Number 46     Volume  VII                                      Washington, D.C.
 
 
                       IMMIGRANT NUMBERS FOR FEBRUARY 1995
 
 
A.  STATUTORY NUMBERS
 
1.  This bulletin summarizes the availability of immigrant numbers during 
February.  Consular officers are required to report to the Department of State 
documentarily qualified applicants for numerically limited visas; the 
Immigration and Naturalization Service reports applicants for adjustment of 
status.  Allocations were made, to the extent possible under the numerical 
limitations, for the demand received by January 9th in the chronological order 
of the reported priority dates.  If the demand could not be satisfied within 
the statutory or regulatory limits, the category or foreign state in which 
demand was excessive was deemed oversubscribed.  The cut-off date for an 
oversubscribed category is the priority date of the first applicant who could 
not be reached within the numerical limits.  Only applicants who have a 
priority date earlier than the cut-off date may be allotted a number.  
Immediately that it becomes necessary during the monthly allocation process to 
retrogress a cut-off date, supplemental requests for numbers will be honored 
only if the priority date falls within the new cut-off date.
 
2.  Section 201 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) sets an annual 
minimum family-sponsored preference limit of 226,000.  The worldwide level for 
annual employment-based preference immigrants is at least 140,000.  Section 202 
prescribes that the per-country limit for preference immigrants is set at 7% of 
the total annual family-sponsored and employment-based preference limits, i.e., 
a minimum of 25,620.  The dependent area limit is set at 2%, or a minimum of 
,320.
 
3.  Section 203 of the INA prescribes preference classes for allotment of 
immigrant visas as follows:
 
FAMILY-SPONSORED PREFERENCES
 
First:  Unmarried Sons and Daughters of Citizens:  23,400 plus any numbers not 
required for fourth preference.
 
Second:  Spouses and Children, and Unmarried Sons and Daughters of Permanent 
Residents:  114,200, plus the number (if any) by which the worldwide family 
preference level exceeds 226,000, and any unused first preference numbers:
 
A.  Spouses and Children:  77% of the overall second preference limitation, of 
which 75% are exempt from the per-country limit;
 
B.  Unmarried Sons and Daughters (21 years of age or older):  23% of the 
overall second preference limitation.
 
Third:  Married Sons and Daughters of Citizens:  23,400, plus any numbers not 
required by first and second preferences.
 
Fourth:  Brothers and Sisters of Adult Citizens:  65,000, plus any numbers not 
required by first three preferences.
                                        -2-                        February 1995
 
EMPLOYMENT-BASED PREFERENCES
 
First:   Priority Workers:  28.6% of the worldwide employment-based preference 
level, plus any numbers not required for fourth and fifth preferences.
 
Second:  Members of the Professions Holding Advanced Degrees or Persons of 
Exceptional Ability:  28.6% of the worldwide employment-based preference level, 
plus any numbers not required by first preference.
 
Third:  Skilled Workers, Professionals, and Other Workers:  28.6% of the 
worldwide level, plus any numbers not required by first and second preferences, 
not more than 10,000 of which to "Other Workers".
 
Fourth:  Certain Special Immigrants:  7.1% of the worldwide level.
 
Fifth:  Employment Creation:  7.1% of the worldwide level, not less than 3,000 
of which reserved for investors in a targeted rural or high-unemployment area, 
and  300 set aside for investors in regional centers by Sec. 610 of P.L. 102-
395.4.  INA Section 203(e) provides that family-sponsored and employment-based 
preference visas be issued to eligible immigrants in the order in which a 
petition in behalf of each has been filed.  Section 203(d) provides that spouses 
and children of preference immigrants are entitled to the same status, and the 
same order of consideration, if accompanying or following to join the principal. 
The visa prorating provisions of Section 202(e) apply to allocations for a 
foreign state or dependent area when visa demand exceeds the per-country limit. 
These provisions apply at present to the following oversubscribed chargeability 

areas:  CHINA-mainland born, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC, INDIA, MEXICO, and PHILIPPINES.
 
5.  On the chart below, the listing of a date for any class indicates that the 
class is oversubscribed (see paragraph 1); "C" means current, i.e., numbers are 
available for all qualified applicants; and "U" means unavailable, i.e., no 
numbers are available.  (NOTE:  Numbers are available only for applicants whose 
priority date is earlier than the cut-off date listed below.)
 
