Quick Hits

• The EB-1, EB-2, and EB-3 final action dates will remain unchanged for all countries of chargeability.
• USCIS has confirmed it will accept employment-based adjustment of status applications based on the final action dates chart for the May 2024 Visa Bulletin.
• The EB-4 Certain Religious Workers category is extended until September 29, 2024.

The May 2024 Visa Bulletin does not show any advancement in final action dates and dates of filing for all countries of chargeability in the EB-2 and EB-3 categories. EB-1 remains current for Mexico, the Philippines, and all other chargeability areas. It also remains unchanged for China (September 1, 2022) and India (March 1, 2021) in the EB-1 category.

On March 23, 2024, Congress extended the Employment Fourth Preference Certain Religious Workers category until September 30, 2024. The priority date for EB-4 Certain Religious Workers category changes from “Unavailable” to November 1, 2020, in the May 2024 Visa Bulletin for all countries of chargeability, including China, India, Mexico and the Philippines. All visas issued prior to September 29, 2024, will be valid only until September 29, 2024.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has confirmed it will accept employment-based adjustment of status applications based on the final action dates chart for the April 2024 Visa Bulletin.

The U.S. Department of State’s May 2024 Visa Bulletin’s final action dates chart for employment-based categories is shown below.

Source: U.S. Department of State, May 2024 Visa Bulletin

Consistent with USCIS’s Employment-Based Adjustment of Status FAQs, which notes that “it is not reasonable to advance the dates in the Visa Bulletin” in order to accept substantial additional filings in fiscal year (FY) 2024, the May 2024 Visa Bulletin continues the trend thus far in FY 2024 of showing little to no movement across most employment-based categories.