You’re applying for a Green Card and the terms priority date and preference category come up often and you probably have a few questions.
- What exactly is a Green Card priority date?
- What is a preference category and how do I know if it applies to me?
- How will my preference category and priority date impact processing times for my Green Card?
Here are five things you need to know about priority dates and preference categories and how they apply to you.
1) What are priority dates and preference categories?
Green Card priority dates indicates the date in which the application was filed. Green Card applications are broken into different groups known as preference categories. Your preference category is determined by the sponsor’s U.S. legal status (such as U.S. citizen or Green Card holder) and the applicant’s relationship to the sponsor (such as spouse, child, sibling, or parent). Each preference category has an annual limit.
2)Who is & who is not subject to priority dates and preference categories?
There is a quota for how many new immigrants can legally enter the United States each year. In immigration terms, applicants for the Green Card are divided into two categories termed quota and non-quota. Non quota refers to applicants who are eligible for immediate filing. This means that their priority date is always current and there is no annual limit to how many applications will be processed. Quota applicants are subject to preference categories, which means that the processing time for the Green Card is undetermined.
3)How do I know if I am a quota or non-quota applicant?
Non-quota applicants are parents of U.S. citizens, spouses of U.S. citizens, and dependent children that are 21 years old or younger. There is no annual limit for these applications and they will be processed according to standard processing times. Quota applicants are spouses of Green Card holders, unmarried children of Green Card holders, siblings of U.S. citizens, or married children of U.S. citizens.
4)How do I determine the processing time for my Green Card?
The current processing time for non-quota Green Cards is 8-12 months. For quota applicants, three things determine processing times: preference category, country of origin, and the priority date. When looking at the Visa Bulletin, the date listed for each preference category and country indicates the priority date that is currently being processed.
So for example, if the date for the F-1 preference category and for India is “01May07.” This means that applications that were filed on May 1st 2007 are currently being processed and any recently submitted application will take approximately 7 years and 4 months to be processed.
5)How do I determine my specific priority date and preference category?
For detailed information regarding your priority date and preference categories, please refer to the Visa Bulletin on the U.S. Department of State website. You will find a breakdown of categories by relationship, country of origin and the current month/year of applicants being processed. Want to stay up to date on processing times for your preference category? Subscribe to the VISANOW blog and receive monthly visa bulletin updates!
