The long wait for Green Cards faced by individuals from India, China, Mexico, and the Philippines is primarily attributed to the country-based quota system established by the US Congress, according to a senior official. Douglas Rand, Senior Advisor to the director of United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), explained during a virtual town hall organized by the State Department that the annual limit set by Congress for family-sponsored preference Green Cards is 226,000 worldwide, while the annual limit for employment-based Green Cards is 140,000.
Additionally, there is a per-country limit of seven percent of the total annual preference limits for family-sponsored and employment-based Green Cards, amounting to 25,620. Consequently, individuals from India, China, Mexico, and the Philippines often face significantly longer wait times compared to people from other countries. The demand for Green Cards exceeds the available supply, and only Congress has the authority to change the annual limits.
Rand emphasized that the USCIS’s role is to make the most of the available Green Card numbers each year within the existing constraints. The wait time for Green Cards has exceeded a decade for many Indian professionals, and sometimes the visa wait time extends by several years.
The limitation on Green Cards is a result of supply and demand dynamics. Congress has imposed restrictions on the supply, while the demand continues to increase not only from India but also from around the world. When the demand for a specific Green Card category or from a particular country surpasses the available numbers, that category or country is considered oversubscribed.
To ensure compliance with the annual limits and category-specific restrictions, the State Department applies a cut-off date in the Visa Bulletin. This ensures that Visa usage remains within the prescribed limits. The order of consideration is determined by Congress.
While facing retrogression, which occurs when the demand for visas exceeds the statutory limits, individuals who have already applied for adjustment of status or permanent residency may not receive visas even though they have initiated the process.
Rand stated that the US plans to enhance the accuracy and comprehensiveness of its data on employment-based adjustment of status applications and aims to resume publishing regular inventory reports. Despite retrogression, there are still certain benefits available to applicants, such as the ability to apply for employment authorization, travel authorization through advanced parole, and the possibility of porting job opportunities to new employers after 180 days or more of pending status adjustment applications. In some cases, children who have applied for adjustment of status may not age out. During the pending application period, individuals are generally considered to be in a period of authorized stay.
The complex immigration system and limited Green Card availability have led to substantial waiting periods for individuals from specific countries, necessitating comprehensive immigration reforms by Congress to address these challenges and provide relief to those affected.
