Introduction
The State Department just made it clear that they have hit the cap on EB-1 visas for the year 2024.
The law only lets out 28.6% of the total EB-1 visas each year. That means embassies and consulates can’t give out any more EB-1 visas after the end of this fiscal year. The limit starts all over again on October 1, 2024, and they will start handing out EB-1 visas again then.
Right now, the EB-1 visa is not going to be available for the rest of the fiscal year 2024, which wraps up on September 30, 2024. But, USCIS should still go ahead and process EB-1 adjustment of status applications that are up to date in the Visa Bulletins for August and September. EB-1 cases can’t be approved until there is a visa number to go with them.
What is the EB-1 visa?
EB-1 visas let people with super special skills, who have gotten famous in their field, top professors and researchers, and big bosses from around the world to live in the US legally. They can then help out in lots of different areas, which is really good for the US economy.
Details on the EB-1 visa annual limits for FY 2024
It has been announced by the State Department that the yearly quota for the EB-1 visa for people moving to the US has been hit for the year 2024. This means the EB-1 visa is now out of stock and won’t be available until September 30, which is the end of the year’s budget.
US embassies and consulates won’t be giving out EB-1 visas, and the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) won’t be able to approve changes to immigration status for EB-1 visas until September 30.
Starting from October 1, 2024, the yearly limits for visas will start all over again for the fiscal year 2025. After that, USCIS will start approving changes to immigration status again, and embassies and consulates will start giving out EB-1 visas and any other visas that were out of stock until now. The EB-3 and EB-5 visas that were out of stock in mid-August will be back in stock.
In its September Visa Bulletin, the State Department mentioned that because there is still a lot of people wanting visas, it is possible that the yearly limits for many visa categories and countries could run out of visas by September or even earlier. The State Department expects that the dates for final decisions will move up at the start of the new fiscal year on October 1, but the exact timing will depend on how many people actually want visas.
The Effect of Reaching the EB-1 Visa Annual Limit for FY 2024
The USCIS should keep accepting applications for changing immigration status as long as they are current with the latest Visa Bulletin from August and September. However, if an application is in a category that is out of order, it will be put on hold until there are visa numbers available.
People from other countries who have scheduled their immigration status interviews need to be ready to go, but they should also know that the USCIS officer might delay the interview because all the EB-1 visa numbers are taken. No matter when the interview happens, the application won’t be complete until a visa number becomes available.
Final words
The yearly limits will start over when the new fiscal year (FY 2025) kicks off on October 1, 2024. After that, embassies and consulates will be able to start giving out EB-1 immigrant visas again to people who meet the requirements.
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