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THE MAY 2006 PRIORITY DATES:
Married Children Retrogress (go backwards) Almost 3 Years!!!
by Michael J. Gurfinkel, Esq.
The priority date for Third Preference (F-3, petitions of married sons and daughters by U.S. Citizens) retrogressed (or moved backwards) by more than 2 years and 7 months. However the Fourth Preference (F-4, petitions by brothers and sisters of U.S. Citizens) moved forward by one week. The rest of the family petitions did not move at all, as shown in the monthly Visa Bulletin for May 2006, released by the State Department.
The priority dates for employment-based petitions for "other" or unskilled workers retrogressed (or moved backwards) by one (1) year, while the priority date for professionals and skilled workers did not move at all.
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) did not move at all, and remained at August 22, 1991 .
The Third Preference Category F-3 (married sons and daughters of United States citizens ) retrogressed, from February 8, 1991 to July 1, 1988 (Note: There is now a difference of more than 3 years in the 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 7 days, from October 8, 1983 to October 15, 1983 .
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 did not move and remained at March 1, 2002 .
The Second Preference, F-2B (unmarried sons and daughters, over 21 years of age, of green card holders), also did not move, and remained at July 8, 1996 .
Petitions by Employers:
The Third Preference (professionals and skilled workers) of Employment-Based Petitions (Labor Certification), did not move at all, and remained at May 1, 2001 . The Third Preference (non-skilled workers) , retrogressed by one (1) year from October 1, 2001 to October 1, 2000 . The priority date for Schedule A workers (nurses/physical therapists) is current.
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 May 2006 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)
|
August 22, 1991
(In
April 2006, the priority date was the same.)
|
| 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
|
March 1, 2002
(In April 2006, the priority date was the same.)
July 8, 1996
(In April 2006, the priority date was the same.) |
| Third Preference |
Married sons and daughters of
U.S. Citizens |
July 1, 1988
(In April 2006, the priority date was February 8, 1991.) |
|
Fourth Preference
|
Brothers and sisters of U.S. Citizens
|
October 15, 1983
(In April 2006, the priority date was October 8, 1983.) |
| LABOR CERTIFICATION: |
| Third Preference |
Professional/Skilled Workers |
May 1
, 2001
(In
April 2006, the priority date was the same.)
|
| Schedule A |
(Nurses/Physical therapists) |
Current
(In
April 2006, the priority date was also current.) |
| Other Workers |
Non-Skilled workers |
October 1, 2000
(In April 2006, the priority date was October 1, 2001.) |
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