National Visa Center

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The National Visa Center (NVC) is a center that is part of the U.S. Department of State that plays the role of holding United States immigrant visa petitions (as well as Form I-129F petitions for K-1/K-3 visas) approved by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services until an immigrant visa number becomes available for the petition, at which point it arranges for the visa applicant(s) (the petition beneficiaries) to take the visa interview at a consulate abroad. [1] [2] It is located in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. [1] It was established on July 26, 1994, on the site of an Air Force base that was closed down by The Pentagon. [3]

Contents

In most cases, the person or entity that files the original USCIS petition (also known as the petitioner) differs from the person (or persons) on whose behalf the petition is filed (also known as the beneficiary or beneficiaries). The beneficiaries are the persons who may subsequently apply for a visa based on the approved petition, and NVC's communication is with the beneficiary (with the petitioner getting a notification at the beginning). In this article, the terms "beneficiary" and "visa applicant" are both used based on context.

Petitions that go through the NVC

Form I-130 petitions

Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative, is used by United States citizens and permanent residents to petition for immigrant status for their immediate relatives. The IR subcategory in the Form I-130 category is uncapped, and therefore the NVC immediately begins processing the application. However, the F subcategory has numerical limits, and is generally backlogged, and therefore applications in this category may have to wait. Note that wait times depend both on the type of visa in the F category, and the country of chargeability.

Form I-140 petitions

Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker, is used by United States businesses (and in some cases, by the immigrant beneficiary himself or herself) to petition for immigrant worker status for the beneficiary in one of the categories EB-1, EB-2, and EB-3. All the categories are numerically capped. For any given country of chargeability, EB-1 gets higher priority (and therefore has lesser backlog and a shorter wait time) than EB-2, which in turn has higher priority than EB-3. For some combinations of country of chargeability and category, the priority date may be current, in which case NVC begins processing immediately, whereas for others, applications in the category may have to wait.

Other immigrant visa petitions that go through NVC

The following immigrant status petitions also get sent to NVC:

Form I-129F petitions

Form I-129F is a non-immigrant visa petition intended for the fiancé(e) and children of the fiancé(e) of a United States citizen, with the intention of marriage with the fiancé(e). The corresponding visa category is the K visa.

If the petitioner and beneficiary fiancé(e) marry within three months, the fiancé(e) can undergo Adjustment of Status. This is a rare case of a non-immigrant visa category with explicit immigrant intent. There are no cutoff dates for these petitions.

Provisional Unlawful Presence Waiver

A Provisional Unlawful Presence Waiver is a waiver provided by the USCIS indicating that it waives unlawful presence in the United States as a ground of inadmissibility for a given applicant. It is obtained by applying with Form I-601A to the USCIS. It is used by people currently unlawfully present in the United States prior to departing the United States for a consular interview. USCIS notifies NVC once the Form I-601A is approved and the Provisional Unlawful Presence Waiver is granted, so that NVC can process any visa application for the applicant based on a petition listing him or her as a beneficiary. [6] [7]

Petitions and visa categories that do not go through the NVC

Form I-129 petitions for non-immigrant workers do not go through the NVC. For these petitions, once the petition is approved by the USCIS, the beneficiary may directly apply for a visa at a United States consulate or embassy abroad. Some of the Form I-129 categories have numerical limits, but these limits are taken care of by the USCIS at the time it receives the application. Moreover, due to a limit of six months for receiving the petition (i.e., the petition can be received at most six months before the proposed start date) there cannot be huge backlogs; in case more petitions are received than the numerical limits the additional petitions are rejected and the petition must be filed next year.

Among immigrant visa categories, the Diversity Immigrant Visa does not go through the NVC. The program is managed by the Kentucky Consular Center of the U.S. Department of State. [8] [9]

Distinction between immigrant visa applications outside the United States and Adjustment of Status applications

There are two ways to become a United States Lawful Permanent Resident.

  1. Have an immigrant status petition listing one as a beneficiary approved and then use that to apply for an immigrant visa from outside the United States. In this case, after receiving the immigrant visa, the beneficiary can apply for a Green Card for delivery to their United States address, and then enter on the immigrant visa and transition to LPR status upon entry. [1]
  2. Be in the United States in another status and then file a Form I-485 petition for Adjustment of Status either concurrently with or after receiving approval for the immigrant status petition. In this case, the approval of Form I-485 transitions the beneficiary to Lawful Permanent Resident status. [10]

The key difference between the two methods is that for (1), the key decision to approve the beneficiary's transition is made by a consular officer employed by the U.S. Department of State and stationed in another country, whereas for (2), the final decision is made by a USCIS Field Officer.

