November 2020 Visa Bulletin – Filing Dates Remain the Same, Final Action Dates See Some Advances
29 Oct
by Foster LLP, on Immigration Updates, News
Click here to view November 2020 Visa Bulletin.
On Thursday, October 29, the U.S. Department of State (DOS) published the Monthly Visa Bulletin for November 2020. After many years of publishing the Monthly Visa Bulletin generally no later than the second week of the month, for the past several months DOS has published the Monthly Visa Bulletin later and later in the month, but never so late as the 29th day.
The October Visa Bulletin, which was published late in September, advanced filing dates significantly under the EB-3 India category. Many EB-2 India applicants immediately began preparing to file “downgrade petitions” seeking EB-3 classification while also wanting to hold the filing until publication of the November Visa Bulletin in case of significant EB-2 advances in November.
The November Visa Bulletin reveals no change in the filing dates from October to November, and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has posted on its website that beneficiaries of employment-based immigrant petitions may file Applications to Adjust Status (“green card” applications) based on the “Filing Dates.”
The November Visa Bulletin also shows small and modest advances in EB-2 and EB-3 final action dates for applicants born in China and India. Please review the chart here for the specific changes shown on the November 2020 Visa Bulletin relative to the October 2020 Visa Bulletin.
Beneficiaries of employment-based immigrant petitions who were eligible to file adjustment of status applications in October remain eligible to file in November. For those who have family members outside the United States, there may be time to get them back in time for filing an Application to Adjust Status in November. If they haven’t already done so, applicants should initiate the application process with their Foster immigration attorney at this time. Critical documents to collect at this time include marriage and birth certificates with English translations where applicable. Applicants may also want to obtain their vaccination records in order to avoid unnecessary vaccines when it is time to obtain their medical examinations. Your Foster attorney will advise which additional documents to collect for each applicant.
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.