Visa Bulletin for March 1997

IMMIGRANT NUMBERS FOR MARCH 1997


A.   STATUTORY NUMBERS (This communication provides priority dates
and other transitional information as taken from the State
Department's Visa Bulletin released February 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  01APR96        01APR96        08DEC92        15JUL86
2A*  15FEB93        15FEB93        08JUN92        15FEB93
2B   08MAR91        08MAR91        08MAR91        08MAR91
3rd  22DEC93        22DEC93        01FEB88        08NOV85
4th  15AUG86        01MAR85        01OCT85        01DEC77

*NOTE:  For MARCH, 2A numbers EXEMPT from per-country limit are
available to applicants from all countries with priority dates
earlier than 08JUN92.  2A numbers SUBJECT to per-country limit are
available to applicants chargeable to all countries EXCEPT MEXICO
with priority dates beginning 08JUN92 and earlier than 15FEB93. 
(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              22MAR96        C              C
3rd       C              15NOV94        C              C
Other     01MAR90        01MAR90        01MAR90        01MAR90
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 MARCH 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 MARCH, 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   35,830         EXCEPT:   GHANA AF 07,564
                                             NIGERIA AF 06,812
ASIA           AS   08,811         EXCEPT:   BANGLADESH AS 06,910
EUROPE         EU   27,399         EXCEPT:   ALBANIA  EU  16,850
                                             POLAND EU  06,410
NORTH AMERICA
(BAHAMAS)           CURRENT
OCEANIA             CURRENT
SOUTH AMERICA       CURRENT
(CENTRAL AMERICA,
and the CARRIBBEAN

(NOTE: Heavy applicant demand has resulted in the establishment of
a regional rank cut-off for Europe, and has required the
retrogression of the Ghana and Nigeria rank cutt-offs for March.
Increased demand for DV numbers from Oceania will make necessary
the establishment of a regional rank cut-off for April.) 

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.

© 1999, American Immigration Lawyers Association