USCIS Backlog elimination plan:
USCIS Backlog Elimination Plan submitted to Congress in Mar 05.
This plan submitted by the chief of USCIS, Mr Aguirre envisages processing of 838,706 485 AOS applications for the Fiscal 2005 (and close to a million in FY2006). Pl see the reference provided here:
http://uscis.gov/graphics/aboutus/repsstudies/BEPQ4v7.pdf
Similarly, in the previously provided plan Mr Aguirre had envisaged 752,000 for FY2004 (
http://uscis.gov/graphics/aboutus/repsstudies/BEPFinal-signed.pdf)
To put these numbers in context, I went back to the YearBook of Stats USCIS publishes:
Here are the numbers for 2003 and 2002:
2003: Total All Immigrants 705,827 AOS 347,416 New Arrivals 358,411
Of the above:
Employment based 82,137 AOS 52,552 New Arrivals 29,585
Not subject to limits 406,393 AOS 251,109 New Arrivals 155,284
(There are other categoriess like Diversity etc which I have not included here for the sake of brevity)
2002: Total All Immigrants 1,063,732 AOS 679,305 New Arrivals 384,427
Of the above:
Employment based 174,968 AOS 134,918 New Arrivals 40,050
Not subject to limits 646,872 AOS 466,901 New Arrivals 179,971
Numbers projected and probably achieved by USCIS for the FY 2004 and 2005 do not look too off the mark compared to 2002 AOS number. FY 2003 is confounding, so I will leave it aside and look at 2005 numbers!
So, we should be seeing 838,000 AOS (485s) approved. Bulk of these would have to come from categories exempt from numerical caps. Numerically capped categories like family (226,000) , employment based (140,000), Diversity (50,000) and others (some 10,000) account for some 430,000. Of these capped categories, AOS could be just about 150,000 (again bulk of it coming from EB). To this if we add the 101,000 or so that was available from the balance of recapture, the AOS number from EB could go to 250,000. The other 588,000 AOS coming from categories exempt from numerical caps.
To believe that USCIS/DOS have achieved this stupendous number of 241,000 EB usage or close to 81% of this number in 8 months is just unbelievable. Such huge approvals would have unleashed a tsunami of approvals on this portal which I have not seen. If this was happenning on a continuous basis for the last 8 months at the rate of 24,000 AOS a month of EB category approvals, DOS would not have probably ventured out in Jan 2005 putting out the somewhat rosier picture of using 101,000 after using the annual EB quota of 140K visas.
I sincerely believe they have no clue about the numbers and are hitting the brakes in panic or some other motive. If anyone seriously questions them, I mean those who are in power like Senators or Congressmen, they can always comeback and say, never mind,nothing would be lost if we do not use beyond the 140K as the recapped ones from 1999 & 2000 would flow over to next year for use! And that they are busy catering to Nurses or whatever!
I appreciate any numbers, stats that you have dug-up that show DOS/USCIS providing us correct or wrong info.
