August 2022 Visa Bulletin

From the bulletin:

This bulletin summarizes the availability of immigrant numbers during August for: “Final Action Dates” and “Dates for Filing Applications,” indicating when immigrant visa applicants should be notified to assemble and submit required documentation to the National Visa Center.

Unless otherwise indicated on the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) website at www.uscis.gov/visabulletininfo , individuals seeking to file applications for adjustment of status with USCIS in the Department of Homeland Security must use the “Final Action Dates” charts below for determining when they can file such applications. When USCIS determines that there are more immigrant visas available for the fiscal year than there are known applicants for such visas, USCIS will state on its website that applicants may instead use the “Dates for Filing Visa Applications” charts in this Bulletin.

1. Procedures for determining dates. Consular officers are required to report to the Department of State documentarily qualified applicants for numerically limited visas; USCIS reports applicants for adjustment of status. Allocations in the charts below were made, to the extent possible, in chronological order of reported priority dates, for demand received by July 1st . If not all demand could be satisfied, the category or foreign state in which demand was excessive was deemed oversubscribed. The final action date for an oversubscribed category is the priority date of the first applicant who could not be reached within the numerical limits. If it becomes necessary during the monthly allocation process to retrogress a final action date, supplemental requests for numbers will be honored only if the priority date falls within the new final action date announced in this bulletin. If at any time an annual limit were reached, it would be necessary to immediately make the preference category “unavailable”, and no further requests for numbers would be honored.

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, EL SALVADOR, GUATEMALA, HONDURAS, 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.

In plain words: “Unavailable” (“U”) means paused; “retrogress” means move back; “chargeability area” means country of birth; “final action date” means approval date; “date for filing” means filing date.

From the bulletin:

For September , immigrant numbers in the DV category are available to qualified DV-2022 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

Current

ASIA

Current

EUROPE

Current

NORTH AMERICA (BAHAMAS)

Current

OCEANIA

Current

SOUTH AMERICA,

and the CARIBBEAN

Current

In plain words: “Current” (“C”) means open to everyone; “chargeability area” means country of birth.

From the bulletin:

The Kentucky Consular Center in Williamsburg, Kentucky has registered and notified the selectees who are eligible to participate in the DV-2023 Diversity Visa (DV) program. Random selection of DV participants was conducted under the terms of section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, which makes up to *55,000 permanent resident visas available annually to persons from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States. Approximately 119,262 prospective applicants (i.e., selectees and their spouses and children) have been registered, notified, and may be eligible to make an application for an immigrant visa. Since selection is blind to the number of family members who might immigrate with the selectee, and it is likely that some of the selectees will not complete their cases or will be found ineligible for a visa, this larger figure should ensure that all DV-2023 numbers can be used during fiscal year 2023 (October 1, 2022, until September 30, 2023).

Entrants registered for the DV-2023 program were selected at random from 9,570,291 qualified entries received during the 35-day application period that ran from noon, Eastern Daylight Time on Wednesday, October 6, 2021, until noon, Eastern Standard Time on Tuesday, November 9, 2021. 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 all required steps.

Selectees who are physically present with legal status in the United States may apply to adjust their status by first contacting the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services for information on the requirements and procedures. Once the total *55,000 visa numbers have been used, the program for fiscal year 2023 will end. Selectees who do not receive visas by September 30, 2023, will derive no further benefit from their DV-2023 registration. Similarly, spouses and children accompanying or following to join DV-2023 principal applicants are only entitled to derivative DV status until September 30, 2023.

Dates for the DV-2024 program registration period will be widely publicized in the coming months. Those interested in entering the DV-2024 program should check the Department of State’s Diversity 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. This will result in reduction of the DV-2023 annual limit to approximately 54,850.

The following is the statistical breakdown by foreign state of chargeability of those registered for the DV-2023 program:

