Employment-Based Immigration
Individuals may also come to the United States under employment-based immigrant or non-immigrant visas. For persons seeking to immigrate (permanently) to the U.S. through an employer, the person must have a job offer to work permanently in the U.S., and an employer in the U.S. who is willing to sponsor the person for lawful permanent residence in the U.S. This process is for most cases employer-driven, meaning the employer initiates the petition process on behalf of the employee. Under some visa categories, however, the employee may self-petition. If the employee is eligible to seek permanent residency, in most cases the employer must file a labor certification application to the U.S. Department of Labor. Upon approval of the labor certification application, the employer then files the immigrant petition on behalf of the employee. Once the immigrant petition is approved and a visa number is available, the employee may then submit an application for a permanent residency.

Categories of Employment-Based Visas
There are five categories for employment-based immigration:

EB-1 Priority Workers, which include:

• Individuals with extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business or athletics.
• Outstanding professors or researchers.
• Managers and executives transferred to the U.S.

Individuals with Extraordinary Ability
Persons with extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business or athletics, which has been demonstrated by sustained national or international acclaim and whose achievements have been recognized in the field through extensive documentation may self-petition as foreign nationals of extraordinary ability. Among the evidentiary criteria required for a successful petition, an applicant under the EB-1 visa category should submit evidence of a major prize or award, such as a Nobel Prize, or lesser recognized prizes or awards for excellence, proof of membership in associations that demand outstanding achievement of its members, proof of having participated as the judge of the work of others, among other criteria.

Outstanding Professors and Researchers
The Outstanding Researcher visa category is available to persons who can demonstrate that they are internationally recognized in their field; have at least three years of experience in research or teaching in the field; or have a job offer from an accredited university or institution for higher education to work in a tenure-track teaching or comparable research position in the field, among other qualifying criteria.

Multinational Managers and Executives
Executives or managers from parent, affiliate, or subsidiary/branch offices of a U.S. company overseas may apply for an immigrant visa under this category if they can show that they have worked as a manager or executive in an overseas office of the U.S. sponsor for at least one out of the three years preceding the transfer to the United States; and they will be joining the affiliate, subsidiary or parent company in the U.S. as an executive or manager. The U.S. Company sponsor must show that it has been a parent, subsidiary, affiliate or branch office of the company overseas, and that it has been conducting business with it for at least one year.

One of the advantages of the EB-1 category is that a labor certification is not required prior to filing the immigrant petition. The EB-1 visa sub-categories contain, however, very stringent eligibility requirements compared to the EB-2 and EB-3 categories. At Cordova Immigration Law, we work with your individual and employment needs to find the best immigration solution.

EB-2 Professionals with Advanced Degrees or Persons with Exceptional Ability:

• Individuals with Exceptional Ability in the Sciences, Arts or Business.
• Professionals with advanced degrees.
• Qualified Physicians intending to practice medicine in underserved areas.

Individuals with Exceptional Ability in the Sciences, Arts or Business A person qualifies as an applicant of exceptional ability in the sciences, arts, or business if he/she has attained a degree of expertise significantly above that ordinarily encountered in the field. To qualify under this category, a person can show that he/she has at least ten years of full-time experience in the field; membership in professional associations; and recognition from peers, government officials, or organizations for achievements and significant contributions in the field, among other acceptable criteria.

Professionals with Advanced Degrees
A person with an advanced degree, as accepted by the USCIS, also qualifies a person to the EB-2 visa category. An applicant should submit evidence of the advanced degree, or proof of a bachelor’s degree along with five years of progressive experience in the field. The labor certification must indicate that the available employment position offered requires the advanced degree held to perform the job.

Qualified physicians
A qualified physician who will be practicing medicine in an underserved area of the U.S. may apply for employment under the EB-2 category. This category does not require a labor certification.

National Interest Waiver
If you are a worker with exceptional ability in the sciences, arts, or business, you may apply to waive the requirement of a job offer and labor certification requirement if the waiver would be in the national interest.

A physician practicing in the areas of family or general medicine, pediatrics, general internal medicine, obstetrics/gynecology, or psychiatry in an underserved area may petition for a national interest waiver to waive the labor certification requirement.

EB-3 Skilled or Professional Workers:
The EB-3 category includes:

• Professionals with a bachelor’s degree.
• Individuals with at least two years of experience as skilled workers.
• Unskilled laborers who possess less than two years of experience with work for which U.S. workers are not available.

A job offer from a U.S. employer is required. The employer must confirm that it is hiring the employee for an occupation in which the employee has received training/education, or a closely related occupation. A labor certification is also required for all EB-3 visa applicants. Some considerations to keep in mind when pursuing a visa under the EB-3 category are:

• Professionals must show evidence of a U.S. bachelor’s degree (or its foreign equivalent) as a minimum requirement to enter the profession. Experience and education cannot be substituted for the degree.
• Skilled workers must show evidence of capability in an occupation that requires at least two years of training or experience in the applicable skill set.
• Unskilled workers must have less than two years of higher education, training, or experience.

Another important factor affecting EB-3 visas is the large backlog of visas, and the lengthy wait time before visas become available. Contact Mr. Cordova to discuss at length which visa category is most appropriate for your situation.

EB-4 Special Immigrants
The EB-4 category includes special immigrant religious workers. To qualify under this category:

• You must be a member of a religious organization that has a non-profit religious unit in the U.S.
• You must have been working in the religious organization for at least two years before applying to the U.S. for permanent residency.
• You must be entering the U.S. to work in one of the following capacities: as a minister or priest of a religious organization; in a religious vocation or occupation for a religious organization that requires you to have a bachelor's degree or its foreign equivalent; or in a religious vocation or occupation for a religious organization or its non-profit affiliate. The term religious vocation refers to cantors, missionaries, and religious instructors.

EB-5 Immigrant Investors:
Under this category, qualified individuals seeking permanent residence on the basis of their engagement in a new commercial enterprise can do so by applying for investor visas. This visa category is available to investors, either alone or coming with their spouse and unmarried children. An eligible EB-5 immigrant investor must show:

• Establishment of a business.
• Active involvement in the business.
• Investment of at least $1 million in the business ($500,000 is acceptable in certain designated areas) which can be in cash, equipment, inventory, etc.
• Engagement in a business that benefits the U.S. economy.
• Creation of full-time employment for not fewer than 10 U.S. workers.

Qualified EB-5 investors are subject to “conditional” permanent residence for a two-year period. During this conditional period, the EB-5 investor must continuously meet the legal requirements for the EB-5 visa category. The EB-5 investor must file an application to remove these conditions ninety days before the second anniversary of the investor’s admission to the U.S. as a conditional permanent resident.