The U.S. Department of State ("DOS") Visa Bulletin for July 2005 indicates that the employment-based, third-preference ("EB3") and Other Workers visa categories have reached their annual limits, and no immigrant visas in these categories will be available for the remainder of Fiscal Year 2005 (which ends September 30, 2005). This means that immigrant visas will not be available to workers who qualify for a visa under the EB3 category (for workers with two years of experience or education) and the Other Worker category (for workers with less than two years of experience) until the start of Fiscal Year 2006, which begins October 1, 2005. It also means that workers will not be able to apply for permanent residence once the labor certification application is approved, because workers must have the immigrant visa before they can apply.

This is a significant change from last month's Visa Bulletin, which showed that immigrant visas in the EB3 category were immediately available to nationals of all countries, with the exception of nationals of China, India, and the Philippines, for whom EB3 visas remained available to those with priority dates of June 1, 2002, or earlier. Similarly, immigrant visas for nationals of all countries in the Other Workers category remained available to people with priority dates of January 1, 1999 or earlier.

While EB3 and Other Workers visas will once again be available at the start of the new fiscal year on October 1, 2005, the DOS states it is not possible to estimate potential cut-off dates at this time. We will update you on visa availability in these categories after the start of the next fiscal year.

U.S. Department of State Visa Bulletins: Current and Archived