The National Visa Center is involved only for method (1). In case method (2) is being used, the NVC will not receive the petition at all if the Adjustment of Status application (Form I-485) is filed concurrently with the petition. If, however, the petition is filed as a standalone petition, the NVC may contact the beneficiary, and the beneficiary must indicate to the NVC in response that he or she is adjusting status and does not intend to apply for a visa. In this case, the NVC holds on to the petition until it is requested by a USCIS Field Office. If the applicant does not respond, the NVC continues processing it for a visa application.

However, the numerical limits apply to all petitions regardless of whether method (1) or method (2) is used, and are managed by the Visa Reporting and Control Division of the Department of State.

For Form I-130 and I-360, in some cases, another option called Direct Consular Filing (that bypasses the NVC) is available; however, this applies only to categories with no numerical limits.

Steps

The petition is received by the USCIS

When the USCIS receives a petition, it puts it in a processing queue handled by USCIS and marks the date of receipt of the petition. If approved, and in the case that the category is numerically capped, the petition's Priority Date will be set to this date of receipt. Note that for I-140 petitions that require labor certification, the Priority Date is set as the date that the application for labor certification is received. [11]

The USCIS may take some time to approve the petition. The USCIS publishes both its processing time goals and its current processing times, which are approximately 7 months. For some petitions, the USCIS may issue a Request For Evidence or Notice of Intent to Deny. The USCIS may deny the petition and the denial may be appealed. For Form I-140 petitions, it is also possible to speed up the process by availing of the Premium Processing Service. Throughout the process, the NVC is not involved.

It is only if and after the USCIS approves the petition that the petition is forwarded to the NVC in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

As soon as it receives the petition from the USCIS, NVC gives the petition a case number through which the status of the petition may be tracked and contacts the applicant confirming that the petition was received. Note that this case number differs from the USCIS case number and also from the immigrant visa number (that, for capped categories, may not be immediately available). [12]

For numerically limited visas, the National Visa Center may hold the petition until a visa number becomes available

For visas in numerically limited categories, the date that the petition is received by the USCIS is treated as the Priority Date for the application, with the exception of petitions that require labor certification. For petitions requiring labor certification (as is the case for some Form I-140 petitions) the Priority Date is the date the application for labor certification was received by the U.S. Department of Labor. [11]

Applications are processed from earlier to later Priority Dates. At any given point in time, the cutoff date (also known as the Qualifying Date) for current processing for each combination of category and country of chargeability is available, and published in the Visa Bulletin. [1]

If the Priority Date is earlier than the cutoff date for that category at the time NVC receives the petition, it immediately starts processing the application. However, if the Priority Date is later than the cutoff date, NVC holds the application until the cutoff date is about to approach the Priority Date. At this point, NVC contacts the beneficiary and starts the processing. An application whose Priority Date is earlier than the cutoff date is termed "current".

NVC is not responsible for managing the queue of applications or updating the cutoff dates. That responsibility lies with the Visa Reporting and Control Division of the U.S. Department of State, that also publishes the Visa Bulletin and issues immigrant visa numbers. Moreover, the applications that go through the NVC are not the only ones in the queue; the queue also includes Adjustment of Status applications.

Some implications of the way Priority Dates work:

NVC processes the application, arranging for a consular interview

NVC does the following to move forward on the beneficiary's visa application: [1]

  1. It invoices the beneficiary for visa application fees
  2. It collects the visa application and supporting documentation
  3. It holds the visa petition until an interview can be scheduled with a consular officer at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate.

NVC's first communication with the visa applicant, even before collecting fees, asks the applicant to choose an agent to represent him or her in communication with the NVC. [2] The applicant may do so online through Form DS-261, Choice of Address and Agent. [13] There is also an outdated equivalent form called Form DS-3032, that is filed by paper.

The NVC hands things off to the consulate or embassy interviewing the applicant

After the NVC schedules the interview and forwards the materials to the consulate, the responsibility for further processing belongs to the consulate.

