The Visa Bulletin is a monthly publication that provides up to date information on immigration. It is published by the Bureau of Consular Affairs, which is a part of the Department of State. It is available free of charge on the internet, or you can choose to subscribe to the visa bulletin so it’s delivered to your email inbox. The Visa Bulletin proves to be a viable source of information, especially to immigration attorneys. For certain immigrant visa categories, annual limits exist on how many visas can be issued each fiscal year. The Visa Bulletin provides readers with current data on this information, so it’s easy to see if the annual cap has been reached.

Information included in the visa bulletin includes monthly immigration numbers, refugee applications, as well as specific immigration application data from varying countries. Each month, the office of Consular Affairs is required to report immigration numbers to the Department of State. The visa bulletin summarizes these data, and includes the monthly immigration numbers in its publication. An example of data that the visa bulletin includes is as follows:

• Statutory numbers:
• Family-sponsored preferences
• Employment-Based preferences
• Diversity Immigrant Category (DV)
• Data on Diversity Immigrant Category cut off estimates