485 applications
GCVARUMA and All,
Ideally the 485 applications are processed as per the 485 receipt dates provided the the visa dates are current. However in the current retrogressed scenario, i think they go by the Labor Priority Dates.
Here is an article I found on murthy.com.
A December 15, 2005 AILA business liaison conference with the Nebraska Service Center (NSC) resulted in answers to a number of questions. One of the matters addressed is particularly noteworthy for many of our MurthyDotCom and MurthyBulletin readers; namely, "What happens to pending I-485s (Applications for Adjustment of Status), when their priority dates become current?"
Visa Cutoff Dates Can Change Monthly
As our regular readers are aware, there are large numbers of I-485 Applications that cannot be approved because there are no available visa numbers. The availability of visa numbers is variable month to month, as reflected in the most recent U.S. Department of State Visa Bulletin, which can always be found on MurthyDotCom. [See our most recent MurthyBulletin article regarding the forward movement of visa numbers, Visa Bulletin Issued for January 2006 (December 6, 2005).] Given the potential for forward movement in the Visa Bulletin cutoff dates each month, the question arises, "How do the Service Centers, including NSC, identify those I-485 cases that have available visa numbers and therefore are eligible for approval?"
Case Identification Procedure
The NSC Records Division conducts a series of "sweeps" each month when they get the Visa Bulletin. They search for those cases that have current priority dates, given the particular employment-based category and the country of chargeability of the particular case. Once identified, if the case has valid security checks, it is properly routed for assignment to an adjudications officer.
NSC is constantly conducting sweeps of cases that are on hold due to retrogression (the non-availability of visa numbers) to make sure that the security checks are viable. It is not possible to predict how long any particular case will take once the priority date becomes available. We would note, however, that an immediate decision should not be expected, because the availability of the date triggers the assignment to the adjudications officer, who then must conduct the file review. At this time, the NSC states that they have sufficient resources to distribute all of the eligible I-485s each month for adjudication.
GCVARUMA said:
adding further to what MD2001 has said..
What it means that VSC is currently processing 485 applications which have been filed on/before 16-DEC-2004 AND their LC's have a PD on/before 1-Aug-2001. They have to satisfy the above 2 conditions for the case to be processed.
All other LC's that have PD after 1-Aug-2001 will not be processed until the dates advance.
It will be tough for anyone to predict as to how long it may take for the dates to move from 1-Aug-2001 to Aug-2004. Probably after a few more months of visa bulletin it may give a rough estimate as to how the dates may progress. Hope this helps.
Thanks.
GCVaruma.