This column carries priority dates and other transitional information as taken from the U.S. State Depart­ment’s Visa Bulletin. The information below is from the Visa Bulletin for July 2008.

In the tables below, the listing of a date for any class indicates that the class is oversubscribed. “Current” means that numbers are available for all qualified applicants. “Unavailable” means no numbers are available.

FAMILY PREFERENCE VISA DATES

Preference Dates for India

1st ………………….. ………………………………….. March 15, 2002
2A ………………….. ………………………………….. August 1, 2003
2B ………………….. ………………………………….. September 15, 1999
3rd ………………….. …………………………………. June 8, 2000
4th ………………….. …………………………………. February 15, 1997

Note: For July, 2A numbers exempt from per-country limit will be unavailable because the annual limit for such visas will have been reached.

EMPLOYMENT-BASED VISA DATES

Preference Dates for India

1st ………………….. ………………………………………. Current
2nd ………………….. ……………………………………….April 1, 2004
3rd ………………….. ……………………………………… Unavailable
Other Workers ………………….. ………………….. January 1, 2003
4th ………………….. ………………………………………..Current
Certain Religious Workers ………………………Current

5th………………….. …………………………………………. Current
Targeted Employment Areas………………… .. Current

The Department of State has a recorded message with visa availability information at (202) 663-1541, which is updated in the middle of each month.

Source: http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/bulletin/bulletin_4252.html

Vandana Kumar is a publishing executive with a 36-year track record in the industry. She leads the India Currents Foundation as President and CEO. As a new immigrant, she co-founded India Currents magazine...