A.   STATUTORY NUMBERS (This communication provides priority dates
and other transitional information as taken from the State
Department's Visa Bulletin released April 9, 1998.)  On the
following chart, the listing of a date for any class indicates that
the class is oversubscribed; "C" means current, i.e., numbers are
available for all qualified applicants; and "U" means unavailable,
i.e., no numbers are available.

PREFERENCES
FAMILY
     All Charge-
     ability Areas  CHINA
     Except Those   Mainland
     Listed         born      INDIA     MEXICO    PHILIPPINES 

1st  15OCT96        15OCT96   15OCT96   01AUG93   09JAN87

2A*  01JAN94        01JAN94   01JAN94   15FEB93   01JAN94

2B   15OCT91        15OCT91   15OCT91   22JUN91   15OCT91

3rd  01DEC94        01DEC94   01DEC94   01AUG89   08DEC86

4th  08JAN88        08JAN88   22JAN86   22MAR87   01MAY78

*NOTE: For MAY, 2A numbers EXEMPT from per-country limit are
available to applicants from all countries with priority dates
earlier than 15FEB93. 2A numbers SUBJECT to per-country 
limit are available to applicants chargeable to all countries
EXCEPT MEXICO with priority dates beginning 15FEB93 and earlier
than 01JAN94. (All 2A numbers provided for MEXICO are exempt from
the per-country limit; there are no 2A numbers for MEXICO subject
to per-country limit.)

EMPLOYMENT-BASED

          All Charge-
          ability Areas  CHINA-
          Except Those   mainland
          Listed         born      INDIA     MEXICO    PHILIPPINES 

1st       C              08JUN97   C         C         C   

2nd       C              01MAY96   15AUG96   C         C 

3rd       C              15FEB94   08MAY95   C         C   

Other     01APR91        01APR91   01APR91   01APR91   01APR91
Workers

4th       C              C         C         C         C

Certain   01AUG97        01AUG97   01AUG97   01AUG97   01AUG97  
Religious Workers

5th       C              C         C         C         C 

Targeted  C              C         C         C         C 
    Employment Areas/
    Regional Centers

The Department of State has available a recorded message with visa
availability information which can be heard at (202) 663-1541. This
recording will be updated in the middle of each month with
information on cut-off dates for the following month.

ADDITIONAL HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE MAY 1998 VISA BULLETIN

B. DIVERSITY IMMIGRANT (DV) CATEGORY

Section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act provides
55,000 immigrant visas each fiscal year to permit immigration
opportunities for persons from countries other than the principal
sources of current immigration to the United States. DV visas are
divided among six geographic regions. Not more than 3,850 visas (7%
of the 55,000 visa limit) may be provided to immigrants from any
one country.

For MAY, immigrant numbers in the DV category are available to
qualified DV-98 applicants chargeable to all regions/eligible
countries as follows.  When an allocation cut-off number is shown,
visas are available only for applicants with DV regional lottery
rank numbers BELOW the specified allocation cut-off number:

                    All DV Charge-
                    ability Areas
                    Except Those
Region              Listed Separately
 
AFRICA              AF  30,720 

ASIA                AS 11,110      EXCEPT:  BANGLADESH  AS 6,450
 
EUROPE              EU  17,800     EXCEPT:   ALBANIA  EU  13,340
                                             BULGARIA  EU 16,680
                                                
NORTH AMERICA       NA   3
   (BAHAMAS)
 
OCEANIA             OC   584  
 
SOUTH AMERICA,      SA   1,304
   CENTRAL AMERICA,
   and the CARIBBEAN


Entitlement to immigrant status in the DV category lasts only
through the end of the fiscal (visa) year for which the applicant
is selected in the lottery. The year of entitlement for all
applicants registered for the DV-98 program ends as of September
30, 1998. DV visas may not be issued to DV-98 applicants after that
date. Similarly, spouses and children accompanying or following to
join DV-98 principals are only entitled to derivative DV status
until September 30, 1998. DV visa availability through the very end
of FY-1998 cannot be taken for granted. Numbers could be exhausted
prior to September 30. Once all numbers provided by law for the
DV-98 program have been used, no further issuances will be
possible.