April 2021 Visa Bulletin: What to Expect?

The Department of State has released the visa bulletin for April 2021 outlining the availability of immigrant visa numbers for the upcoming month.

NOTE: Adjustment of Status Filing Charts April 2021

USCIS has not yet advised the appropriate cut off date chart for acceptance of adjustment of status applications filed with USCIS in the month of April. Please keep checking back to the USCIS website for more information, since we do not yet know if adjustment applications will be based on the Final Action dates chart, or on the Dates for Filing Chart.

April Visa Bulletin Cutoff Dates

Employment Based Categories

According to the Department of State’s April 2021 Visa Bulletin, the following cutoff dates will apply for the issuance of an immigrant visa for employment-based categories:

EB-1: China and India will join all other countries in this category and become current in the month of April 2021
EB-2: China will advance just under seven weeks to September 1, 2016, while India will advance by three and a half months to May 1, 2010. All other countries will remain current.
EB-3 Professionals and Skilled Workers: Cutoff dates for China will advance five weeks to March 15, 2018, and for India will advance two months to September 1, 2010. All other countries will remain current in April.
EB-5: The Regional and Non-Regional Center programs will remain current for all countries except China and Vietnam. China will remain at August 15, 2015, while Vietnam will advance by almost two months to December 15, 2017.

Family Sponsored Categories

According to the Department of State’s April 2021 Visa Bulletin, the following cutoff dates will apply for the issuance of an immigrant visa for family-sponsored categories:

Final Action Date Chart

Dates for Filing Chart

As stated above, USCIS has not yet advised the appropriate cutoff date chart for acceptance of adjustment of status applications filed with USCIS in the month of April. Please keep checking back to the USCIS website for more information.

Important Note regarding the Rescission of the Muslim Travel Ban and Proclamation 10014

On January 20, 2021, President Biden made the decision to rescind Presidential Proclamations 9645 and 9983 collectively known as the Muslim travel ban which temporarily blocked the issuance of immigrant visas for individuals from predominantly Muslim countries including Burma, Eritrea, Iran, Kyrgyzstan, Libya, Nigeria, North Korea, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Venezuela, and Yemen.

Additionally, on February 24, 2021, President Biden rescinded Proclamation 10014 which removed the sweeping 60-day ban on the issuance of immigrant visas for the following categories of immigrants applying at the U.S. Embassy or Consulate:

Spouses and children of green card holders (US citizens were not affected) applying at the consulate
Parents of US citizens applying at the consulate
Brothers and sisters of US citizens applying at the consulate
Sons and daughters (meaning over 21 years old) of US citizens applying at the consulate (children under 21 years old of US citizens were not affected)
Sons and daughters (meaning over 21 years old) of green card holders applying at the consulate
EB1A extraordinary abilities and their family applying at the consulate
PERM EB3, PERM EB2, NIW employment based and their family applying at the consulate
EB4 religious workers immigrants applying at the consulate
H1B and H4 dependents applying at the consulate
L1 and L2 applying at the consulate
J1 applying at the consulate

Now that P.P. 10014 and the Muslim ban has been lifted, those impacted may proceed with applying for an immigrant visa, however the suspension of routine visa services has limited interview appointment availability worldwide. Embassies and Consulates continue to prioritize emergency services and mission critical cases but have not resumed routine visa operations. That means that immigrant visa applicants who are no longer subject to these proclamations may see their cases move forward but will continue to see delays in being scheduled for an interview appointment due to the phased resumption of visa services.

Questions? If you would like to schedule a consultation, please text 619-483-4549 or call 619-819-9204.

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