Dallas Backlog Elimination Center Tracking

No Hard copy yet!!!!!

People with PD 2/26/03 and 2/27/03 even PD of 03/03/03 already got their hard copies and my PD is 2/20/03 I wonder what happened to mine? lost in the mail shuffle or blown away by hurricane?
 
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This is for niceguy369

Once I-140 is approved, the priority date sticks to you forever, it does not matter if the company cancels the 140. Please see Rajiv's memo at http://boards.immigrationportal.com/forumdisplay.php?f=241.

P.S: This is only my opinion. I am not a lawyer - so act accordingly.

niceguy369 said:
Hello Gurus,
I worked with Company A in California and Finished my labor(PD: March 2000) and I-140 as well, but unfortunately could not able to continue with the company. At present I am working with Company B and applied my GC from the beginning including Labor Cert (May 2003 - EB2), but waiting waiting...

Since Eb2 dates are retrogressed so much, I want to use my OLD priority date. But when I contacted the old company they said that they cancelled my I140 and used my labor for some other employee.

Can you please help me here? Is there any way will I get my OLD priority date back?.

Thanks in advance,
 
I am in the same boat

I am also witu you

final review - 08/10/05
Certifed - 08/18/05

NO Hard copy yet....

Maveric
RIR/EB2/TX

komalk said:
People with PD 2/26/03 and 2/27/03 even PD of 03/03/03 already got their hard copies and my PD is 2/20/03 I wonder what happened to mine? lost in the mail shuffle or blown away by hurricane?
 
Anyone with PD around Aug 2002 ?

hi,
is there anyone with with PD in aug -2002 and still waiting for LC ?

------------
PD:Aug 2002 RIR CA
RD:Sep 2003
45-day letter:Mar 2005 Dallas
Responded : Mar 2005





jluan said:
I see people with PD of late Feb and early Mar 03 got their hard copies. Here are a few of us with PD late Jan and early Feb 03 waiting desparately. I look into the bottom of my mailbox each and everyday, hoping to see the big envenlop. Just not there, frustraing... :confused:
 
this looks to me like the only practical solution

The October 2005 Visa Bulletin Warrants An Amendment to INA 245(a)(3)
by Dinesh Shenoy

The October 2005 Visa Bulletin recently released [1] comes as a shock to every employment-based immigrant. Given the even further retrogressions on this Bulletin over the June 2005 bulletin (and ignoring for the moment the three months of temporary skilled/professional EB-3 unavailability across the board), Congress should consider repealing or amending INA § 245(a)(3) with respect to employment-based immigrants.

INA 245(a)(3) says that an I-485 application cannot be filed unless "an immigrant visa number is immediately available to [the worker] at the time his [or her] application is filed."

The appearance of cut-off dates for Indian and Chinese EB-1 and EB-2 workers plus across-the-board cut-offs for EB-3 aliens of all countries means that it might now be several more years before workers in these categories can file an I-485 application.

That there are cut-off dates on Visa Bulletins[2] is not in itself something to complain too much about; cut-off dates are a function of the fact that America does not have unlimited immigration. The need for cut-off dates in deciding who gets a green card this month (and who has to wait) is the result of the natural operation of the numerical limit created by INA § 201(d) (total 140,000 EB visa numbers per fiscal year). In the family arena, cut-off dates and slow forward movement is an accepted fact of life. However, the fact that the Employment-Based chart has gone from showing "current" visa number availability for the past 3+ years (June 2001 to December 2004) to now suddenly having severely backlogged cut-off dates appear in the span of less than one year is not "natural" (compare the December 2004 Bulletin to the upcoming October 2005 Bulletin).

