Permit Application Process

With restricted exceptions, all EB-2 and EB-3 green card applications require that the company acquire a Labor Certification from the U.S. Department of Labor. For petitions requiring this action, the Labor Certification procedure is typically the hardest and most difficult action. Prior to being able to file the Labor Certification application, the company must get a fundamental wage from the Department of Labor and show that there are no minimally qualified U.S. employees available for the positions through the conclusion of a competitive recruitment procedure.

In the case of positions that include teaching tasks, the company must document that the chosen candidate is the “finest certified” for the position. This process is frequently called “Special Handling.”

In both the “basic” and the “special handling” procedure, the employer needs to finish a formal recruitment process to document that there are no minimally qualified U.S. employees available or that, in the case of positions that have a mentor employment part, that the picked candidate is the very best qualified. It prevails that this recruitment procedure must be completed well after the foreign national worker began their position at the University.

As quickly as the Labor Certification has been filed with the Department of Labor, the “concern date” for employment the applicant is established. This date is very important to identify when someone can finish action # 3, i.e. the of Status. (If no Labor Certification is required, employment the top priority date is established with the filing of the Immigrant Petition/ Form I-140.

2. Immigrant Petition

Once the Department of Labor authorizes the Labor Certification, the Immigrant Petition (Form I-140) can be submitted with USCIS. In cases where no Labor Certification is required (e.g. EB-1), employment the filing of the I-140 is the very first action of the green card process.

3. Adjustment of Status or Obtaining an Immigrant Visa

Once the I-140 application has been authorized by USCIS, employment the foreign national can look for the modification of their non-immigrant status (Form I-485) to that of a legal irreversible resident. Instead of applying for the Adjustment of Status, a foreign nationwide may also get an immigrant visa at a U.S. consulate or embassy abroad.

The I-485 Adjustment of Status application can not be filed up until and unless the “top priority date” is present. In practice this indicates that, depending on one’s nation of birth and EB-category, there might be a stockpile. The stockpile exists due to the fact that more individuals use for permits in an offered classification than there are readily available permit visa numbers. The overall number of green cards is further limited by the fact that, employment with some exceptions, no greater than seven percent of all green cards in an offered choice category can go to people born in an offered country. The backlog is upgraded monthly by the U.S. Department of State and employment is released in the Visa Bulletin.

Once somebody’s concern date date has been reached, as indicated in the Visa Bulletin, the I-485 can be filed. The top priority date is the date on which the Labor Certification was filed with the Department of Labor, or, if no Labor Certification was needed, USCIS received the I-140 petition.

Note that the Visa Bulletin consists of two different tables with concern cut-off dates. The actual cut-off dates are suggested in table A “Application Final Action Dates for Employment-based Preference Cases.” However, in some instances, USCIS may accept the I-485 application if the top priority date is existing based upon table B “Dates for Filing of Employment-based Visa Applications.” Note that USCIS will make a decision whether Table B may be utilized several days after the official Visa Bulletin is released. USCIS publishes this information on its website dedicated to the Visa Bulletin.

Sometimes, it might be possible to submit the I-140 and I-485 at the very same time. This is not always recommended, even if it is possible. If the I-140 is denied, the I-485 will likewise be denied if submitted concurrently.