizens: 23,400, plus any numbers not required by first and second preferences.
Fourth: (F4) Brothers and Sisters of Adult U.S. Citizens: 65,000, plus any numbers not required by first three preferences.
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.)
| Family-Sponsored | All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed | CHINA-mainland born | INDIA | MEXICO | PHILIPPINES |
| F1 | 22MAR07 | 22MAR07 | 22MAR07 | 15DEC93 | 01JUN02 |
| F2A | 01MAY12 | 01MAY12 | 01MAY12 | 15MAR11 | 01MAY12 |
| F2B | 01APR07 | 01APR07 | 01APR07 | 01AUG93 | 15JUL03 |
| F3 | 01OCT03 | 01OCT03 | 01OCT03 | 22JUL93 | 08MAR93 |
| F4 | 15DEC01 | 15DEC01 | 15DEC01 | 08DEC96 | 15NOV90 |
*NOTE: For June, F2A numbers EXEMPT from per-country limit are available to applicants from all countries with priority dates earlier than 15MAR11. F2A numbers SUBJECT to per-country limit are available to applicants chargeable to all countries EXCEPT MEXICO with priority dates beginning 15MAR11 and earlier than 01MAY12. (All F2A numbers provided for MEXICO are exempt from the per-country limit; there are no F2A numbers for MEXICO subject to per-country limit.)
5. Section 203(b) of the INA prescribes preference classes for allotment of Employment-based immigrant visas as follows:
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 Pub. L. 102-395.
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.)
| Employment- Based |
All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed |
China - mainland born | INDIA | MEXICO | PHILIPPINES |
| 1st | C | C | C | C | C |
| 2nd | C | 22MAY09 | 15NOV04 | C | C |
| 3rd | 01APR11 | 01OCT06 | 15OCT03 | 01APR11 | 01JAN08 |
| Other Workers | 01APR11 | 01JAN03 | 15OCT03 | 01APR11 | 01JAN08 |
| 4th | C | C | C | C | C |
| Certain Religious Workers | C | C | C | C | C |
|
5th |
C | C | C | C | C |
*Employment Third Preference Other Workers Category: Section 203(e) of the Nicaraguan and Central American Relief Act (NACARA) passed by Congress in November 1997, as amended by Section 1(e) of Pub. L. 105-139, provides that once the Employment Third Preference Other Worker (EW) cut-off date has reached the priority date of the latest EW petition approved prior to November 19, 1997, the 10,000 EW numbers available for a fiscal year are to be reduced by up to 5,000 annually beginning in the following fiscal year. This reduction is to be made for as long as necessary to offset adjustments under the NACARA program. Since the EW cut-off date reached November 19, 1997 during Fiscal Year 2001, the reduction in the EW annual limit to 5,000 began in Fiscal Year 2002.
6. The Department of State has a recorded message with visa availability information which can be heard at: (202) 485-7699. This recording is updated on or about the tenth of each month with information on cut-off dates for the following month.
B. DIVERSITY IMMIGRANT (DV) CATEGORY FOR THE MONTH
OF JUNE
Section 203(c) of the INA provides up to 55,000 immigrant visas each fiscal year to permit additional immigration opportunities for persons from countries with low admissions during the previous five years. The NACARA stipulates that beginning with DV-99, and for as long as necessary, up to 5,000 of the 55,000 annually-allocated diversity visas will be made available for use under the NACARA program. This resulted in reduction of the DV-2014 annual limit to 50,000. 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 June, immigrant numbers in the DV category are available to qualified DV-2014 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:
| Region | All DV Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed Separately | |
|---|---|---|
| AFRICA | 45,600 | Except: Egypt: 28,200 Nigeria: 15,300 |
| ASIA | 7,425 | |
| EUROPE | 32,950 | Except: Uzbekistan 17,500 |
| NORTH AMERICA (BAHAMAS) | 18 | |
| OCEANIA | 1,185 | |
| SOUTH AMERICA, and the CARIBBEAN |
1,425 |
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-2014 program ends as of September 30, 2014. DV visas may not be issued to DV-2014 applicants after that date. Similarly, spouses and children accompanying or following to join DV-2014 principals are only entitled to derivative DV status until September 30, 2014. DV visa availability through the very end of
FY-2014 cannot be taken for granted. Numbers could be exhausted prior to September 30.
C. THE DIVERSITY (DV) IMMIGRANT CATEGORY RANK CUT-OFFS
WHICH WILL APPLY IN JULY
For July, immigrant numbers in the DV category are available to qualified DV-2014 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:
| Region | All DV Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed Separately | |
|---|---|---|
| AFRICA | 56,300 | Except: Egypt: 30,900 Nigeria: 17,400 |
| ASIA | 8,900 | |
| EUROPE | 36,300 | |
| NORTH AMERICA (BAHAMAS) | CURRENT | |
| OCEANIA | 1,300 | |
| SOUTH AMERICA, and the CARIBBEAN |
1,550 |
D. RETROGRESSION OF JUNE CUT-OFF DATES
WORLDWIDE F2A:
The cut-off date for the Family F2A category was advanced at a very rapid pace during fiscal year 2013 in an effort to generate demand to use all numbers available under the annual limit. Those movements have resulted in a dramatic increase in the level of applicant demand being received during the past seven months. This has required the retrogression of the Family F2A cut-off date for June in an effort to hold number use within the annual numerical limit. Further retrogression cannot be ruled out should demand by applicants with very early priority dates continue to increase.
