immediate relatives. This classification removes the numerical limits on the number of immigrant visas available to them. Other bills offered partial solutions to the problem. However, with a new session of Congress that began in January 2007, these bills have lapsed. New bills would have to be introduced for any relief. Most other developed nations do not separate nuclear families. Canada, for example, expedites family unity petitions. Statistics Number of visas issued by year The first V visas were issued in Fiscal Year 2001, after the LIFE Act became law. In the table below, the years are Fiscal Years, so for instance the year 2009 refers to the period from October 1, 2008 to September 30, 2009. Note that this only counts V visas issued at embassies and consulates outside the United States, and does not include people who changed nonimmigrant status to V status within the United States. The significance of the V visa has declined over time, because it applies only to people who had filed Form I-130 petitions on or before December 21, 2000. The most recent V visas were issued in Fiscal Year 2007. See also Family reunification References External links Legal Immigration Family Equity (LIFE) Act (USCIS) V Visa Regulation (Federal Register: September 7, 2001 [Volume 66, Number 174]) INS Implements ‘V’ Nonimmigrant Provision of the LIFE Act (INS News Release, September 7, 2001) How Do I Become a V-Nonimmigrant? (USCIS) Nonimmigrant (V) Visa for Spouse and Children of a Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR) (US Department of State) Bills H.R.1823 To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to extend the provisions governing nonimmigrant status for spouses and children of permanent resident aliens awaiting the availability of an immigrant visa, and for other purposes. S.1919 Immigrant Accountability Act of 2005: A bill to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act in order to reunify families, to provide for earned adjustment of status, and for other purposes. UniteFamilies.org — a not-for-profit, volunteer-run group that advocates changing the immigration laws to remedy this situation. Yahoo! Groups: unitefamilies - Unite LPRs with their families b2bhandshake's Diary News Articles/Opinions A Family's Wait for U.S. Visas Spans Generations (Jennifer Ludden, NPR) Laws could help unite immigrant families. Green card carriers have hardest time visiting spouses (Cicero A. Estrella, San Francisco Chronicle) Families pay price of faulty policies (Jeff Jacoby, Boston Globe) Immigrants forced to wait longer for family to join them (Suzanne