The U.S. Department of State publishes a Visa Bulletin in the middle of each month that contains information related to current immigrant visa availability for the following month. We explain the importance of the Bulletin and the value of its details in our previous blog post.
Overview of the March 2023 Visa Bulletin
In the March 2023 Visa Bulletin, EB-1, EB-2 and EB-3 final action and application filing dates for China and India remain the same as the February Bulletin. United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced that they it will accept initial Adjustment of Status applications based on the Dates for Filing Chart in the March 2023 Visa Bulletin.
Final Action Dates
China
- EB-1 has a priority date cut-off of Feb. 1, 2022
- EB-2 remains unchanged with a priority date cut-off of June 8, 2019
- EB-3 remains unchanged with a priority date cut-off of Aug. 1, 2018
India
- EB-1 has a priority date cut-off of Feb. 1, 2022
- EB-2 remains unchanged with a priority date cut-off of Oct. 8, 2011
- EB-3 remains unchanged with a priority date cut-off of June 15, 2012
All Other
- EB-1 and EB-3 remain current for all other countries
- EB-2 remains unchanged with a priority date cut-off of Nov. 1, 2022
Dates for Filing
China
- EB-1 has a priority date cut-off of June 1, 2022
- EB-2 remains unchanged with a priority date cut-off of July 8, 2019
- EB-3 remains unchanged with a priority date cut-off of September 1, 2018
India
- EB-1 has a priority date cut-off of June 1, 2022
- EB-2 remains unchanged with a priority date cut-off of May 1, 2012
- EB-3 remains unchanged with a priority date cut-off of Aug. 1, 2012
All Other
- EB-1 and EB-3 remain current for all other countries
- EB-2 remains unchanged with a priority date of Dec. 1, 2022
What Does the March 2023 Visa Bulletin Mean?
As expected, there was no movement for key categories in the March 2023 Visa Bulletin. The Bulletin did note that there has been an increase in use and demand for EB-2 visas due to numerous new filings by applicants in all countries, which likely foreshadows retrogressions to the category in the coming months. Additionally, the Bulletin reported increased demand in EB-3, which may result in a future worldwide Final Action date cut-off in the EB-3 category.
As expected, the EB-2 and EB-3 categories did not see any movement for China or India, likely due to the large backlog USCIS faces. Additionally, there was no forward movement for any country or category in the March Visa Bulletin. As it is, the priority date cut-off for EB-3 China is currently approximately one year ahead of EB-2 China. Accordingly, some Chinese-born EB-2 applicants with pending I-485 Adjustment of Status applications may consider submitting an interfiling request to USCIS to downgrade their pending application from EB-2 to EB-3.
