The United States has reached the annual limit for fiscal year 2024 in the EB-5 unreserved category, the United States State Department, in partnership with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, announced.
The issuance of these visas is governed by the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), which caps the number of employment-based preference immigrant visas issued each fiscal year. Specifically, INA 203(b)(5) stipulates that 7.1 percent of the worldwide employment visa limit is allocated to EB-5 visas. Of this, 68 percent is set aside for unreserved visa categories such as C5, T5, I5, R5, RU, and NU.
The EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022 further allows for unused reserved visas from FY 2022 to be allocated to the unreserved categories for FY 2024. However, with all EB-5 unreserved visas for FY 2024 now exhausted, U.S. embassies and consulates will not issue any more visas in these categories for the remainder of the fiscal year.
The annual limits will reset on October 1, 2024, when the new fiscal year begins, at which time visa issuance in these categories will resume.
In its September Visa Bulletin, the U.S. State Department indicated that due to sustained high demand for employment-based immigrant visas, the annual limits for many visa categories and countries could be reached as early as September. This situation could affect the availability of visas in various categories before the end of the fiscal year.
The State Department also anticipates that Final Action dates for these visas may advance with the start of the new fiscal year on October 1, 2024. However, any movement in these dates will depend on the actual demand for immigrant visas as the fiscal year progresses. This underscores the ongoing unpredictability in visa availability and the importance of staying informed about changes in visa processing timelines.
Source : https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/nri/migrate/us-reaches-annual-limit-of-eb-5-visa-unreserved-category-this-is-when-the-cap-will-reset/articleshow/112644145.cms