MEXICO F2A:
Despite a previous retrogression, the level of demand has remained excessive, resulting in a further retrogression of this cut-off date to hold number use within the annual limit.
Employment Third, and Third Other Workers:
The unexpected and dramatic increase in demand being received from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service Offices during the past several months has resulted in number use approaching the annual limit for this category. As a result, it has been necessary to retrogress the Worldwide, China, and Mexico cut-off dates for the month of June.
Notices were included in several Visa Bulletins during the past year alerting readers to the possibility of such retrogressions. While corrective action in some categories has become necessary earlier than was anticipated based on the information available earlier, it is hoped that readers are not caught off guard by these retrogressions.
F. DIVERSITY VISA LOTTERY 2015 (DV-2015) RESULTS
The Kentucky Consular Center in Williamsburg, Kentucky has registered and notified the winners of the DV-2015 diversity lottery. The diversity lottery was conducted under the terms of section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act and makes available *50,000 permanent resident visas annually to persons from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States. Approximately 125,514 applicants have been registered and notified and may now make an application for an immigrant visa. Since it is likely that some of the first *50,000 persons registered will not pursue their cases to visa issuance, this larger figure should insure that all DV-2015 numbers will be used during fiscal year 2015 (October 1, 2014 until September 30, 2015).
Applicants registered for the DV-2015 program were selected at random from 9,388,986 qualified entries (14,397,781 with derivatives) received during the 30-day application period that ran from noon, Eastern Daylight Time on Tuesday, October 1, 2013, until noon, Eastern Daylight Time on Saturday, November 2, 2013. 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 Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services for information on the requirements and procedures. Once the total *50,000 visa numbers have been used, the program for fiscal year 2015 will end. Selected applicants who do not receive visas by September 30, 2015 will derive no further benefit from their DV-2015 registration. Similarly, spouses and children accompanying or following to join DV-2015 principal applicants are only entitled to derivative diversity visa status until September 30, 2015.
Dates for the DV-2016 program registration period will be widely publicized in the coming months. Those interested in entering the DV-2016 program should check the Department of State’s Visa web page in the coming months.
*The Nicaraguan and Central American Relief Act (NACARA) passed by Congress in November 1997 stipulated that up to 5,000 of the 55,000 annually-allocated diversity visas be made available for use under the NACARA program. The reduction of the limit of available visas to 50,000 began with DV-2000.
The following is the statistical breakdown by foreign-state chargeability of those registered for the DV-2015 program:
| AFRICA | ||
| ALGERIA 3,076 | ETHIOPIA 4,988 | NIGER 334 |
| ANGOLA 173 | GABON 81 | RWANDA 690 |
| BENIN 1,758 | GAMBIA, THE 110 | SAO TOME AND PRINCIPE 0 |
| BOTSWANA 12 | GHANA 3,381 | SENEGAL 620 |
| BURKINA FASO 390 | GUINEA 2,314 | SEYCHELLES 9 |
| BURUNDI 188 | GUINEA-BISSAU 7 | SIERRA LEONE 2,182 |
| CABO VERDE 20 | KENYA 3,534 | SOMALIA 275 |
| CAMEROON 5,000 | LESOTHO 3 | SOUTH AFRICA 924 |
| CENTRAL AFRICAN REP. 33 | LIBERIA 5,000 | SOUTH SUDAN 21 |
| CHAD 99 | LIBYA 263 | SUDAN 3,484 |
| COMOROS 6 | MADAGASCAR 62 | SWAZILAND 5 |
| CONGO 243 | MALAWI 27 | TANZANIA 231 |
| CONGO, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE 4,943 | MALI 123 | TOGO 1,824 |
| COTE D’IVOIRE 1,487 | MAURITANIA 29 | TUNISIA 221 |
| DJIBOUTI 77 | MAURITIUS 55 | UGANDA 642 |
