EB-1 is an employment-based first preference immigration visa for noncitizens who (A) exhibit extraordinary abilities, (B) are outstanding professors/researchers, or (C) a multinational executives/managers. This article will focus on the EB-1B category, which applies to outstanding professors and researchers in scientific and scholarly fields. Unlike EB-1A, EB-1B applicants need the employer to file I-140 on their behalf. This also means EB-1B applicants are required to receive a permanent job offer prior to application. Consequently, in this case, the employer is the petitioner and the noncitizen is the beneficiary.
Qualifications for EB-1B applicants
If you are wondering if you could qualify for an EB-1B visa, just ask yourself the following questions:
Do you have international recognition for outstanding achievements in a particular academic field?
Do you have at least 3 years of relevant research or teaching experience in that particular field after obtaining a degree in the field?
Do you have a permanent job offer in the U.S. for a research position or a tenured/tenure-track teaching position from the sponsoring employer?
A permanent job offering refers to any job that does not have a fixed termination date. Salary and job titles do not determine what is or is not a permanent job offer.
The sponsoring employer can be either a university, institution of higher education, or private employer. The private employer must show documented accomplishments and that it employs at least 3 full-time researchers. No labor certification is required.
Criterias for EB-1B
If your answer to all these three questions is yes, you might be eligible for EB-1B. In order to prove your eligibility, the beneficiary must provide evidence for at least two of the following six criterias:
Receipt of major prizes in that particular field for an outstanding achievement
Membership in associations that require their members to obtain an outstanding achievement
Published material in professional publications by someone else about the beneficiary work in the particular academic field/an outstanding accomplished
Participation as a judge/critic of the work others are doing in the same field
Original scientific or scholarly research contributions in a particular field
Written or contributed to scholarly books or articles in a particular field
Application Process
Although there are various aspects to the application process, a quick overview includes:
1. Consultation with an immigration attorney and evaluation:
To have one experienced attorney review and evulate the applicant's criteria.
2. Filing I-140 Form
Petition for Alien Worker
Gather evidence for qualifications
Draft Recommendation letters
Evidence that employer can continue to pay offered wages (annual report, federal income tax return, etc)
3. Adjustment of Status or Consular Processing
If you are present in the U.S. already, you will submit a Form I-485. Once approved, you will be granted a lawful permanent resident status.
If you are outside the U.S., you will submit a DS-260 form to the appropriate US consulate, usually in your home country. Following this, you will schedule a visa interview. If your interview is successful, you will be issued an EB1B visa.
If you want to apply for EB-1B and think you qualify, please feel free to email our Managing Principal Yen-Yi Anderson at y.anderson@aalawpc.com for an initial screening. You can also give our firm (Anderson & Associates Law, P.C.) a call at either 646-201-9117 or 646-452-9982. Our hours are Monday through Friday from 9 AM to 6 PM.
Author: Muskaan Bhansali. Muskaan is an intern specializing in the immigration sector at Anderson & Associates Law, P.C. Currently she studies at Amherst College.
