A.   STATUTORY NUMBERS (This communication provides priority dates
and other transitional information as taken from the State
Department's Visa Bulletin released June 11, 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       22JAN97        22JAN97   22JAN97   01AUG93   05FEB87

2A*       08FEB94        08FEB94   08FEB94   15MAR93   08FEB94

2B        01DEC91        01DEC91   01DEC91   01JUL91   01DEC91

3rd       01FEB95        01FEB95   01FEB95   15OCT89   01FEB87

4th       15MAR88        15MAR88   15FEB86   22MAY87   25MAY78

*NOTE: For JUNE, 2A numbers EXEMPT from per-country limit are
available to applicants from all countries with priority dates
earlier than 15MAR93. 2A numbers SUBJECT to per-country limit are
available to applicants chargeable to all countries EXCEPT MEXICO
with priority dates beginning 15MAR93 and earlier than 08FEB94.
(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              08MAY96   01NOV96   C         C 

3rd       C              22FEB94   01AUG95   C         C   

Other     01OCT91        01OCT91   01OCT91   01OCT91   01OCT91
Workers

4th       C              C         C         C         C

Certain   01OCT97        01OCT97   01OCT97   01OCT97   01OCT97  
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 JULY 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 JULY, 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  34,590 

ASIA                AS 12,601      EXCEPT:  BANGLADESH  AS 7,199
 
EUROPE              EU  20,701     EXCEPT:  ALBANIA  EU  15,614
                                                
NORTH AMERICA       NA   3
   (BAHAMAS)
 
OCEANIA             CURRENT  
 
SOUTH AMERICA,      CURRENT
   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.