If the consular officer adjudicating the beneficiary's visa application believes the underlying USCIS petition was approved in error or is no longer approvable the officer may return the petition to USCIS for revocation/reconsideration. This communication occurs directly between the consulate and the USCIS. NVC is no longer involved.

Termination of registration

The registration of an immigrant visa petitions is terminated if the beneficiary fails to apply for an immigrant visa within a year of notice of immigrant visa availability. However, the petition may be reinstated if, within two years of notice of visa availability, the alien establishes that the failure to apply was for reasons beyond the alien's control. [2]

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A green card, known officially as a permanent resident card, is an identity document which shows that a person has permanent residency in the United States. Green card holders are formally known as lawful permanent residents (LPRs). As of 2019, there are an estimated 13.9 million green card holders, of whom 9.1 million are eligible to become United States citizens. Approximately 18,700 of them serve in the U.S. Armed Forces.

An L-1 visa is a visa document used to enter the United States for the purpose of work in L-1 status. It is a non-immigrant visa, and is valid for a relatively short amount of time, from three months to five years, based on a reciprocity schedule. With extensions, the maximum stay is seven years.

A K-1 visa is a visa issued to the fiancé or fiancée of a United States citizen to enter the United States. A K-1 visa requires a foreigner to marry his or her U.S. citizen petitioner within 90 days of entry, or depart the United States. Once the couple marries, the foreign citizen can adjust status to become a lawful permanent resident of the United States. Although a K-1 visa is legally classified as a non-immigrant visa, it usually leads to important immigration benefits and is therefore often processed by the Immigrant Visa section of United States embassies and consulates worldwide.

Priority date is a United States immigration concept – it is the date when a principal applicant first reveals his or her intent of immigration to the US government. For family-sponsored applicants, the priority date is the date an immigration petition, filed on behalf of him or her, is received by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). For employment-based immigration beneficiaries, the priority date is the date an immigration petition is filed at USCIS, under categories where a labor certification is not required, or when the United States Department of Labor receives a labor certification application, under categories where a labor certification is required. In all cases, the priority dates are not established until USCIS approves the immigration petition. The date establishes one's place in the queue for a family-sponsored or employment-based or permanent residency permit application.

The V visa is a temporary visa available to spouses and minor children of U.S. lawful permanent residents. It allows permanent residents to achieve family unity with their spouses and children while the immigration process takes its course. It was created by the Legal Immigration Family Equity Act of 2000. The Act is to relieve those who applied for immigrant visas on or before December 21, 2000. Practically, the V visa is currently not available to spouses and minor children of LPRs who have applied after December 21, 2000.

The EB-1 visa is a preference category for United States employment-based permanent residency. It is intended for "priority workers". Those are foreign nationals who either have "extraordinary abilities", or are "outstanding professors or researchers", and also includes "some executives and managers of foreign companies who are transferred to the US". It allows them to remain permanently in the US.

EB-2 is an immigrant visa preference category for United States employment-based permanent residency, created by the Immigration Act of 1990. The category includes "members of the professions holding advanced degrees or their equivalent", and "individuals who because of their exceptional ability in the sciences, arts, or business will substantially benefit prospectively the national economy, cultural or educational interests, or welfare of the United States, and whose services in the sciences, arts, professions, or business are sought by an employer in the United States". Applicants must generally have an approved labor certification, a job offer, and their employer must have filed an Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker with the USCIS.

EB-3 is a visa preference category for United States employment-based permanent residency. It is intended for "skilled workers", "professionals", and "other workers". Those are prospective immigrants who don't qualify for the EB-1 or EB-2 preferences. The EB-3 requirements are less stringent, but the backlog may be longer. Unlike persons with extraordinary abilities in the EB-1 category, EB-3 applicants require a sponsoring employer. There is no "self-petition" category.

The American Competitiveness in the 21st Century Act (AC21) was an act passed by the government of the United States in October 2000, pertaining to immigration to the United States. It was a complement to the American Competitiveness and Workforce Improvement Act that had been passed in 1998. The focus of AC21 was to change rules related to portability and caps for the H-1B visa to increase the effective number of visas available and make it easier for workers on those visas to switch jobs. Although the language of the Act references the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), the INS would soon be restructured and the functions of the INS referenced in AC21 would be handled by United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.

Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker is a form submitted to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services used by employers or prospective employers to obtain a worker on a nonimmigrant visa status. Form I-129 is used to either file for a new status or a change of status, such as new, continuing or changed employer or title; or an amendment to the original application. Approval of the form makes the worker eligible to start or continue working at the job if already in the United States. If the worker is not already in the United States, an approved Form I-129 may be used to submit a visa application associated with that status. The form is 36 pages long and the instructions for the form are 29 pages long. It is one of the many USCIS immigration forms.

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Direct Consular Filing (DCF) is a process related to immigration to the United States whereby Form I-130, I-360, or I-600, is filed with a United States embassy or consulate in another country rather than with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services lockbox or service center facilities located within the US. The approved form can then be used to obtain an IR or CR visa within the same country. DCF is available only under exceptional circumstances and can only be done in the country where the petitioner legally resides.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Form I-130</span>

Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative is a form submitted to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services by a United States citizen or Lawful Permanent Resident petitioning for an immediate or close relative intending to immigrate to the United States. It is one of numerous USCIS immigration forms. As with all USCIS petitions, the person who submits the petition is called the petitioner and the relative on whose behalf the petition is made is called the beneficiary. The USCIS officer who evaluates the petition is called the adjudicator.

A Notice of Intent to Revoke (NOIR) is a communication sent by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services to a petitioner about a previously approved petition, telling him or her that the USCIS intends to revoke the petition, along with the reasons for revocation, and giving the petitioner a fixed amount of time to respond. NOIRs may be issued for immigrant visa petitions and for non-immigrant visa petitions.

Form I-539, Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status is one of the forms issued by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. It is used by people currently in the United States in a non-immigrant status to change the classification for their status and/or extend their stay with their current status. Both the current status and the status to which the transition is being sought must be non-immigrant visa statuses.

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Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS) is a special way for minors currently in the United States to adjust status to that of Lawful Permanent Resident despite unauthorized entry or unlawful presence in the United States, that might usually make them inadmissible to the United States and create bars to Adjustment of Status. The key criterion for SIJS is abuse, neglect, or abandonment by one or both parents.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Form I-140</span> I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker

Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker is a form submitted to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) by a prospective employer to petition an alien to work in the US on a permanent basis. This is done in the case when the worker is deemed extraordinary in some sense or when qualified workers do not exist in the US. The employer who files is called the petitioner, and the alien employee is called the beneficiary; these two can coincide in the case of a self-petitioner. The form is 6 pages long with a separate 10-page instructions document as of 2016. It is one of the USCIS immigration forms.

The R-1 visa is a non-immigrant visa which allows travel to the United States for service as a minister or other religious occupation. Between October 2019 and September 2020, there were 2,399 R visas issued.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "National Visa Center". U.S. Department of State . Retrieved February 5, 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 "The Immigrant Visa Process: Begin National Visa Center (NVC) Processing". U.S. Department of State . Retrieved February 4, 2016.
  3. ↑ "Twenty-Fifth Anniversary of National Visa Center". National Visa Center. July 26, 2019. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  4. ↑ "I-360, Petition for Amerasian, Widow(er), or Special Immigrant". United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.
  5. ↑ "I-526, Immigrant Petition by Alien Entrepreneur". United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.
  6. ↑ "For Provisional Waiver I-601A Applicants: The National Visa Center Process and You" (PDF). U.S. Department of State . Retrieved February 5, 2016.
  7. ↑ "Provisional Unlawful Presence Waivers". United States Citizenship and Immigration Services . Retrieved February 5, 2016.
  8. ↑ "Kentucky Consular Center Information". U.S. Department of State . Retrieved February 7, 2016.
  9. ↑ "The Diversity Visa Process". U.S. Department of State . Retrieved February 7, 2016.
  10. ↑ "Adjustment of Status". United States Citizenship and Immigration Services . Retrieved February 7, 2016.
  11. 1 2 "The Immigrant Visa Process". U.S. Department of State . Retrieved February 5, 2016.
  12. ↑ "How do I contact the National Visa Center (NVC) to find out what is going on with my case?". United States Citizenship and Immigration Services . Retrieved February 5, 2016.
  13. ↑ "Step 1: Choose an Agent". U.S. Department of State . Retrieved February 5, 2016.
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