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STATE DEPARTMENT VISA BULLETIN - AUGUST 2
FAMILY NUMBERS 
Family 
All Chargeability Areas
Except Those Listed 
China- Mainland born 
India 
Mexico 
Philippines 
1st   
U  
U 
U 
U 
U 
2A*  
01JAN95 
01JAN95 
01JAN95 
U 
01JAN95 
2B 
01JAN93 
01JAN93 
01JAN93 
U 
01JAN93 
3rd  
U 
U 
U 
U 
U 
4th 
01JUL89 
01JUL89 
01JUN88 
01JUL89 
15SEP1979 
  
EMPLOYMENT NUMBERS
Employment-  
    Based 
All Chargeability Areas Except Those
Listed 
CHINA-Mainland born 
INDIA 
MEXICO    
PHILIPPINES 
1st 
c 
c 
c 
c 
c 
2nd 
c 
c 
c 
c 
c 
3rd 
c 
c 
c 
c 
c 
Other Workers 
c 
c 
c 
c 
c 
4th 
c 
c 
c 
c 
c 
Certain Religious Workers 
c 
c 
c 
c 
c 
5th 
c 
c 
c 
c 
c 
Targeted Employment Areas 
c 
c 
c 
c 
c 
  
 
DV NUMBERS FOR AUGUST
 Region 
All DV Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed Separately 
  
Africa 
AF 29,150 
Except: Ethiopia AF 24,100 
Asia 
AS 13,800 
  
Europe 
EU 28,000  
Except: Albania EU 14,000 
North America (Bahamas) 
NA 18 
  
Oceania 
OC 1,000 
  
SOUTH AMERICA,  CENTRAL AMERICA, and the CARIBBEAN 
SA 2,500 
  
  
  
ADVANCE NOTIFICATION OF RANK CUT-OFFS WHICH WILL APPLY IN SEPTEMBER 
  
Region 
All DV Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed Separately 
  
Africa 
AF Current 
  
Asia 
AS current 
  
Europe 
EU Current 
Except: Albania EU 15,482 
North America (Bahamas) 
NA Current 
  
Oceania 
OC Current 
  
SOUTH AMERICA,  CENTRAL AMERICA, and the CARIBBEAN 
SA Current 
  
  
Followers of the Visa Bulletin will without doubt notice the near unavailability of visas in many family-sponsored preference categories, while at the same time, employment numbers remain current.  The State Department says the retrogression of family based dates is the result of heavy INS demand this year.  It seems that over the past few years, as the INS focused on naturalization applications, fewer requests for visa numbers were made.  This meant the State Department would advance the dates rapidly throughout a year so that all available visas would be issued.  Now the INS is working on more family cases and requesting more numbers.  Between adjustment of status applications and immigrant visa applications, the demand now exceeds the number of available visas.  According to the State Department, the situation could become worse in September, but will improve after October 1, 2001, the start of the next fiscal year.  At that point, the latest cut-off date reached before visas became unavailable will be reinstated. 

Employment based visa numbers are likely to remain current for the foreseeable future.  There are three reasons for this.  First, the American Competitiveness in the 21st Century Act removed the per-country limit if there are otherwise available visas.  Second, the annual employment based visas available this year was 190,000, an all time high.  Finally, even in the event that the numbers for 2001 are all used, AC21 also created a reservoir of about 130,000 visas, recapturing unused employment based visas from 1999 and 2000.