This article was prepared with the assistance of ABIL, the Alliance of Business Immigration Lawyers, of which Loan Huynh is an active member.
The Department of State (DOS) announced on August 16, 2024, that annual limits have been reached in the EB-3, EW, and EB-5 unreserved categories for this fiscal year. DOS noted that:
- The annual limit for EB-3 visas is 28.6 percent of the worldwide employment limit, of which not more than 10,000 may be made available in the EW category.
- The annual limit for EB-5 visas is 7.1 percent of the worldwide employment limit, of which 68 percent is available for unreserved visa categories (C5, T5, I5, R5, RU, NU). Additionally, unused EB-5 reserved visas from FY 2022 may be made available in the EB-5 unreserved categories for FY 2024.
Since all available EB-3, EW, and EB-5 unreserved visas for FY 2024 have been used, DOS noted that “embassies and consulates may not issue visas in these categories for the remainder of the fiscal year. The annual limits will reset with the start of the new fiscal year (FY 2025) on October 1, 2024. At that point, embassies and consulates may resume issuing immigrant visas in these categories to qualified applicants.”