Instead, this sudden retrogression is the result of USCIS' backlog of employment-based I-485s being allowed to build up for several years during which approvals of such 485s ground to a near halt, followed by the much-anticipated (and welcome) backlog elimination plan. [3] It's great that USCIS is now suddenly cranking out I-485 approvals. Getting all these 485 approvals recently feels really good, but too much of a good thing is . . . well, not good. The long dry-spell of 485 approvals followed by the recent flood of 485 approvals is what is causing these extreme cut-off dates to suddenly appear with little warning. [4] If for the past four-to-five years employment-based I-485s were approved at a steady rate, we would have had Visa Bulletins with always some amount of backlog. But it would have been a less severe backlog coming all at once; there would have been a more orderly advancement of the cut-off dates. Suddenly an EB-3 Russian Software Engineer, who a few months ago could anticipate being able to file a concurrent 140/485 any day now once his "in process" pending PERM Labor Cert is approved, now with little warning faces waiting another 3-4 years before being able to file his I-485.

And the inability to file a 485 sooner rather than later is not mere inconvenience. It's more than H-4 spouses and children being delayed several years on being able to finally get a Social Security Number (which requires an EAD card first). It means that the protection for the whole family against lay-off available under the "portability" rule contained in INA § 204(j) remains out of reach. If you have an I-140 approved as an EB-3 petition but you are facing a wait of several years to even file a 485, you are in precarious position. Even if your savvy immigration lawyer assures you that you can get a special 3-year extension of H-1B status beyond your 6-year limit under the as-of-yet-not-often-invoked AC21 § 104(c) (with memos and liaison notes he's just itching to use for your H-1B extension), that doesn't quell your worries.

For instance, when you are in year-8 of H-1B status and still have not filed your I-485 and then your company downsizes and lays you off, that's it, that's the end of the line. You burned up all your H-1B time in hopes you could get your 485 filed before your job was eliminated. If you had filed your 485 like your friend in the next cube over from you who just happened to have his PERM Labor Cert approved a few weeks ago (while yours is still "in process"), your friend who was able to get his I-485 in before the EB-3 category backlogged into the Stone Age, you'd be able to port like he is going to once he finds another job. But you didn't get your I-485 filed and so now you will be going back home, maybe never to return.

I appreciate the enormous task that faces USCIS to adjudicate millions of benefits applications ever year. I think that Congress appreciated this as well when it passed AC21. The whole point of the "I-140 portability provision" (INA § 204(j)) was to acknowledge that it took too long for employment-based 485s to be approved and that foreign workers should not lose their ability to get a green card if they were going to be able to go on and fill another position in the same industry and make the same contribution to the economy and society generally. But portability never even comes into play if you never get to file your I-485 in the first place.

Therefore, I propose that Congress amend INA § 245(a)(3) to add the following underlined language so that the provision reads as follows:

" ... and (3) except in the case of an alien who is the beneficiary of a petition filed under paragraphs (1), (2) or (3) of section 1153(b) of this title, an immigrant visa is immediately available to him at the time his application is filed."
With this revised language, an I-140 beneficiary would be able to file his or her I-485 once an I-140 is filed [5], even if they know it will be many years before their priority date is reached. They would still have to wait for their turn to actually receive Permanent Residence in priority-date order.[6] But the situation would be more akin to that of asylees at the time when there was a cap on asylee adjustments.[7] Congress still gets to keep a limit on how many aliens actually got Permanent Residence based on employment, but in the meantime aliens who had demonstrated they had the right qualifications to be in the United States and are not taking a job away from a minimally qualified US worker will have more stability, greater peace of mind and will be able to get important interim benefits for derivatives while they wait for their priority date to be reached.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1Available online at http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/b...letin_1360.html
2 INA § 203(e)(3); 8 USC § 1153(e)(3).
3 See "USCIS Announces Backlog Elimination Update", News Release dated March 22, 2005. Available online at http://uscis.gov/graphics/aboutus/r...ies/backlog.htm USCIS noted that the overall backlog of all immigration benefits applications (including I-485 applications for Permanent Residence) had reached a high of 3.8 million in January 2004, and that the backlog was reduced to 1.5 million by September 30, 2004.
4The December 2004 Visa Bulletin stated "In recent months [DOS has] been experiencing very heavy applicant demand in the Employment categories as the Citizenship and Immigration Service has begun to address their backlog of [I-485] cases." In the January 2005 Visa Bulletin, DOS offered a more detailed explanation of the reason for re-establishing EB cut-off dates and predicting future unavailability, citing a combination of the effect of the "recapture" provisions in AC21 and the development of the I-485 backlog at USCIS. Subsequent Bulletins up to the present time have repeatedly cited the continuing heavy demand of visa numbers due to USCIS clearing up its I-485 backlog. See footnote 1, supra.
5 This proposed amendment to the Act would supercede (and require the rewriting of) 8 CFR § 245.1(g)(1) & § 245.2(a)(2)(i)(A), which together are commonly referred to as the "concurrent filing rule."
6 I.e., this amendment would in no way change the basic rule of fairness in INA § 203(e)(1) that family-based and employment-based immigrant visas "shall be issued . . . in the order in which a petition in (sic) behalf of each such immigrant is filed with [DHS.]"
7 See INA § 209(b); 8 USC § 1159(b) (2004), recently amended by § 101(g) of the REAL ID Act of 2005, Pub. L. No. 109-13, 119 Stat. 231 (eliminating the 10,000 cap on asylee adjustments per fiscal year).


