The FP Visa Bulletin for September: Final Action Dates and an Employer’s Immigration Action Plan

Each month, federal immigration authorities publish a list of dates informing immigrant visa applicants when they should expect to be notified to assemble and submit required documentation to government officials. This Insight reviews September’s release to help employers determine whether and when you should provide corresponding notifications to any of your foreign-national employees to assist their efforts. You’ll also find a specific action plan so you can adapt your immigration strategy given this month’s information. If you want to ensure you follow compliant processes to address your critical workforce needs in a timely manner, read on.

September Dates: An Overview

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it will follow the State Department’s Final Action Dates chart published in the September Visa Bulletin to determine whether candidates are eligible to submit an Adjustment of Status application on Form I-485 for that month. Dates which appear in this chart must be compared with an employee’s Immigration Priority Date shown on their EB-1/2/3 I-140 approval notice with their current employer to determine eligibility.

Some Changes for Employment Based Visa Dates

There was little movement s to Final Action Dates for most Employment-Based Preferences Classes (EB-1, EB-2, and EB-3). Notable changes include:

• EB-2 All Chargeability, Mexico, and Philippines progressed by two years to July 1, 2022
• EB-3 China progressed by four months to September 2, 2019

Final Action Dates Chart

The recently announced Final Action Dates for EB-1, EB-2 and EB-3 appear in the table below. Please note this table can always change, so check here for the most accurate and updated information before acting on these dates.  

 

Preference	All Chargeability  Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA- mainland  born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
EB-1	August 1, 2023	February 1, 2022	January 1, 2012	August 1, 2023	August 1, 2023
EB-2	July 1, 2022	July 8, 2019	January 1, 2011	July 1, 2022	July 1, 2022
EB-3	May 1, 2020	September 1, 2019	January 1, 2009	May 1, 2020	May 1, 2020

What Should You Do? Your Action Plan

The existing retrogressions from the August 2023 bulletin, though mostly unchanged, do not represent an urgent call to action on the part of employers. However, last month, the EB-1 India category retrogressed over 10 years, from February 1, 2022, to January 1, 2012, and EB-3 for All Chargeability, Mexico, and Philippines retrogressed nearly two years, from February 1, 2022 to May 1, 2020. If you have any employees who are impacted by this change, you should begin to have extensions of work authorization underway and discuss any potential issues with legal counsel.

Conclusion

We will continue to monitor developments from immigration officials and provide similar guidance monthly. Make sure you are subscribed to Fisher Phillips’ Insight System to get the most up-to-date information – including next month’s FP Visa Bulletin. If you have any questions, please contact your Fisher Phillips attorney, the authors of this Insight, or any attorney in our Immigration Practice Group.