Visa Bulletin for July 1997

IMMIGRANT NUMBERS FOR JULY 1997


A.   STATUTORY NUMBERS (This communication provides priority dates
and other transitional information as taken from the State
Department's Visa Bulletin released June 11, 1997.)  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  
     Except Those        
     Listed         INDIA     MEXICO    PHILIPPINES 
1st  08APR96        08APR96   08MAR93   01AUG86
2A*  01APR93        01APR93   15JUL92   01APR93
2B   22APR91        22APR91   15APR91   22APR91
3rd  22MAR94        22MAR94   01AUG88   15JAN86
4th  22DEC86        22MAR85   01MAY86   01FEB78

*NOTE:  For JULY, 2A numbers EXEMPT from per-country limit are
available to applicants from all countries with priority dates
earlier than 15JUL92.  2A numbers SUBJECT to per-country limit are
available to applicants chargeable to all countries EXCEPT MEXICO
with priority dates beginning 15JUL92 and earlier than 01APR93. 
(2A numbers subject to per-country limit are "unavailable" for
applicants chargeable to MEXICO.) 

EMPLOYMENT-BASED

          All Charge-
          ability Areas  
          Except Those   
          Listed         INDIA     MEXICO    PHILIPPINES 
1st       C              C         C         C
2nd       C              C         C         C
3rd       C              15JUN95   C         C
Other     01APR90        01APR90   01APR90   01APR90
Workers
4th       C              C         C         C
Certain   C              C         C         C   
Religious Workers
5th       C              C         C         C
Targeted  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 1997 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 provide 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 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   52,320         EXCEPT:   GHANA AF 15,570
                                             NIGERIA AF 12,620
ASIA           CURRENT        
EUROPE         EU   31,860         EXCEPT:   ALBANIA  EU  20,851
                                             POLAND EU  08,525
NORTH AMERICA
(BAHAMAS)           CURRENT
OCEANIA             CURRENT
SOUTH AMERICA       CURRENT
(CENTRAL AMERICA,
and the CARRIBBEAN

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-97 program ends as of September 
30, 1997.  DV visas may not be issued to DV-97 applicants after
that date.  Similarly, spouses and children accompanying or
following to join DV-97 principals are only entitled to derivative
DV status until September 30, 1997. DV visa availability through
the very end of FY-1997 cannot be taken for granted.  Numbers could
be exhausted prior to September 30. Once all numbers provided by
law for the DV-97 program have been used, no further issuances will
be possible.

© 1999, American Immigration Lawyers Association