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Emigration and immigration

All Available Employment-Based Immigrant Visas Issued for FY 2025

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

The United States has reached its capacity for issuing employment-based immigrant visas for the fiscal year (FY) 2025. The State Department and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services have announced that all available immigrant visas in the Employment-Based First Preference, Second Preference, and Third Preference categories, as well as the Other Workers (EW) subcategory, have been issued. This means that no more immigrant visas in these categories will be issued for the remainder of FY 2025.

Key Takeaways:

  • The annual limits for employment-based preference immigrant visas will reset with the start of the new fiscal year (FY 2026) on October 1, 2025.
  • The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) limits the number of employment-based preference immigrant visas that may be issued within a fiscal year, with a worldwide annual employment-based preference immigrant quota of 150,037.
  • The fiscal year 2025 limit for family-sponsored preference immigrants is 226,000, and the per-country limit for preference immigrants is 7% of the total annual family-sponsored and employment-based preference limits.
  • With the carryover visa numbers included, the per-country limit is 26,862 and the dependent area limit is 7,675.
  • Since all available EB-3 and EW visas for FY 2025 have been used, embassies and consulates will not issue visas in these categories for the remainder of the fiscal year.
  • The maximum limits for EB-1, EB-2, and EB-3 visas are 10,000, 20,000, and 20,000 respectively, which are 28.6% of the worldwide employment limit.
  • The EB-1 visa is for foreigners with extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics, the EB-2 visa is for professionals with advanced degrees, and the EB-3 visa is for skilled workers or professionals.

Statistics:

  • 150,037: Worldwide annual employment-based preference immigrant quota.
  • 226,000: Fiscal year 2025 limit for family-sponsored preference immigrants.
  • 7%: Per-country limit for preference immigrants as a percentage of the total annual family-sponsored and employment-based preference limits.
  • 25,620: Per-country limit for preference immigrants.
  • 7,521: Dependent area limit.
  • 26,862: Per-country limit including carryover visa numbers.
  • 7,675: Dependent area limit including carryover visa numbers.
  • 10,000: Maximum limit for EB-1 visas.
  • 20,000: Maximum limit for EB-2 and EB-3 visas.

Sources:

  • "Employment-Based Immigrant Visas" by IE Online Media Services Pvt. Ltd., distributed by Contify.com.
  • "Immigration and Nationality Act (INA)".
  • "U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services" (USCIS).

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