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

About The Author

Dinesh Shenoy is an associate attorney with Ingber & Aronson PA in Minneapolis, practicing exclusively in the field of immigration law with an emphasis on employment-based cases, family-based cases and advising criminal defense counsel on the immigration consequences of crimes. He has chaired a 3-part teleconference on Adjustment of Status for ILW.com and has published articles for the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) on the "concurrent filing rule", H-1B extensions of status under the American Competitiveness in the 21st Century Act ("AC21"), and H-1Bs for Business Professionals. In 2003 he won the AILA Mentor Award for "Outstanding Efforts and Excellent Counsel to Immigration Attorneys By Providing Mentoring Assistance." He has spoken on employment-based immigration at the AILA Annual Conferences in 2003, 2004, and 2005 and spoke about the "Child Status Protection Act" on a nationwide teleconference shortly after the CSPA was enacted, as well as numerous presentations to general audiences in Minnesota. He served on AILA's 2004-05 Liaison Committee to the Nebraska Service Center (NSC) of the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
 
Queue Status

Icarus,

Can you please update queue status? I know, it would not matter for many of us to get LC certified because of retrogression but still it gives us some mental rest.

Thanks for your help,
 
form immigration-law.com

09/16/2005: Latest News of DOL Backlog Processing Centers Processing

* AILA has reported that it had received information from the DOL on September 12, 2005 concerning the status of the backlog processing at the Dallas and Philadelphia Processing Centers. The report draws a picture of the following not-too-promising statistics:
o Total Pending Backlog Cases: 345,000 (pending at Dallas & Philadelphia) + X number of cases (pending at San Francisco + New York Satellite Centers) = ? They did not disclose how many cases still remain at the two satellite centers. There is no report on the status of processing of the cases at the two satellite centers. One may assume that total number of pending backlog cases may record much larger than 350,000.
o Record of Processing at Dallas + Philadelphia (345,000):
+ 100,000 cases yet to complete "partial data entry." (Without "full" data entry, no 45 day letters are generated)
+ X number of cases completed partial data entry (These cases cannot generate 45 day letters until full data entry.)
+ Y number of cases completed full data entry (generated 45 day letters)
* The report failed to make public the statistics of the total number of cases adjudicated and the total number of cases which completed a full data entry and generated 45 day letters. As for the total number of cases adjudicated, it just stated "tens" of thousands of cases. Tens of thousands of cases range from 10,000 to 99,000 out of 345,000+ cases. If it meant 10,000, the number is indeed a tip of a huge iceberg (345,000+). We also have no idea of what "adjudication" meant. The immigration practitioners have reported some approvals of cases without even 45 day letters being generated and the pattern of approval cases reflects that they were not processed in the First In First Out order. In a way, it may be taken as a good news in that if they should stick to the FIFO processing rules, they would not be able to process any cases until the unopened box cases and the pending cases complete the full data entries. However, it may be taken as an arbitrary processing of cases when it comes to the issue of fairness and other rules of administrative process.
* Timeline: We have no information when the partial data entry or full data entry will be completed and when the 45 day letters will be sent out to the applicants for the pending cases. It just stated that in the next few months, data entries will be completed and 45 day letters will be sent out. Now we are approaching the end of the calendar year and the holiday seasons. Currently, two satellite centers are scheduled to shut down in early January 2006. All in all, adjudication of these large number of pending cases is not too promising when it comes to the timeline.
* For those later filers in the row, it would not mean much as the early certified labor certification applications will lead them to nowhere because of the visa number backlog of from five to seven years for the Indians and Chinese. However, for the earlier filers in the row or in the pipeline, the delay in the labor certification at the Backlog Processing Centers adds a terrible pain on top of the visa number backlogs. Believe it or not, out of the three fed agencies that deal with the immigration business (USCIS, DOS, DOL), the USCIS will become our hero in terms of processing times and DOS and DOL are likely to remain devils to the immigrants for quite a while. In the U.S. immigration history, the immigration services have never received such a "welcome" treatment. The USCIS should thank to Bush, DOS, and DOL. What you know!
 
