In the EB-2 category, the prognosis continues to be very poor for both India and China. For India, the July 2010 priority date is October 1, 2005 (a nine-month increase from the June Visa Bulletin). For China, the July Visa Bulletin reports that the priority date is November 22, 2005 (no change from June). For this category, visa availability may also become unavailable by the end of the fiscal year. Given increased demand in all immigrant visa categories, there is a serious concern that, without legislative relief, the waiting time for Indian and Chinese EB-2 applicants may be years or even decades.

Family based immigrant visa backlogs also remain atrocious. Currently, most brothers and sisters of U.S. citizens will be required to wait about ten years before becoming eligible to immigrate, while even adult children of U.S. citizens will be required to wait at least five years. In some cases (such as Mexico), adult children of U.S. citizens must still wait almost twenty years to be eligible to immigrate.

As background, priority dates determine when an intending immigrant is first eligible to file for adjustment of status or consular processing in order to complete the last stage of the permanent residence process. In employment-based cases, the priority date is established based on the date that the labor certification (if required) or I-140 petition is filed with the government. In family-based cases, priority dates are established based on the date that the I-130 petition is filed.

A copy of the July 2010 Visa Bulletin is available here.