April 2008
The May 2008 Visa Bulletin indicates processing is now available for All
Other Countries and the Philippines for applications filed prior to March 1,
2006. There was little improvement for India (Nov. 1, 2001) and China (Mar.
22, 2003) applicants.
Green Card visas are now available to those applicants with Priority Dates
on or before the dates listed. The Priority Date is the date a petition filing is
accepted by the Department of State, which essentially establishes the
applicant’s place in line. All others must wait until the dates move past their
Priority Date. The Visa Bulletin should be checked regularly for updates and
can be seen at is at http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/bulletin/bulletin_1360.html
- look for the Employment Based 3rd category on the grid.
Nursing immigration to the U.S. came to a halt in early 2007 because of
Retrogression (backlog) in the EB-3 Green Card category. Retrogression
occurs when there are more applicants than the number of visas available
and then petitions either cannot be filed or cannot progress until more visas
are available. The U.S. Department of State allocates 140,000 new
Employment Based visas every year but availability for applicants depends
on applicant volume and processing times.
Thus, the extraordinary interruption to visa availability and processing times
continues. International nurses have supplemented the U.S. nursing work
force for decades and between our ever-present U.S. nursing shortage and
massive nursing retirements of U.S. nurses in coming years - there is no
question that visas will always be available. The current problems relate to
processing times and availability of visa numbers. A coalition of healthcare
employers (including Procare USA/Nursing USA), immigration attorneys
and other interested parties continues to lobby representatives in
Washington on visa availability for healthcare workers.
We recognize that it takes an extraordinary commitment to emigrate to the U.
S. and this is made all the more difficult with the unpredictability of visa
availability in recent times. Notwithstanding these challenges, we remain
committed to sponsoring international nurses and we hope you will not be
deterred from the Green Card process whether already in the U.S. or
coming from outside the country to live and work here. Clearly, applicants
outside the U.S. should make no relocation plans until a visa has been
stamped in the passport when they will have six months to enter the U.S. to
“activate” their status.
Please check back for periodic updates. We also recommend you check
the healthcare advocacy blog at the website www.hammondlawfirm.com for
news and comments on retrogression and please check the Visa Bulletin
every once in a while as it is not unusual for processing dates to move
ahead for months or years at a time.
The May 2008 Visa Bulletin indicates processing is now available for All
Other Countries and the Philippines for applications filed prior to March 1,
2006. There was little improvement for India (Nov. 1, 2001) and China (Mar.
22, 2003) applicants.
Green Card visas are now available to those applicants with Priority Dates
on or before the dates listed. The Priority Date is the date a petition filing is
accepted by the Department of State, which essentially establishes the
applicant’s place in line. All others must wait until the dates move past their
Priority Date. The Visa Bulletin should be checked regularly for updates and
can be seen at is at http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/bulletin/bulletin_1360.html
- look for the Employment Based 3rd category on the grid.
Nursing immigration to the U.S. came to a halt in early 2007 because of
Retrogression (backlog) in the EB-3 Green Card category. Retrogression
occurs when there are more applicants than the number of visas available
and then petitions either cannot be filed or cannot progress until more visas
are available. The U.S. Department of State allocates 140,000 new
Employment Based visas every year but availability for applicants depends
on applicant volume and processing times.
Thus, the extraordinary interruption to visa availability and processing times
continues. International nurses have supplemented the U.S. nursing work
force for decades and between our ever-present U.S. nursing shortage and
massive nursing retirements of U.S. nurses in coming years - there is no
question that visas will always be available. The current problems relate to
processing times and availability of visa numbers. A coalition of healthcare
employers (including Procare USA/Nursing USA), immigration attorneys
and other interested parties continues to lobby representatives in
Washington on visa availability for healthcare workers.
We recognize that it takes an extraordinary commitment to emigrate to the U.
S. and this is made all the more difficult with the unpredictability of visa
availability in recent times. Notwithstanding these challenges, we remain
committed to sponsoring international nurses and we hope you will not be
deterred from the Green Card process whether already in the U.S. or
coming from outside the country to live and work here. Clearly, applicants
outside the U.S. should make no relocation plans until a visa has been
stamped in the passport when they will have six months to enter the U.S. to
“activate” their status.
Please check back for periodic updates. We also recommend you check
the healthcare advocacy blog at the website www.hammondlawfirm.com for
news and comments on retrogression and please check the Visa Bulletin
every once in a while as it is not unusual for processing dates to move
ahead for months or years at a time.
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