USCIS racing to issue 280,000 Green Cards before Sep 30

Highlights

• USCIS racing to issue 280,000 green cards before September 30, 2022
• US Department of State (DOS) and USCIS used 149,733 employment-based immigrant visas
• The USA issued 180,000 green cards last year
• The processing of employer-based green card applications crossed 3 years waiting period in 2022

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15000 F1 visas to U.S. issued in 2022; three times compared to last year

Waiting time for employer-sponsored green cards rises

USCIS racing to 280,000 before the end of fiscal year FY2022

The United Citizenship and Immigration Services is racing against time to issue 280,000 green cards at the end of the fiscal year i.e., September 30, 2022. The availability of employment-based green cards are in-demand due to the pandemic and limited operations in mid-June 2022.

USCIS and USDOS have issued more visas in FY2022 in comparison to FY 2021 at the same point of time. USCIS has used more than twice the number of visas on a weekly basis. In May 2022, USCIS and USDOS used 149,733 employment-based visas till May 31, 2022.

Unused employment-based green cards

According to the data from the US visa office, the government of the US had 66,781 unused green cards in FY2021 and 1.4 million candidates have applied for them. Majority of these candidates belonged to India who are facing the backlog for years. Last year, USCIS issued 180,000 green cards.

Processing time for green cards

According to a report, the wait time for green cards in 2022 has reached up to three years. This wait time could be cut by seven months if applicants pay $2,500. This will reduce the wait time to two years and five months. Since 2016, the government has added 16 months to the processing time of the green card applications.

Process to apply for green cards

Candidates have to follow six steps to apply for green cards. The first step that candidates have to follow is prefiling stage. IN this stage, the applicant and the employer have to provide requirements that will prove their eligibility for a green card.

The next step is the evaluation of the skill level, prevailing wages, and area code. This evaluation has to be done by the Department of Labour. Because of this, the wait time has reached up to 182 days in 2022 from 76 days in 2016.

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Also Read: US welcomes 661,500 new citizens during fiscal year 2022, India stands at Number 2 Web Story: 280,000 green cards up for grabs before the fiscal year ends