Lawrence, Anna, and I moderate this forum; we do not set US immigration rules and laws.
And to clear up some misinformation that many of you have with stating that the US always opens up things in a year or two are mistaken for several reasons.
Until about four years ago, all nurses coming to US via an employer sponsored petition came only on the H1-B visa; they never started the permanent residency process out of the US. This is about the same time that the US stopped using the temporary visas for nurses and began fast-tracking them for the green card per hospital request as well.
H1-B visas have been around since I became a nurse quite a few years ago, and I remember quite well working with foreign nurses at that time, and primary those from the Philippines. And I remember that there have been periods of time that H1-B visas were not issued to nurses during that time and for about five years each time due to what was happening in the US in the realm of nursing.
What we post about the retrogression is in fact what is going on now; what happened 16 months ago no longer has any bearing on what is happening in the US now, at this time. The US is not required to accept all that are submitted for the green card, they have the right to limit the number of foreigners from any one country that can get the green card per year. And when there is a dramatic increase in the number of applicants, then the chances of getting one go down.
In the past, if you attended school in the US for nursing, you had a strong chance of being able to remain here and get the coveted green card. But that is no longer the case. Requirements and the number of visas still pertain to those that wish to go thru the AOS route. The only thing that is waived is the requirement for the English exams, all other requirements remain in place.
This past summer when there were no visas available, the US got forced to accept petitions; there were more than 800,000 that were submitted when you add in spouses and children. There are only 140,000 green cards per year issued under the EB-3 category. So that makes it five years or so just under the AOS, and that does not include all that have been waiting for sometime for the green card via CP route. This is why I state over and over again, that the chances of having the AOS open up again anytime soon is going to be almost impossible. They need to get thru those that have been waiting first.
And if you stop to look at why there were so many that were submitted this summer, it is based on the fact that there have been many here under the H1-B visa, but in different professions, that just got the open window to have their I-485s submitted. And many had been waiting for three to four years for that.
In the article that I poste the other day from the AsianJournal, there was also an article on the front page about the nursing shortage and the expectation that they do not see much of one in the next ten years due to the fact that there are many more American nursing students now in programs. The push is on to train more Americans and provide jobs for them first, before anyone else.
We are only here trying to help and provide you with accurate information. It is your choice whether to use it or not. If you do not like what we are posting, then suggest that you use another source for your information.
And a big p.s. to this all: Lawrence and Anna are in other countries waiting for their processing of their visas, they are not working in the US, nor have they ever been working here. They have been doing things the legal and correct way and are waiting for their visas. There is no entitlement when it comes to getting a visa for the US. It is a privilege and that only. It is up to the US if they have a visa for you, not the other way around. And there is no guarantee that you will get a visa.
We help others here on a volunteer basis and if we did not enjoy what we were doing; trust me, we would not be here that much or even at all.
