A top official has emphasised that a country-based quota system is mostly to blame for the protracted waiting times for Green Cards experienced by people from India, China, Mexico, and the Philippines. The representative said that the US Congress sets annual caps on the number of Green Cards that may be issued. The annual cap on family-sponsored preference Green Cards is 226,000 worldwide, compared to 140,000 for employment-based Green Cards. Additionally, the family-sponsored and employment-based preference restrictions are each subject to a per-country cap of 7%.This results in higher wait times than for citizens of other nations for those from India, China, Mexico, and the Philippines, where there are just 25,620 Green Cards available each year. The official emphasised that although Congress alone has the power to alter the annual restrictions, demand for Green Cards far surpasses supply. The US immigration authorities, therefore, work to use Green Card numbers as efficiently as possible, given these limitations.For Indian professionals in particular, the wait for a green card has gone over ten years, and visa wait durations have occasionally been increased by several years. The representative added that since Congress has limited the supply while demand has been rising, this predicament is the outcome of supply and demand dynamics. It is significant to emphasise that people from China, Mexico, the Philippines, and India are also impacted by this issue. The higher wait times applicants encounter are a result of the rising demand for Green Cards from these nations.Through the Visa Bulletin, the State Department controls the distribution of visas, setting deadlines to ensure adherence to annual and per-country caps. Retrogression happens when the number of visas issued exceeds the legislative cap, rendering certain people ineligible for visas even if they have already applied for permanent status. As a result, until the visa numbers start to become available once more, individuals who have applied for an adjustment of status may experience delays or be unable to obtain a Green Card.The US government is dedicated to improving the accuracy and thoroughness of employment-based adjustment of status data notwithstanding these obstacles. The official indicated plans to resume providing regular inventory reports in order to improve transparency as well as an understanding of the visa distribution procedure. It is significant to remember that people nevertheless enjoy some advantages during retrogression. They can submit applications for non-employer-specific travel and employment authorisations. Additionally, individuals have the choice to move their job possibilities to new companies when their adjustment of status applications has been delayed for 180 days or more. Children who have requested an adjustment of status may also be protected from growing up.
