The U.S. Department of State (DOS) has published the Monthly Visa Bulletin for February 2023 revealing movement in only one category. 

Dates for Filing and Final Action Dates remain current in the EB-1 category for all countries of birth except China and India, which continue to show the backlogs that appeared in the January 2023 Visa Bulletin. In the EB-2 and EB-3 categories, there was no movement in either Dates for Filing or Final Action Dates for all countries of birth. In the “Other Workers” category, there was significant retrogression in the Dates of Filing for all countries of birth except China (PRC) and India, which showed no movement. All Final Action Dates in the “Other Workers” category remained unchanged. 

The EB-5 Unreserved category continues to show backlogs in the Dates for Filing and Final Action Dates for individuals born in China and India, but these backlogs remain unchanged from the January Visa Bulletin. All other EB-5 categories and countries of birth are current on the Dates for Filing and Final Action Dates. 

USCIS has confirmed on its website that beneficiaries of employment-based immigrant petitions should use the Dates for Filing to determine eligibility to file adjustment of status (“green card”) applications. 

The chart below indicates the changes in the February 2023 Visa Bulletin relative to the January 2023 Visa Bulletin:  

Foster LLP will continue to track immigrant visa availability and provide updates about any developments via Immigration Updates©, articles, and blogs on our website at www.fosterglobal.com.