Employment-Based Preferences

Employment-Based	All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA- mainland born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILLIPINES
1st	C	C	C	C	C
2nd	C	15MAY08	01SEP04	C	C
3rd	01DEC07	01DEC07	22DEC02	01DEC07	15SEP06
Other Workers	01DEC07	01SEP03	22DEC02	01DEC07	15SEP06
4th	C	C	C	C	C
Certain Religious Workers	C	C	C	C	C
5th/ Targeted Employment Areas/Regional Centers and Pilot Programs	C	C	C	C	C

"C" means current, i.e., numbers are available for all qualified applicants; and "U" means unavailable, i.e., no numbers are available. (NOTE: Numbers are available only for applicants whose priority date is earlier than the cut-off date listed below.)

1st:	Priority Workers: 28.6% of the worldwide employment-based preference level, plus any numbers not required for fourth and fifth preferences.
2nd:	Members of the Professions Holding Advanced Degrees or Persons of Exceptional Ability: 28.6% of the worldwide employment-based preference level, plus any numbers not required by first preference.
3rd:	Skilled Workers, Professionals, and Other Workers: 28.6% of the worldwide level, plus any numbers not required by first and second preferences, not more than 10,000 of which to "Other Workers".
4th:	Certain Special Immigrants: 7.1% of the worldwide level.
5th:	Employment Creation: 7.1% of the worldwide level, not less than 3,000 of which reserved for investors in a targeted rural or high-unemployment area, and 3,000 set aside for investors in regional centers by Sec. 610 of P.L. 102-395.

*Employment Third Preference Other Workers Category: Section 203(e) of the Nicaraguan and Central American Relief Act (NACARA) passed by Congress in November 1997, as amended by Section 1(e) of Pub. L. 105-139, provides that once the Employment Third Preference Other Worker (EW) cut-off date has reached the priority date of the latest EW petition approved prior to November 19, 1997, the 10,000 EW numbers available for a fiscal year are to be reduced by up to 5,000 annually beginning in the following fiscal year. This reduction is to be made for as long as necessary to offset adjustments under the NACARA program. Since the EW cut-off date reached November 19, 1997 during Fiscal Year 2001, the reduction in the EW annual limit to 5,000 began in Fiscal Year 2002.

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