Individuals seeking permanent resident status in the United States are, with certain exceptions, subject to an annual immigration quota which is designed to control the amount of legal immigration to the United States. Generally speaking, prospective immigrants obtain a place in line, waiting for an opportunity to immigrate to the United States based upon the filing date of a labor certification application or immigrant visa petition.
Every month, the U.S. Department of State publishes a Visa Bulletin summarizing the availability of immigrant visa numbers for the categories of prospective immigrants, either family sponsored or employer sponsored. If you wish to review the most recent quota cutoff dates, please click on Visa Bulletin.
If you are interested in reading a more detailed analysis of the quota system, as well as a listing of all family and employer sponsored immigrant categories, please click on the Immigrant Quota System Overview.