The U.S. State Department, in collaboration with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), has formally introduced that the Employment-Based Fourth Preference (EB-4) visa class has reached its annual cap for Fiscal Year (FY) 2025. As of February 28, 2025, all obtainable immigrant visas in this class have been allotted, marking an early exhaustion of the quota in comparison with earlier years.
Purpose of the EB-4 Visa Category
The EB-4 visa is a particular employment-primarily based immigration class designated for sure particular immigrants, together with non secular staff, broadcasters, worldwide group workers, Iraqi and Afghan translators, and different qualifying international nationals. Under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) Section 203(b)(4), this class is allotted 7.1% of the overall worldwide employment-primarily based visa quota per fiscal 12 months.
Implications of the EB-4 Visa Cap Being Reached (February 2025)
With the annual restrict now reached, U.S. embassies and consulates are not capable of challenge new EB-4 visas for the rest of FY 2025. This implies that candidates who have been in the method of acquiring an EB-4 visa however had not but been issued one might want to wait till the subsequent fiscal cycle for additional processing.
Next Phase: When Will EB-4 Visa Applications Reopen?
According to earlier years’ tendencies, the brand new allocation of EB-4 visas will change into obtainable in the beginning of the subsequent fiscal 12 months on October 1, 2025. Historically, the visa class has seen excessive demand, resulting in an early exhaustion of the annual cap in a number of current years.
While candidates can proceed submitting petitions and getting ready crucial documentation, new visa issuances will resume solely when the FY 2026 quota is reset. Those affected are suggested to observe updates from the U.S. State Department and USCIS to remain knowledgeable on precedence dates and processing timelines.
Announcement: https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/News/visas-news/annual-limit-reached-in-the-EB-4-category.html.
US EB-4 Work Visa Issuance Cap Limit Reached in February 2025 FULLY FUNDED SCHOLARSHIPS SCHOLARSHIPS SCHOLARSHIPS FOR INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS UNDERGRADUATE SCHOLARSHIPS