| EGYPT 4,988 | MOROCCO 2,844 | ZAMBIA 116 |
| EQUATORIAL GUINEA 14 | MOZAMBIQUE 11 | ZIMBABWE 249 |
| ERITREA 815 | NAMIBIA 19 | |
| ASIA | ||
| AFGHANISTAN 305 | JAPAN 636 | QATAR 51 |
| BAHRAIN 12 | JORDAN 374 | SAUDI ARABIA 517 |
| BHUTAN 45 | NORTH KOREA 0 | SINGAPORE 47 |
| BRUNEI 0 | KUWAIT 241 | SRI LANKA 1,303 |
| BURMA 453 | LAOS 1 | SYRIA 598 |
| CAMBODIA 2,079 | LEBANON 408 | TAIWAN 498 |
| HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMIN. REGION 160 |
MALAYSIA 129 | THAILAND 81 |
| INDONESIA 288 | MALDIVES 2 | TIMOR-LESTE 0 |
| IRAN 4,992 | MONGOLIA 186 | UNITED ARAB EMIRATES 195 |
| IRAQ 289 | NEPAL 4,991 | YEMEN 875 |
| ISRAEL 231 | OMAN 15 | |
| EUROPE | ||
| ALBANIA 2,946 | GREECE 147 | NORTHERN IRELAND 41 |
| ANDORRA 2 | HUNGARY 329 | NORWAY 49 |
| ARMENIA 2,049 | ICELAND 42 | POLAND 961 |
| AUSTRIA 134 | IRELAND 157 | PORTUGAL 82 |
| AZERBAIJAN 454 | ITALY 779 | Macau 29 |
| BELARUS 1,466 | KAZAKHSTAN 772 | ROMANIA 1,068 |
| BELGIUM 107 | KOSOVO 227 | RUSSIA 4,103 |
| BOSNIA & HERZEGOVINA 171 | KYRGYZSTAN 403 | SAN MARINO 0 |
| BULGARIA 1,418 | LATVIA 92 | SERBIA 399 |
| CROATIA 87 | LIECHTENSTEIN 3 | SLOVAKIA 110 |
| CYPRUS 32 | LITHUANIA 287 | SLOVENIA 11 |
| CZECH REPUBLIC 125 | LUXEMBOURG 0 | SPAIN 393 |
| DENMARK 65 | MACEDONIA 436 | SWEDEN 217 |
| ESTONIA 71 | MALTA 16 | SWITZERLAND 194 |
| FINLAND 88 | MOLDOVA 2,809 | TAJIKISTAN 528 |
| FRANCE 816 | MONACO 1 | TURKEY 3,688 |
| French Polynesia 11 | MONTENEGRO 16 | TURKMENISTAN 191 |
| Saint Martin 1 | NETHERLANDS 151 | UKRAINE 4,679 |
| St. Pierre & Miquelon 2 | Aruba 5 | UZBEKISTAN 4,368 |
| GEORGIA 804 | Curacao 13 | VATICAN CITY 0 |
| GERMANY 1,354 | Sint Maarten 1 | |
| NORTH AMERICA | ||
| BAHAMAS, THE 14 | ||
| OCEANIA | ||
| AUSTRALIA 1,798 | MICRONESIA, FEDERATED STATES OF 6 | SAMOA 32 |
| Christmas Island 1 | NAURU 19 | SOLOMON ISLANDS 3 |
| Cocos Islands 1 | NEW ZEALAND 589 | TONGA 123 |
| Norfolk Island 12 | Cook Islands 14 | TUVALU 1 |
| FIJI 857 | Niue 3 | VANUATU 7 |
| KIRIBATI 6 | PALAU 6 | |
| MARSHALL ISLANDS 1 | PAPUA NEW GUINEA 20 | |
| SOUTH AMERICA, CENTRAL AMERICA, AND THE CARIBBEAN | ||
| ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA 6 | DOMINICA 5 | SAINT KITTS AND NEVIS 7 |
| ARGENTINA 109 | GRENADA 8 | SAINT LUCIA 18 |
| BARBADOS 15 | GUATEMALA 86 | SAINT VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES 7 |
| BELIZE 3 | GUYANA 53 | SURINAME 11 |
| BOLIVIA 69 | HONDURAS 165 | TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO 193 |
| CHILE 37 | NICARAGUA 54 | URUGUAY 20 |
| COSTA RICA 72 | PANAMA 19 | VENEZUELA 1,556 |
| CUBA 1,480 | PARAGUAY 6 | |
Natives of the following countries were not eligible to participate in DV-2015: Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, China (mainland-born, excluding Hong Kong S.A.R., Macau S.A.R., and Taiwan), Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Haiti, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, the Philippines, South Korea, United Kingdom (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories, and Vietnam.
G. OBTAINING THE MONTHLY VISA BULLETIN
To be placed on the Department of State’s E-mail subscription list for the “Visa Bulletin”, please send an E-mail to the following E-mail address:
and in the message body type:
Subscribe Visa-Bulletin
(example: Subscribe Visa-Bulletin)
To be removed from the Department of State’s E-mail subscription list for the “Visa Bulletin”, send an e-mail message to the following E-mail address:
and in the message body type: Signoff Visa-Bulletin
The Department of State also has available a recorded message with visa cut-off dates which can be heard at: (202) 485-7699. The recording is normally updated on/about the 10th of each month with information on cut-off dates for the following month.
Readers may submit questions regarding Visa Bulletin related items by E-mail at the following address:
(This address cannot be used to subscribe to the Visa Bulletin.)
Department of State Publication 9514
CA/VO: May 7, 2014
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