rest_2004_free said:
If you have a copy of approved 140 notice from comp A, you can reuse it whenever before you die period!

All you have to do is start over with labor in comp B and use the copy of 140 in new 140 filing. You will get the old PD so you can apply 485 easily. I am not sure when you leave comp A and want to join them back....what happens...why do you want to join them anyway...when you can get PERM labor easily.

Law says.... C.F.R. 204.5(e), which states in part:

“A petition approved on behalf of an alien under sections 203(b)(1), (2), or (3) of the Act [i.e., EB-1, 2, or 3] accords the alien the priority date of the approved petition for any subsequently filed petition for any classification under sections 203(b)(1), (2), or (3) of the Act for which the alien may qualify.”

Also read what Rajiv has to say in the attachment below.

rest_2004: Can you let me know what happens in these 2 scenarios:

I-140 is approved via Employer A and I leave to join company B.

1. Is old PD carried over to new employer if I have copy of approved I-140 even if I-140 is withdrawn by old employer

2. If old I-140 is not withdrawn by old employer, Can we then apply for I-485 with new employer without starting the GC process from scratch.

Thanks.
 
urgent

hi gurus

my LC got approved yesterday and I have only 14 days left to meet the sep 30 th 2005 deadline for not falling under retrogession.

I got married last month and My spouse is in INDIA and coming here on october 10th(If she gets H4 visa in chennai).

What are my options to apply for I-140 and I-485 with out her.

If I apply for I-140 and 485 alone and add her later. will she get the EAD along with me.

Please help

Thanks
kiran
pd: feb 2002
rd:feb 2003
 
Lawyer has not received the hard copy of approval notice

I and my employer have received the courtesy copies of the Labor Approval seven days ago, however my lawyer has not received the hard copy of my labor cert and ETA - 750 yet...

They are following up with the BPC Dallas office but haven't heard back yet.
I am really concerned about this, as with the Sep 30th deadline arriving, i am all set to file the I-485 and I-140 concurrently except for the original labor approval notice.

Can you please guide me as to what should i do. I am waiting for the approval notice to be somehow received by my lawyer (Fragomen), however if it does not arrive, should i proceed with filing I-485 without the original labor cert. Will they reject the application in that case or isue an RFE ?

After all this wait for labor, now i am stuck with missing hard copy. How bad can things go...

Please help...

CA / RIR / EB2
PD: Jan-15-2003
Labor cert email received: 9/7/05
Hard copy received by me: 9/10/05
 
Doubt

mylabor was applied in may 2004 no 45 day letter so i was looking at an option of filing PERM.but if i file perm and the labor gets approved .Becoz i am in EB2 RIR . can i file 140/485 even after oct 1st and on that basis file EAD /AP.
 
rest_2004_free said:
If you have a copy of approved 140 notice from comp A, you can reuse it whenever before you die period!

