Department of State Releases January 2012 Visa Bulletin
December 26, 2011
The U.S. State Department released the January 2012 Visa Bulletin on December 10, 2011. Visa Dates are announced by the U.S. Department of State every month. Movement in the EB-2 Category continues to advance rapidly, while EB-3 continues to move very little. It appears that across the board we see about a week of movement in priority dates for EB-3. We can only hope that next month reflects greater advancement. Pursuant to INA § 245(a)(3), aliens with priority dates prior to the cut-off dates shown on the Visa Bulletin will be eligible to file adjustment of status applications during the month of December 2011. We at GLC post these dates for your convenience on our website under Visa Bulletin as soon as they become available from U.S. Department of State.
Expedited Biometrics for Re-Entry Permits
December 27, 2011
The Re-Entry Permit is a travel document that may be issued to lawful permanent residents based on filing an application on Form I-131. The regulation requires permanent residents to be physically present in the United States when the application is filed. 8 C.F.R. §223.2(b). Once the application has been filed, the applicant may depart the United States, and the approved document can be delivered abroad.
However, the application also requires biometrics to be completed, and as a practical matter, the applicant must be physically present in the United States to complete the biometrics. This has led to difficulties when permanent residents are temporarily living abroad and return to the United States in order to file Form I-131 and wait for the biometrics appointment.
If the applicant needs expedited processing, the Form I-131 instructions provide specific information for submitting pre-paid express mailers with your Form I-131 for USCIS to send your receipt and ASC appointment notice, as well as the completed re-entry permit or refugee travel document, if approved. A request for expedited processing should contain the applicant's reasons for such processing so that USCIS may determine whether he or she qualifies for expedited processing.
State Department Deploys Additional Staff to Process Record Demand U.S. Visa in Brazil & China
December 28, 2011
The U.S. Mission to Brazil processed a record number of visa applications – 820,000 – in fiscal year 2011, a 42 percent year-over-year increase. To meet the surging demand for U.S. visas in Brazil, the Department of State is deploying waves of temporary employees to the U.S. Embassy in Brasilia and U.S. Consulates in Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and Recife. These employees are helping to process extraordinary numbers of visa applications until permanent staff members arrive. The Department will double consular staffing in Brazil over the course of 2012, adding 50 new officer positions.
With the help of additional personnel, U.S. Mission Brazil has reduced the average wait time for visa interview appointments in Brazil to less than 50 days. While the Department always puts security first, visitors to the United States make critical contributions to economic growth and job creation. That is why shortening visa interview wait times is also a priority – to encourage even greater numbers of Brazilians to visit the United States, a premier destination for travelers from around the world. The United States and Brazil, the two largest economies and the two largest democracies in the Western Hemisphere, share one of the most important trade and economic relationships in the world. According to the Department of Commerce, more than 1.2 million Brazilians visited the United States in 2010, contributing nearly $6 billion to the U.S. economy.
The United States is also experiencing unprecedented growth in demand for U.S. visas in China, where consular officers processed more than one million applications during fiscal year 2011, a 34 percent increase over 2010. The average wait for visa interview appointments in China is now less than ten days.
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