Charles Oppenheim: EB-2 India and China Cutoff Date Expected to Retrogress to August 2007

Only a day after we published our own predictions for the outlook of EB-2 India and China cutoff dates over the next few months, Mr. Charles Oppenheim, the Chief of the Visa Control and Reporting Division at the U.S. Department of State and also known as the person responsible for the Visa Bulletin cutoff dates movement, has provided his own thoughts on the movement of EB-2 India and China.

EB-2 India and China Expected to Retrogress to August 2007

During an AILA event today, March 16, Mr. Oppenheim indicated that he will likely retrogress India and China Employment-Based Second Preference (EB-2) cutoff dates to around August 2007, effective with either the May or June 2012 Visa Bulletin.   He also advised that he projects that all EB-1 visas available in FY2012 will be used this year, resulting in no “spilldown” to EB-2.

Mr. Oppenheim’s comments confirm our own predictions that a slowdown or retrogression in EB-2 India/China is imminent.   As a result of this, we urge all EB-2 India and China applicants who have a current priority date as of the March or April 2012 Visa Bulletin to immediately consider filing for an I-485 application.   It is likely that this window of filing opportunity for many EB-2 India and China applicants will close starting May 1st.

Please do not hesitate to contact us if our office can help you take advantage of this significant forward movement in the cutoff dates.    We are also happy to provide a free quote for preparing and filing your I-485 application.

Further Updates and News

We invite you to subscribe to our free weekly immigration newsletter to receive timely updates on this and related topics.  We also invite you to contact us if our office can be of any assistance in your immigration matters or you have any questions or comments about the current  Visa Bulletin or our thoughts about cutoff dates for the next few months.  Finally, if you already haven’t, please consider our Visa Bulletin Predictions tool which provides personalized predictions and charts helping you understand when a particular priority date may become current and what are the movement patterns.