The Department of State (DOS) announced priorities the U.S. consulates and embassies abroad should use on immigrant visa cases to deal with the backlog created by COVID-19. The announcement was made on August 30, 2021. The global pandemic has caused significant delays in the processing of many family-based cases. In order to address these delays, the DOS has instructed the U.S. embassies and consulates to use a four-tiered or prioritization list to schedule immigrant visa interviews. An immigrant visa is issued to a foreign national who intends to live and work permanently in the United States. An intending immigrant becomes a lawful permanent resident once the individual is admitted into the United States.

According to the DOS, the following priorities are to be used by embassies and consulates to schedule immigrant visa appointments:

  • Tier One:
    • Immediate relative intercountry adoption visas,
    • age-out cases (cases where the applicant will soon no longer qualify because of their age),
    • certain Special Immigrant Visas (SQ and SI for Afghan and Iraqi nationals working with the U.S. government), and
    • emergency cases as determined on a case-by-case basis.
  • Tier Two:
    • Immediate relative visas,
    • fiancé(e) visas; and
    • returning resident visas.
  • Tier Three:
    • Family preference immigrant visas and
    • SE Special Immigrant Visas for certain employees of the U.S. government abroad.
  • Tier Four:
    • All other immigrant visas, including employment preference and diversity visas.

The DOS has ordered the consulates and embassies to use their limited resources to accommodate as many U.S. citizen’s relatives as possible, including spouses, unmarried children under 21 years old, parents, and fiancé. This will undoubtedly leave fewer available slots for appointments for those in Tier Three and Tier Four categories. However, the DOS also gives instructions to the consulates and embassies to schedule and process at least some cases that fall under Tier Three and Four each month. Lastly, the DOS instructs these offices they can prioritize, as emergencies on a case-by-case basis, the immigrant visa cases of certain healthcare professionals who will work at a facility engaged in pandemic response in the U.S.

This system will leave many still waiting to have their loved ones join them in the U.S. However, it gives U. S. Citizens hope they will be united with their loved ones soon. As the global pandemic shows no end in sight, the ILBSG team continues to monitor developments and work with our clients to ensure they get the right advice. Contact us if you have questions about visa interviews abroad or any other immigration-related issue.

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