PREFERENCES
             All Charge-
             ability Areas    CHINA- 
             Except Those     mainland  DOMINICAN
             Listed           born      REPUBLIC  INDIA     MEXICO    
PHILIPPINES
Family
 
1st                  C           C         C         C      01AUG94   22NOV85
 
2A*               22DEC91     22DEC91   22DEC91   22DEC91   01DEC91   22DEC91
 
2B                08MAR90     08MAR90   22FEB90   08MAR90   08MAR90   01MAY89
 
3rd               15AUG92     15AUG92   15AUG92   15AUG92   15APR87   15SEP83 
 
4th               22MAR85     22MAR85   22MAR85   22JUL83   15FEB84   03AUG77
 
 
*NOTE:  For FEBRUARY, 2A numbers EXEMPT from per-country limit are available to 
applicants from all countries with priority dates earlier than 01DEC91.  2A 
numbers SUBJECT to per-country limit are available to applicants chargeable to 
all countries EXCEPT MEXICO with priority dates beginning 01DEC91 and earlier 
than 22DEC91.  (2A numbers subject to per-country limit are "unavailable" for 
applicants chargeable to MEXICO.)  (The three-year transition program which had 
provided additional visas for spouses/children of legalization beneficiaries has 
ended; petitions approved on behalf of such spouses/children continue to accord 
them status in the Family 2A preference, however.)
 
                                       -3-                      February 1995
 
 
             All Charge-
             ability Areas    CHINA-
             Except Those     mainland  DOMINICAN
             Listed           born      REPUBLIC  INDIA     MEXICO    
PHILIPPINES
Employment-
  Based
 
1st                  C           C         C         C         C         C   
 
2nd                  C           C         C         C         C         C   
 
3rd                  C        08JUL93      C         C         C      01MAR94
 
  Other           01JUL89     01JUL89   01JUL89   01JUL89   01JUL89   01JUL89
    Workers
 
4th                  C           C         C         C         C      26JUL93
 
  Certain            C           C         C         C         C      26JUL93
    Religious
    Workers          
 
5th                  C           C         C         C         C         C   
 
  Targeted Employ-   C           C         C         C         C         C 
    ment Areas/
    Regional Centers
 
 
The Department of State has available a recorded message with visa availability 
information which can be heard at:  (area code 202) 663-1541.  This recording 
will be updated in the middle of each month with information on cut-off dates 
for the following month.
 
 
B.  DIVERSITY IMMIGRANT (DV) CATEGORY
 
Section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act provides 55,000 immigrant 
visas each fiscal year (beginning with FY-1995) to provide immigration 
opportunities for persons from countries other than the principal sources of 
current immigration to the United States.  DV visas are divided among six 
geographic regions.  Not more than 3,850 visas (7% of the 55,000 visa limit) may 
be provided to immigrants from any one country.
 
The allotment of FY-1995 visa numbers for each region is as follows:  Africa, 
20,200; Asia, 6,837; Europe, 24,549; North America (Bahamas), 8; South America, 
Central America, and the Caribbean, 2,589; and Oceania, 817.
                                       -4-                      February 1995
 
 
 
For February, immigrant numbers in the DV category are available to qualified 
applicants chargeable to all regions/eligible countries as follows.  Visas are 
available only for applicants with DV regional lottery rank numbers BELOW the 
specified allocation cut-off number:
 
               All DV Charge-
               ability Areas
               Except Those
  Region       Listed Separately
 
  AFRICA          AF 14031        EXCEPT:  EGYPT    AF 11676
                                           NIGERIA  AF 13477
 
  ASIA            AS 06214  
 
  EUROPE          EU 47139        EXCEPT:  POLAND   EU 07459
 
  NORTH AMERICA   NA 00010 
   (BAHAMAS)
 
  OCEANIA         OC 00976 
 
  SOUTH AMERICA,  SA 02818 
    CENTRAL AMERICA,
    and the CARIBBEAN
 
Entitlement to immigrant status in the DV category lasts only through the end
of the fiscal (visa) year for which the applicant is selected in the lottery.  
The year of entitlement for all applicants registered for Fiscal (visa) Year 
1995 ends as of September 30, 1995, and their lottery registration will confer 
no benefit after that date.
 
AS WITH EARLIER LOTTERIES, TO PERMIT DV VISAS TO BE ISSUED TO THE LIMITS, 
SUBSTANTIALLY MORE PERSONS HAVE BEEN REGISTERED THAN THERE ARE VISAS, SINCE MANY  
APPLICANTS ARE LIABLE NOT TO PURSUE THEIR VISA CASE.  APPLICANTS WHO WANT TO 
OBTAIN VISAS MUST RESPOND AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE TO THE DV NOTIFICATION LETTER.  
 
