Can you tell me where I can read up properly about the US visa backlog? What is it exactly and how is it structured for each visa category — I’ve found mentions in different places, but haven’t come across a clear explanation. Is there any resource that explains it well?
well, it’s immihelp or travel.state.gov - they have a bulletin every month, pretty clear)
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A backlog is when there are more applicants than the annual quotas, so you wait in line by your priority date. Every month a new Visa Bulletin comes out — you open the charts, check the dates, and wonder: is it getting closer or moving further away? For EB-1A it’s usually “current”, but EB-2 and EB-3 from India and China wait for decades — this isn’t an exaggeration; people actually filed when I was still in school.
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The bulletin has two tables — Final Action Dates and Dates for Filing — and USCIS announces each month separately which one to use for AOS; that’s on a separate page on uscis.gov, not in the bulletin itself. The difference between the tables can be several months; for EB-2 this determines when you can actually file the I-485. For EB-1A both tables are current, so if the profile is academic/research-oriented, the queue isn’t the main issue — the issue is the petition itself.
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For EB-2 cases from Russia, the backlog isn’t the same story as for India — there they really wait decades. In my experience the priority date for Russia moves normally — I filed my I-485 14 months after the I-140. So basically these are two different stages: first the petition is approved, then you wait for the priority date to become current — and people often confuse the two.
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I was confused about the stages myself for a long time - I thought once the I-140 was approved that was it and I could just wait for the visa. No, that’s only the first stage, you still have to file the I-485 separately, and that’s where the priority date needs to be current. For EB-1A that’s almost automatic - I filed my I-485 two months after the I-140 notice. As for EB-2 from Russia, I’ve heard the priority date moves normally, unlike India where people wait for decades.
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That’s exactly the confusion — I-140 approves the petition; only I-485 changes the status.
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By the way, about EB-1A — speaking from my own experience: my priority date became current right away, and I filed the I-485 without waiting. So if you go the EB-1A route, the backlog isn’t your headache; the petition itself decides everything. EB-2 from India is a totally different story.
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