The Department of State has announced that all available EB-3 and unreserved EB-5 green cards have been issued for fiscal year 2024. The government’s fiscal year runs from October 1st to September 30th. This means no additional green cards can be granted in these categories through September 30th. New green cards can be issued in these categories again beginning October 1st.

Below are the official announcements regarding these actions.

EB-3: The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) limits the number of employment-based preference immigrant visas that may be issued within a fiscal year. Specifically, INA 203(b)(3) provides 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. Since all available EB-3 and EW visas for FY 2024 have been used, 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.

EB-5: The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) limits the number of employment-based preference immigrant visas that may be issued within a fiscal year.  Specifically, INA 203(b)(5) provides that 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, the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022 specifies that unused EB-5 reserved visas from FY 2022 may be made available in the EB-5 unreserved categories for FY 2024.

These actions do not prevent us from filing new I-140 or I-526 petitions. Existing pending I-485 adjustment of status applications remain valid and no action is required to activate them when the 2025 fiscal year begins.