Should visa demand by applicants with lottery rank numbers lower than a 
particular cut-off prove insufficient to permit all DV visa numbers to be made 
available, the cut-off for later months will advance to a higher ranking on the 
regional or country registration list.  Heavy visa demand from a particular 
region or country could in principle make necessary the retrogression (backward 
movement) of a rank number cut-off also.  No applicant should take future DV 
visa availability for granted. 
 
DV VISA NUMBERS COULD BE EXHAUSTED EVEN BEFORE THE END OF THE FISCAL (VISA) 
YEAR.  APPLICANTS CANNOT ASSUME THAT DV VISAS WILL BE AVAILABLE THROUGH 
SEPTEMBER.  WHENEVER VISA NUMBERS ARE USED TO THEIR LIMIT, NO FURTHER DV VISAS 
CAN BE ISSUED AT CONSULAR OFFICES ABROAD, AND NO FURTHER DV ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS 
APPLICATIONS CAN BE APPROVED AT INS OFFICES IN THE U.S.  LOTTERY WINNERS WHO 
WISH TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THEIR DV REGISTRATION MUST BE PREPARED TO PURSUE THEIR 
VISA OR ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS CASE TO PROMPT CONCLUSION.
 
                                       -5-                      February 1995
 
 
 
C.  NOTE ON FUTURE PREFERENCE VISA AVAILABILITY
 
Cut-off date movement in several immigrant categories during the first five 
months of FY-1995 has been greater than might ordinarily be expected.  This is 
because fewer applicants are appearing for interview or obtaining visas at 
consular posts abroad as a result of the 1994 amendment to the adjustment of 
status provision in the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).  (Most qualified 
immigrant visa applicants who are in the United States may now seek adjustment 
of status through INS even if they are not in lawful nonimmigrant status; 
previously, most applicants who were not maintaining lawful visa status were 
prohibited from such adjustment at INS and had to travel abroad to make their 
formal immigrant visa applications.  Further, the INA now stipulates that most 
persons who are NOT in lawful nonimmigrant status at the time of departure from 
the U.S. cannot be issued immigrant visas at a consular office abroad within 90 
days of such departure.  These provisions taken together have resulted in fewer 
immigrant visa applications at consular offices since October 1994 and more 
applications filed with INS for adjustment of status.)
 
Although visa number use at consular offices has thus declined, the 
corresponding increase in INS number use has not yet become apparent, since INS 
offices will need time to process the adjustment of status applications.  The 
result has been a temporary decrease in visa number use, which has permitted 
faster cut-off date movements.
 
Once the cases of the additional adjustment of status applicants begin to be 
brought to final action in large volume, there will be a significant increase in 
INS visa number use and cut-off date movements will necessarily slow or stop. 
Moreover, in some categories (such as the "Other Worker" category, for instance, 
where there has been particularly rapid recent cut-off date movement), cut-off 
date retrogression is a definite possibility.
 
Interested parties should be aware that the recent rate of cut-off date advances 
will not continue indefinitely, but it is not possible to say at present how 
soon a significantly increased INS number use will influence the cut-off date 
determinations.  
 
 
D.  RECENT AMENDMENTS TO THE VISA PORTION OF THE FOREIGN AFFAIRS MANUAL (FAM)
 
Transmittal Letter VISA-101 dated November 25, 1994, VISA-102 dated
December 15, 1994, and VISA-103 dated December 19, 1994 which update
the visa portion (Vol. 9) of the FAM, are now available.
 
VISA-101 amends 9 FAM, Part III, to reflect changes made by Pub. L. 103-416,
the Immigration and Nationality Technical Corrections Act of 1994. VISA-102
corrects 9 FAM, Part III, Section 42.12 Exhibits I and II, and Section 42.83 
Notes.  VISA-103 amends 9 FAM, Section 40.32 Notes and Procedural Notes.
 
There is a charge of $6.00 per copy of VISA-101, $1.75 per copy of VISA-102,
and $2.00 per copy VISA-103.  A check payable to the Department of State must 
accompany the order.  These TLs may be obtained from:
 
                            Distribution Services (OIS/PS/PR)
                            Room B847 A
                            Department of State
                            Washington, D.C.  20520
 
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VISA BULLETIN SUBSCRIPTION AND CHANGE OF ADDRESS INFORMATION:  Additions or 
changes to the mailing list should be sent to:  Visa Bulletin, Visa Office, 
Department of State, Washington, D.C. 20522-0113.  Only addresses within the 
U.S. postal system may be placed on the mailing list.  Please include a recent 
mailing label when reporting changes or corrections of address; the Postal 
Service does NOT automatically notify the Visa Office of address changes.
 
Department of State Publication 9514               CA/VO:January 10, 1994