All you have to do is start over with labor in comp B and use the copy of 140 in new 140 filing. You will get the old PD so you can apply 485 easily. I am not sure when you leave comp A and want to join them back....what happens...why do you want to join them anyway...when you can get PERM labor easily.

Law says.... C.F.R. 204.5(e), which states in part:

“A petition approved on behalf of an alien under sections 203(b)(1), (2), or (3) of the Act [i.e., EB-1, 2, or 3] accords the alien the priority date of the approved petition for any subsequently filed petition for any classification under sections 203(b)(1), (2), or (3) of the Act for which the alien may qualify.”

Also read what Rajiv has to say in the attachment below.

rest_2004:

I posed the following qns to my attorney. This is what he said. See his answers in bold:

If you apply for I-140 in company A, get approval and then start new job in Company B do we get to carry the old Priority date with us ?


No, because it involves a brand new petitioner, brand new permanent job offer, and brand new labor certification application.

In labor certification-based cases, the only time that an approved I-140 can be “ported” to a new employer is after the I-485 has been pending for 180 days and the applicant is working in the same or similar occupational classification as the position that was listed in the approved LC/I-140. In this situation, the old priority date is retained.


In addition if one goes back to his home country or outside the US after the I-140 approval (in order to refill with new 6 years on H-1B) can one still use the old PD ?

Yes, the old priority date is retained, assuming the person is adjusting status in the US or consular processing abroad with the same I-140 petitioner. I-140 portability to a new employer might be possible after the I-485 has been pending for over 180 days - same as above


I think we need to be certain and seek further opinions on this. It will be very important for all of us in the current scenario. Can you also clarify with your attorney?
 
If you are not born in India or China, you can.

Chocolate said:
mylabor was applied in may 2004 no 45 day letter so i was looking at an option of filing PERM.but if i file perm and the labor gets approved .Becoz i am in EB2 RIR . can i file 140/485 even after oct 1st and on that basis file EAD /AP.
 
Hard copy received ... after 3 months

The date of the approval is 6/21, the approval letter from DBEC was received by lawyer on 9/14.
The screen shot had date submitted field showing 6/21, so, as someone already noticed, this field is acually showing the date when data was last accessed.

CA/RIR/EB3
PD: 10/15/2002
 
It depends of the visa bulletin

Chocolate said:
mylabor was applied in may 2004 no 45 day letter so i was looking at an option of filing PERM.but if i file perm and the labor gets approved .Becoz i am in EB2 RIR . can i file 140/485 even after oct 1st and on that basis file EAD /AP.

I am not a lawyer, but this is what I think: It depends where are you from. My labor was applied in may 2004 but I did receive the 45 letter on May 2005 and replied it the same month. Based on what I had read here I am expecting the certification on January next month... but who knows. I talked to an immigration officer yesterday. I asked this: If I receive my certification on January or February 2006 could I file I-140 concurrently with I-485? and she told me that it depends on the visa bulletin. If there are number available for your category yes. If not you can file too but the i-485 will be returned to you as not accepted. The i-485 will be accepted only according to the visa bulletin. http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/bulletin/bulletin_2631.html
 
EXACT PD please

Congrats gc123...... you are lucky and good luck for next stages....

Can you tell us exact PD in FEB 2003...

My PD is 02/18/2003 certified some where between 08/10 and 08/18 as per Scree shot.....

waiting for hard copy....

Maveric
RIR/EB2/TX

gc123_quest said:
I was a silent reader. I just wanted to let you guys know that My LC has been approved and My lawyer recieved it yesterday.

Details
PD Feb 2003
Certified Date : 11 August 2005
LC posted: 12 Sept 2005.
EB2
RIR
CA
 
EXACT PD please

EXACT PD please

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Congrats gc123...... you are lucky and good luck for next stages....

Can you tell us exact PD in FEB 2003...

My PD is 02/18/2003 certified some where between 08/10 and 08/18 as per Scree shot.....

waiting for hard copy....