AFRICA

ALGERIA 5,526

ESWATINI 5

MOZAMBIQUE 2

ANGOLA 422

ETHIOPIA 2,761

NAMIBIA 6

BENIN 404

GABON 45

NIGER 78

BOTSWANA 9

GAMBIA, THE 65

RWANDA 1,024

BURKINA FASO 137

GHANA 3,398

SENEGAL 253

BURUNDI 400

GUINEA 706

SIERRA LEONE 522

CABO VERDE 24

GUINEA-BISSAU 9

SOMALIA 1,541

CAMEROON 2,392

KENYA 3,417

SOUTH AFRICA 222

CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC 19

LIBERIA 1,221

SOUTH SUDAN 53

CHAD 257

LIBYA 397

SUDAN 4,863

COMOROS 3

MADAGASCAR 21

TANZANIA 165

CONGO, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE 4,385

MALAWI 23

TOGO 1,036

CONGO, REPUBLIC OF THE 389

MALI 90

TUNISIA 168

COTE D’IVOIRE 552

MAURITANIA 174

UGANDA 1,044

DJIBOUTI 249

MAURITIUS 1

ZAMBIA 59

EGYPT 5,529

MOROCCO 4,469

ZIMBABWE 202

EQUATORIAL GUINEA 4

Western Sahara 2

ERITREA 376

ASIA

AFGHANISTAN 2,724

JORDAN 937

QATAR 92

BAHRAIN 10

KOREA, NORTH 2

SAUDI ARABIA 658

BHUTAN 115

KUWAIT 118

SINGAPORE 11

BURMA 1,107

LAOS 13

SRI LANKA 2,019

CAMBODIA 397

LEBANON 249

SYRIA 381

INDONESIA 115

MALAYSIA 45

TAIWAN 188

IRAN 5,506

MALDIVES 1

THAILAND 685

IRAQ 1,300

MONGOLIA 296

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES 175

ISRAEL 66

NEPAL 3,808

YEMEN 2,807

JAPAN 194

OMAN 25

EUROPE

ALBANIA 2,001

GREECE 28

NORTHERN IRELAND 4

ARMENIA 3,525

HUNGARY 66

NORWAY 4

AUSTRIA 34

ICELAND 4

POLAND 228

AZERBAIJAN 1,260

IRELAND 13

PORTUGAL 10

BELARUS 1,535

ITALY 154

Macau 7

BELGIUM 32

KAZAKHSTAN 1,908

ROMANIA 228

BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA 47

KOSOVO 413

RUSSIA 5,505

BULGARIA 161

KYRGYZSTAN 2,846

SERBIA 134

CROATIA 12

LATVIA 48

SLOVAKIA 20

CYPRUS 8

LITHUANIA 91

SLOVENIA 2

CZECH REPUBLIC 19

MALTA 8

SPAIN 96

DENMARK 12

MOLDOVA 670

SWEDEN 26

Faroe Islands 1

MONTENEGRO 28

SWITZERLAND 27

ESTONIA 17

NETHERLANDS 19

TAJIKISTAN 2,485

FINLAND 14

Aruba 4

TURKEY 3,383

FRANCE 209

Curacao 1

TURKMENISTAN 555

GEORGIA 2,071

Sint Maarten 3

UKRAINE 3,808

GERMANY 512

NORTH MACEDONIA 258

UZBEKISTAN 5,511

NORTH AMERICA

BAHAMAS, THE 16

OCEANIA

AUSTRALIA 461

NAURU 3

SAMOA 5

Cocos Keeling Islands 3

NEW ZEALAND 173

TONGA 78

FEDERATED STATES OF MICRONESIA 4

Cook Islands 6

TUVALU 5

FIJI 1,718

PAPUA NEW GUINEA 21

VANUATU 21

KIRABATI 2

REPUBLIC OF PALAU 3

SOUTH AMERICA

ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA 3

DOMINICA 4

PERU 1,191

ARGENTINA 133

ECUADOR 466

SAINT KITTS AND NEVIS 2

BELIZE 4

GUATEMALA 84

SAINT LUCIA 3

BOLIVIA 46

GUYANA 15

SAINT VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES 1

CHILE 27

NICARAGUA 77

SURINAME 4

COSTA RICA 39

PANAMA 11

TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO 31

CUBA 1,358

PARAGUAY 9

URUGUAY 7

Natives of the following countries were not eligible to participate in DV-2023: Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, China (including Hong Kong SAR), Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, South Korea, United Kingdom (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories, Venezuela, and Vietnam.

From the bulletin:

Readers were advised in item G of the June 2022 Visa Bulletin that due to steady number use in the F2A category, a final action date might need to be established as early as August. Number use has remained steady and is estimated to reach 75% of the overall F2A category limit in August. Therefore, it has become necessary to establish a final action date to control further use of the 75% of F2A numbers exempt from per-country limits under the Immigration and Nationality Act.

F2A numbers exempt from per-country limits are available to applicants from all countries with priority dates earlier than 22APR19. F2A numbers subject to per-country limits are available to applicants chargeable to all countries except Mexico with priority dates on or after 22APR19. All F2A numbers provided for Mexico are exempt from the per-country limit.

The situation will continually be monitored, and numbers exempt from the per-country limit are expected to once again be available for all applicants beginning October 1, 2022, under the FY-2023 annual numerical limitations.

In plain words: “final action date” means approval date.