The Department of State released the June 2024 visa bulletin. The visa bulletin summarizes and provides an overview of the immigrant visas available in June 2024. The State Department releases this information in two charts, the Final Action Dates and Date of Filing charts for Employment-Based and Family-Based immigrant visas. For Applicants physically in the United States and filing for Adjustment of Status (AOS), U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) specifies which chart Applicants must use to file applications for the month. In June 2024, USCIS confirms Applicants may use Date of Filing for Family-Based applications while for Employment-Based cases, Applicants must use the Final Action Dates. Below, we break down the movement seen in the June 2024 visa bulletin.
Employment-Based (EB) Preference Categories
In the June 2024 visa bulletin, similar to May 2024 visa bulletin, we see little to no movement in most employment-based (EB) categories. Keeping up with the trend from the last couple of months, USCIS will accept EB AOS cases based on the Final Action Dates chart. In other words, to be eligible to apply for AOS application, foreign nationals must have a priority date that is earlier than the date listed under their preference category and country.
For the first preference category (EB-1, Priority Workers) the dates remain unchanged from the April and May visa bulletins. For Applicants from the rest of the world, excluding India and China, the dates will remain current allowing applicants to apply for immigrant visa or AOS applications right away. For EB-1 India, they will remain at March 1, 2021. For China, the dates will remain at September 1, 2022.
In the second preference category (EB-2, Members of the Professions Holding Advanced Degrees, or Persons of Exceptional Ability category), we see no movement once again. For India EB-2, the cutoff dates remain at April 15, 2012. For China, the dates stay at February 1, 2020. For the rest of the world, the dates stay at January 15, 2023. In the June Visa Bulletin, the State Department confirms the continued high demand in this category. According to the State Department, this high demand will most likely require retrogression of the worldwide final action date including Mexico and Philippines in July Visa Bulletin. Note, the State Department doesn’t project the same outlook for EB-2 India and China, which may indicate no advancement or retrogression.
In the third preference category (EB-3, Skilled Workers, Professionals, and Other Workers), we see small movement in EB-3 India while the rest of the dates remain the same. For India, the dates advance by one week to August 22, 2012. The dates for China will remain unmoved from the January 2024 visa bulletin at September 1, 2020. For the rest of the world, the dates will be unchanged at November 22, 2022. Similar to EB-2, the State Department confirmed the high demand in this category requiring a retrogression of the worldwide final action date including Mexico and Philippines in the July visa bulletin.
In the fourth preference category (EB-4, Minister and Non-Minister Religious Workers Program), once again we see lack of movement with the cutoff date remaining at November 1, 20202 for the entire world.
In the fifth and last preference category (EB-5, Investors), the dates remain the same as in the April 2024 visa bulletin. For the EB-5 Unreserved categories (C5, T5, I5, and R5), the dates for India remain at December 1, 2020. For China, the dates remain at December 15, 2015. For the rest of the world, the dates remain current. For EB-5 set-aside categories (Rural, High Unemployment, and Infrastructure), they also remain current.
Family-Based Preference Categories
In the Family-Based Preference category, in the June 2024 visa bulletin, we see some welcome advancement in most of the preference categories. Unlike the EB preference categories, USCIS will accept cases based on Date of Filing Chart.
In the F1, Unmarried Sons and Daughters of U.S. Citizens, in the Final Action Dates chart, we see small movement. We see advancement for Mexico, with dates advancing by over two months to January 1, 2002. While for all countries excluding Mexico and the Philippines, we see the dates remain unchanged at July 8, 2015. For the Philippines, the dates remain at March 1, 2012.
In the June 2024 Final Action Dates Chart, in the F2A, Spouses and Children of Permanent Residents category, we continue to see advancement in the priority dates. The dates for Mexico advance by close to three months to February 1, 2021. For the rest of the world, similarly the dates advance by five months and two weeks to November 15, 2021. In the F2B, Unmarried Sons and Daughters (21 years of age or older) of Permanent Residents, we see advancement for Mexico while the dates for the rest of the world remain unchanged. For Mexico in the F2B category, the dates advance by four months and one week to July 8, 2004. For the Philippines, the dates remain unchanged at October 22, 2011. The dates for the rest of the world remain at April 1, 2016.
In the F3, Married Sons and Daughters of U.S. Citizens in the Final Action Date Chart, we see advancement across the board. The dates for the world will advance by over two months to March 1, 2010. For Mexico, the dates will advance by over four months to December 1, 1999. For the Philippines, the dates will progress three weeks to August 22, 2002.
Lastly, in the F4, Brothers and Sisters of Adult U.S. Citizens, we see advancement for Mexico and the Philippines. For Mexico the dates advance by ten days to February 1, 2001. For the Philippines, the will dates advance by twelve weeks to December 1, 2003. For F4 India, the dates remain unchanged at January 15, 2006. For the rest of the world and China, the dates will remain the same as in May visa bulletin at July 22, 2007.
We continue to monitor and report predictions and movements related to the monthly visa bulletin. If you have questions regarding your priority date, please feel free to contact us. We put our extensive experience and expertise to work for you to ensure you get the right advice.