The immigrant visa backlog increased by 6% February 2023 with Jacob Sapochnick

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In this video, attorney Jacob Sapochnick provides an update regarding the recent increase in the Immigrant Visa backlogs, which grew to more than 21,000 additional cases in the month of February alone.

If you would like to know more about this important update, please keep on watching.

Did you Know? Every month the Department of State’s National Visa Center (NVC) publishes an Immigrant Visa Backlog report, which provides data and statistics relating to the current status of worldwide visa operations, including the number of documentarily complete immigrant visa cases currently at the National Visa Center waiting for interviews, the number of cases that were scheduled for interviews at the end of each month, and the number of immigrant visa cases still waiting to be scheduled for a visa interview after interview appointment scheduling was completed at the end of each month.

Overview

According to the National Visa Center’s Immigrant Visa Backlog Report for the month of February 2023, there has been a substantial increase in the immigrant visa (IV) backlog rising from 386,787 pending cases in January to 408,456 cases in February — nearly a 6% increase amounting to a jump of 21,669 additional cases added to the backlog in just a one-month period. 

Additionally, when comparing the January and February Immigrant Visa backlogs, we can see that the number of immigrant visa applicants whose cases were documentarily complete and therefore ready to be scheduled for an interview at Consulates and Embassies increased by 21,874 cases, from 422,954 (in January) to 444,828 (in February).

  • A case is considered documentarily complete by the National Visa Center, when the applicant has paid all necessary fees and submits all necessary documents to meet the formal visa application requirements, such that the case is ready to be scheduled for a visa interview. When a case becomes documentarily complete, the NVC sends applicants an email to notify them that their case is complete and pending scheduling at the local Consulate or Embassy.

January 2023 Immigrant Visa Backlog Report

Number of IV applicants whose cases are documentarily complete at NVC and ready for interview as of December 31 422,954
Number of documentarily complete IV applicants scheduled for January 2023 interview appointments 36,167
Number of eligible IV applicants still pending the scheduling of an interview after January 2023 appointment scheduling was completed 386,787

February 2023 Immigrant Visa Backlog Report

Number of IV applicants whose cases are documentarily complete at NVC and ready for interview as of January 31 444,828
Number of documentarily complete IV applicants scheduled for February 2023 interview appointments 36,372
Number of eligible IV applicants still pending the scheduling of an interview after February 2023 appointment scheduling was completed 408,456

Note: In Calendar Year 2019 on average, 60,866 applicants were pending the scheduling of an interview each month.

This data is a snapshot in time provided for informational purposes in order to be as transparent as possible.  Given that these numbers change on a regular basis through our ongoing effort to reduce the backlog, they will be outdated soon after they are published each month.  

From the data above, in February roughly the same number of applicants whose cases were documentarily complete were scheduled for interviews, with only a 205 increase in February from 36,372 to 36,167.

Why was there such an increase in the backlogs?

As many of our followers will know, the majority of Consulates and Embassies worldwide continue to work on a limited capacity and have not resumed routine visa services. Operational capacity has varied widely from Consulate to Consulate depending on staffing, resources, local country conditions, quarantine regulations, and other COVID-19 related measures.

Due to this grim reality, Embassies and Consulates have been unable to accommodate the high demand for visa interview appointments, leaving the vast majority of cases “warehoused” at the National Visa Center. This means that the NVC has not been able to transfer cases to Consulates or Embassies for visa interview scheduling, because no interview slots are available to meet such high demand, even where cases have been found to be “documentarily complete” by the NVC.

From the numbers indicated above, Consulates and Embassies are clearly struggling to manage the growing backlogs with no resolution in sight. How soon your interview may be scheduled largely depends on the status of immigrant visa processing in your home country. For that reason, applicants should monitor their Embassy’s webpage on a daily basis and contact their Embassy directly to understand their current processing times.

Those who are facing severe medical emergencies, have urgent humanitarian needs, are facing severe financial loss, or have other compelling circumstances, should consult with an attorney to determine whether filing an expedite request could provide relief. Depending on the Consulate and your individual circumstances, an expedite request may or may not be advised.

If your case has been pending for more than 2 years without interview scheduling, you may also wish to consult with an attorney to discuss the possibility of filing a mandamus lawsuit in federal court compelling the Consulate to take action on your application.

Contact us. If you would like to schedule a consultation, please text 619-483-4549 or call 619-819-9204.

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