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IMMIGRANT VISAS

EB-1 

Extraordinary Ability, Outstanding Professors and Researchers or Multinational Manager or Executive

Extraordinary Ability: You must be able to demonstrate extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics through sustained national or international acclaim. Your achievements must be recognized in your field through extensive documentation. No offer of employment is required.

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Outstanding Professors and Researchers: You must demonstrate international recognition for your outstanding achievements in a particular academic field. You must have at least 3 years experience in teaching or research in that academic area. You must be entering the United States in order to pursue tenure or tenure track teaching or comparable research position at a university or other institution of higher education.

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Multinational Manager or Executive: You must have been employed outside the United States in the 3 years preceding the petition for at least 1 year by a firm or corporation and you must be seeking to enter the United States to continue service to that firm or organization. Your employment must have been outside the United States in a managerial or executive capacity and with the same employer, an affiliate, or a subsidiary of the employer.

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EB-2

Advanced Degree, Exceptional Ability, or National Interest Waiver

Advanced Degree: The job you apply for must require an advanced degree and you must possess such a degree or its equivalent (a baccalaureate degree plus 5 years progressive work experience in the field).

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Exceptional Ability: You must be able to show exceptional ability in the sciences, arts, or business. Exceptional ability “means a degree of expertise significantly above that ordinarily encountered in the sciences, arts, or business.”

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National Interest Waiver: Aliens seeking a national interest waiver are requesting that the Labor Certification be waived because it is in the interest of the United States. Though the jobs that qualify for a national interest waiver are not defined by statute, national interest waivers are usually granted to those who have exceptional ability (see above) and whose employment in the United States would greatly benefit the nation. Those seeking a national interest waiver may self-petition (they do not need an employer to sponsor them) and may file their labor certification directly with USCIS along with their Form I-140, Petition for Alien Worker.

EB-3

Professional, Skilled Worker, Other Worker

Professionals: You must be able to demonstrate that you possess a U.S. baccalaureate degree or foreign degree equivalent, and that a baccalaureate degree is the normal requirement for entry into the occupation. You must be performing work for which qualified workers are not available in the United States. Education and experience may not be substituted for a baccalaureate degree. 

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Skilled Workers: You must be able to demonstrate at least 2 years of job experience or training. You must be performing work for which qualified workers are not available in the United States. 

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Other Workers (Unskilled Workers): You must be capable, at the time the petition is filed on your behalf, of performing unskilled labor (requiring less than 2 years training or experience), that is not of a temporary or seasonal nature, for which qualified workers are not available in the United States.

EB-5

Investor 

To qualify for the EB-5 immigrant visa, a foreign investor must invest the required amount of capital in a new commercial enterprise that will create full-time positions for at least 10 qualifying ​U.S. workers.​ 

 

You may be eligible to be classified as an EB-5 Immigrant Investor if:

 

  • You invest in a “new commercial enterprise” – any for-profit activity formed for the ongoing conduct of lawful business that was either:

  • Established after Nov. 29, 1990, or

  • Established on or before Nov. 29, 1990, and is:

  • Purchased and the existing business is restructured or reorganized in such a way that a new commercial enterprise results, or

  • Expanded through the investment so that a 40-percent increase in the net worth or number of employees occurs.

 

  • You invest the minimum amount of capital required for the location where the new commercial enterprise will be principally doing business or creating jobs. The standard minimum investment amount is $1.8 million. The minimum amount is reduced to $900,000 for Targeted Employment Areas (TEA). A TEA can be either a rural area or an area that has experienced high unemployment.

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  • Your investment will create full-time positions for at least 10 qualifying ​U.S. workers.

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