If you missed our article "What is the Visa Bulletin and Retrogression?" make sure to check that out first; then this article will make more sense!
To read the Visa Bulletin, you first need to determine your priority date.
Your priority date is the date when your Labor Certification (LC) was filed. To find this date, go to your BDV account and click “Your Progress.”
You can also look at the end of your LC to find your filing date:
Once you know your priority date, follow the steps below:
Visit the Visa Bulletin page: Go to the official U.S. Department of State website, which publishes the monthly Visa Bulletin.
Determine which chart to use on the Visa Bulletin. Typically:
The “Final Action Dates for Employment-Based Preference Category” chart shows when the final action can be taken on your already filed green card application. Use this chart if you already have a pending green card application and are looking to see when you are eligible for final action.
The “Dates of Filing for Employment-Based Visa Application” chart shows when the green card application can be filed. Use this chart if you do not yet have a filed green card application, and are checking to see when you would be eligible to file.
Note: Sometimes, USCIS will disregard the “Dates of Filing” chart and will only accept green card applications based on the “Final Action” chart. USCIS confirms which chart they will be using to accept filings here.
3. Once you know which chart applies to you, locate your preference category (row) and country of birth (column) in the chart: For EB-3U, look under the “Other Workers” row in the chart, then the column that corresponds to your place of birth. You should look under the “All Chargeability Areas” column, unless you were born in China, India, Mexico, or the Philippines,
4. Your priority date must be BEFORE the cutoff date listed in the chart. For example, if your priority date is February 15, 2022 and you were born in Brazil, you are not eligible for final action according to the October 2024 Visa Bulletin. This is because the cutoff date for Final Action for “Other Workers” All Chargeability in the October 2024 Visa Bulletin is December 2020. Your priority date is after this cutoff date.
We hope this information is helpful. Please let us know if you have further questions!