EB-3, EW & EB-5 Unreserved Category Caps Reached for FY 2024
EB-3, EW & EB-5 Unreserved Category Caps Reached for FY 2024
The Law: Under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), an annual limit is set for each employment visa category. Specifically, the limit for EB-3 visas is set at 28.6% of the worldwide employment-based visa cap, with a maximum of 10,000 visas allocated to the EW (other workers) category and for EB-5 visas is 7.1 percent of the worldwide employment limit, of which 68 percent is available for unreserved visa categories (C5, T5, I5, R5, RU, NU). Unused EB-5 reserved visas from FY 2022 may be made available in the EB-5 unreserved categories for FY 2024.
The Update: As of August 16th, 2024, the EB-3 (including EW category) and EB-5 Unreserved immigrant visa categories are fully subscribed and will remain unavailable until the end of fiscal year 2024, on September 30, 2024. During this period, U.S. embassies and consulates cannot issue new visas, and USCIS cannot approve adjustment of status applications in these categories. While USCIS will continue to accept adjustment of status filings that are current in the Visa Bulletins for August and September, these cases will not be adjudicated until visa numbers become available.
What next: With the new fiscal year beginning October 1, 2024, the annual limits for these visa categories will reset, allowing USCIS to resume processing and approval of adjustment of status cases. The State Department’s September Visa Bulletin indicates that due to high demand, visa limits for many categories may be exhausted early, but Final Action dates are expected to advance as new visa numbers are allocated.
For case specific questions, please reach out to your Graham Adair attorney or contact us at info@grahamadair.com.