Understanding Green Card Priority Dates: A Detailed Guide to Chart A and Chart B

The immigrant visa priority date chart published by the U.S. Department of State is divided into two parts:

• Application Final Action Dates: This refers to the priority date when a visa number is available, also known as Chart A. Immigration law limits the number of green cards issued each year, so applicants must wait in line. When your Chart A priority date becomes current, it means a green card number is available for you. If you are adjusting status within the United States, USCIS will conduct a final review of your case and decide whether to issue the green card. If you are outside the United States and processing through a consulate, when your Chart A priority date is about to become current or has become current, the National Visa Center will contact you to collect documents and prepare for the interview. Whether adjusting status domestically or processing through a consulate abroad, final approval will not be granted before the Chart A priority date is current, because no visa number is available for you.

• Dates for Filing: This refers to the priority date for submitting Form I-485 when available, also known as Chart B. The Dates for Filing chart applies only to applicants adjusting status within the United States; if the applicant is not in the United States and is processing through a consulate, Chart B is not used—please refer to Chart A. The Department of State publishes Chart B each month originally to expedite the process of applicants submitting documents, but the actual implementation is handled by USCIS, which decides whether to continue accepting applications based on the degree of case backlog. After the Department of State publishes the chart, usually within a few days USCIS will announce whether Chart B can be used for the month. If you are adjusting status within the United States, your Chart B priority date is current, and USCIS announces that your category can use Chart B for the month, then you can submit Form I-485 to adjust status. If Chart B is not available, the applicant must rely on Chart A to determine whether they can submit Form I-485.

I often see readers making comments like: "Looking at the current priority date, I still have to wait two years." Many people may misunderstand the meaning of "priority date."

For example, suppose the Visa Bulletin currently shows that a certain category's Chart A priority date is two years ago, i.e., July 15, 2017. This means "the Department of State estimates that visa numbers can be allocated this month to applicants with priority dates before July 15, 2017," while applicants with later priority dates must continue to wait. If your priority date is July 15, 2018, it means there is one year of backlog ahead of you, but this does not mean that you will be reached after waiting exactly one more year.

The reason is simple: when your turn comes depends on how many people are ahead of you and how fast the Department of State issues visas, and these factors change every year.

• If no one in your category submitted a new application between July 15, 2017 and July 15, 2018, then congratulations—your turn may come as early as next month.

• If between July 15, 2017 and July 15, 2018, 10,000 people in your category submitted immigration applications, with a 100% approval rate, each bringing one dependent, totaling 20,000 green cards needed, while the Department of State issues only 4,000 visa numbers per year, it would take 5 years to process them all. One year on the Visa Bulletin may be 5 years in reality. You would need to wait 5 years.

The above two examples are for illustrative purposes only and deliberately use two extreme cases. However, this website has indeed collected many real cases. For instance, this author applied for EB-1A in 2014, when EB1 had no backlog throughout the year: the I-140 was submitted in January, the I-485 in March, and the I-485 was approved at the end of May, taking only 4 months. By 2017 and after, EB1 already required waiting two to three years.

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