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THE DECEMBER 2004 PRIORITY DATES
by Michael J. Gurfinkel, Esq.
The priority dates for all categories of Family Petitions moved forward by at least one month, except for Second Preference F-2B (unmarried sons and daughters, over 21 years old, of green card holders), which moved by only seven days, as shown in the monthly Visa Bulletin for December 2004, released by the State Department.
Petitions by Citizens :
The priority date for the First Preference Category, F-1 (unmarried sons and daughters of U.S. citizens, over 21 years of age) moved forward by one month, from September 15, 1990 to October 15, 1990 .
The Third Preference Category F-3 (married sons and daughters of United States citizens ) also moved forward by one month, from May 1, 1990 to June 1, 1990 . (Note: There is now a difference of 4-1/2 months in priority dates between unmarried and married sons and daughters of U.S. citizens.).
The Fourth Preference, F-4 (brothers and sisters of United States citizens) moved forward by two months, from July 22, 1982 to September 22, 1982 .
Petitions by Green Card Holders :
The Second Preference, F-2A (spouse and minor children below 21 years of age, of green card holders ) of Family-Based Petitions moved forward by one month, from June 1, 2000 to July 1, 2000 .
The Second Preference, F-2B (unmarried sons and daughters, over 21 years of age, of green card holders), moved forward by seven days, from July 15, 1995 to July 22, 1995 .
Each month, the Visa Office of the State Department publishes the priority dates for that particular month. This means that visas would now be available for persons whose priority date is earlier than the cut-off date listed below .
The December 2004 priority dates for the Philippines are as follows:
| FAMILY CATEGORY: |
|
Priority Date: |
| First Preference |
Unmarried sons and daughters of U.S. citizens
(over 21 years of age)
|
October 15, 1990
(In November 2004, the priority date was September 15, 1990.)
|
| Second Preference |
2A. Spouse and minor children
(below 21 years old) of green card holder
2B. Unmarried sons and daughters (over 21
years old) of green card holder
|
July
1, 2000
(In
November 2004, the priority date was June 1, 2000.)
July 22, 1995
(In
November 2004, the priority date was July 15, 1995.) |
| Third Preference |
Married sons and daughters of
U.S. Citizens |
June
1, 1990
(In
November 2004, the priority date was May 1, 1990.) |
|
Fourth Preference
|
Brothers and sisters of U.S. Citizens
|
September 22, 1982
(In
November 2004, the priority date was July 22, 1982.) |
| LABOR CERTIFICATION: |
| Third Preference |
Professional/Skilled Workers |
CURRENT
(In November 2004, the priority date was also current.)
|
| Other Workers |
Non-Skilled workers |
CURRENT
(In November 2004, the priority date was also current.)
|
Please note that for several years, the priority dates for labor certification (employer-sponsored green cards) have been "current", meaning that visas were immediately available upon approval of the employer's petition. There was no "backlog". However, the State Department noted, in the December 2004 Visa Bulletin that because of "very heavy applicant demand" for employment-based visas, "it may be necessary to impose an employment third preference cut-off date" when the Visa Bulletin is published for January 2005, for certain countries, including the Philippines. What this means is that once a person's labor certification petition is approved, they may soon have to wait for some period of time before they can file for work authorization and adjustment of status, depending on the length of the backlog. We will keep you informed on any developments in this area.
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