Maveric
RIR/EB2/TX


gc123_quest said:
I was a silent reader. I just wanted to let you guys know that My LC has been approved and My lawyer recieved it yesterday.

Details
PD Feb 2003
Certified Date : 11 August 2005
LC posted: 12 Sept 2005.
EB2
RIR
CA
 
indio0617 said:
rest_2004:

I posed the following qns to my attorney. This is what he said. See his answers in bold:

If you apply for I-140 in company A, get approval and then start new job in Company B do we get to carry the old Priority date with us ?


No, because it involves a brand new petitioner, brand new permanent job offer, and brand new labor certification application.

In labor certification-based cases, the only time that an approved I-140 can be “ported” to a new employer is after the I-485 has been pending for 180 days and the applicant is working in the same or similar occupational classification as the position that was listed in the approved LC/I-140. In this situation, the old priority date is retained.


In addition if one goes back to his home country or outside the US after the I-140 approval (in order to refill with new 6 years on H-1B) can one still use the old PD ?

Yes, the old priority date is retained, assuming the person is adjusting status in the US or consular processing abroad with the same I-140 petitioner. I-140 portability to a new employer might be possible after the I-485 has been pending for over 180 days - same as above


I think we need to be certain and seek further opinions on this. It will be very important for all of us in the current scenario. Can you also clarify with your attorney?


indio0617,

Most attorneys have a preconceived notion of what we heathens are going to
ask. Or probably they are stupid not to understand the question correctly....
it could also be automated response!!!

I see your questions and your attorney's answers. you are asking about PD and he/she is replying about I140 portability. Under I140 portability, you get to file 485 directly. But thats not your question...it is about your PD...you understand that you will be going thru labor and I140 again....he/she doesn't..

This is not to say that you will get the PD ... only hammer into the attorney what you understand and ask under what conditions PD [NOT labor or I140]
will be transferrable.....

I think Rajiv's communication was clear .. except that there was no mention of traveling abroad for 6yr refill.

Let me know what you find thin time ... am in similar situation

thanks
 
EB2 or EB3??? Please help me

This is my case. My employer filled an ETA 750 on May 2004. I received the 45 days letter on May 2005 and replied it the same month. I am now waiting for the certification. My employer filled the form for a position of Architectural Drafter which requires only 2 years of college education (An associate degree). I was hired for that position but now I am working in a better position. I am an Architect with more that 5 years of experience and I could apply for EB2. The problem is that the labor certification will say that the job requires only an associate degree. Can my company still fill the i-140 as EB2 with the same labor certification or... does my company need to request a different labor certification. What do you guys recommend me to do? If I fill EB2 I could apply for i-140 / i-485 concurrently
 
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calabor said:
indio0617,

Most attorneys have a preconceived notion of what we heathens are going to
ask. Or probably they are stupid not to understand the question correctly....
it could also be automated response!!!

I see your questions and your attorney's answers. you are asking about PD and he/she is replying about I140 portability. Under I140 portability, you get to file 485 directly. But thats not your question...it is about your PD...you understand that you will be going thru labor and I140 again....he/she doesn't..

This is not to say that you will get the PD ... only hammer into the attorney what you understand and ask under what conditions PD [NOT labor or I140]
will be transferrable.....

I think Rajiv's communication was clear .. except that there was no mention of traveling abroad for 6yr refill.

Let me know what you find thin time ... am in similar situation

thanks

calabor:

You are correct. I sought further clarification. He clarified saying

"As long as the first I-140 is approved (and not revoked due to fraud), and the second I-140 is being filed in the same EB category and specifically requests recapture of the earlier priority date, the earlier priority date can be retained."

Do you think the I-140 should not be revoked for us to retain the PD as he is saying? I think he is wrong on the "should be filed in the same category".

See the actual immigration law; section (e) on this link: http://uscis.gov/lpbin/lpext.dll/in...mplates&fn=document-frame.htm#slb-8cfrsec2045


It suggests that we can change the EB category with the new employer.
 
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