US Publishes 8 Requirements for Foreigners With Skilled Worker Visa to Qualify for Green Card
- The US government has outlined specific employment-based preference categories that allow foreign workers on skilled visas to apply for a Green Card
- Applicants must meet several conditions, including being physically present in the US and having an immigrant visa immediately available at the time of filing
- The US immigration law also provides a key provision allowing approved petitions to remain valid even if a worker switches employers under certain conditions
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The United States government has outlined the requirements that foreign nationals on skilled worker visas must meet to qualify for a Green Card through employment-based immigration.
According to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), American immigration law provides several pathways for foreign workers to become lawful permanent residents. These are grouped into preference categories based on the applicant's qualifications and type of employment.
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US green card: Employment-based preference categories
The first preference category, known as EB-1, covers priority workers. This includes individuals with extraordinary ability in fields such as science, the arts, education, business, or athletics, as well as outstanding professors and researchers, and certain multinational managers and executives.
The second preference category, EB-2, is for professionals holding advanced degrees or those with exceptional ability. This category also covers individuals who qualify for national interest waivers.
The third preference category, EB-3, covers skilled workers, professionals, and other workers who do not fall under the first two groups.
Green card: What applicants must satisfy to qualify
For foreign nationals already living in the United States who wish to adjust their status to permanent resident under the EB-1, EB-2, or EB-3 categories, USCIS has set out a list of conditions that must all be met:
1. The applicant must properly file Form I-485, the Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status.
2. Applicants must be physically present in the country at the time of filing.
3. They must also have been lawfully inspected and admitted or paroled into the United States.
4. An immigrant visa must be immediately available both at the point of filing and when USCIS reaches a final decision on the case.
5. The job listed in the Form I-140 petition must still exist with the employer who filed it, and the applicant must intend to accept that role upon approval.
6. None of the applicable bars to adjustment apply.
7. The applicant must be admissible to the United States for lawful permanent residence, or be eligible for a relevant waiver
8. They must merit a favourable exercise of USCIS discretion.
US immigration law does make provision for applicants who change jobs before their case is decided. Under Section 204(j) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, an approved Form I-140 can remain valid for adjustment of status purposes if the new role falls within the same or a similar occupational classification as the original petition, the Form I-485 has remained pending for at least 180 days.
The US had earlier published names of 2 Nigerian women awaiting deportation over fraudulent crimes.
US announces eligibility for Green Card application
Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that the United States government published a list of eight categories of people who qualify to apply for a permanent resident card, commonly known as a Green Card.
Eligibility ranges from family ties to US citizenship and employment in specialised fields to refugee or asylum status and victims of abuse.
Source: Legit.ng
