EB-1 – Employment-Based First Preference Green Card

You may be eligible for an employment-based, first-preference visa if you are a noncitizen of extraordinary ability, an outstanding professor or researcher, or a certain multinational executive or manager. Each occupational category has specific requirements that must be met.

At Barutcu Law Office, we provide comprehensive support throughout the EB-1 visa application process, ensuring that all necessary documentation is correctly prepared and submitted. Contact us for personalized assistance with your EB-1 visa application.

You must be able to demonstrate extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics through sustained national or international acclaim. You must meet at least 3 of the 10 criteria listed below, or provide evidence of a one-time achievement (i.e., Pulitzer, Oscar, Olympic Medal) as well as evidence showing that you will continue to work in your area of expertise. No offer of employment or labor certification is required.

Extraordinary Ability Criteria:

1. Evidence of receipt of lesser nationally or internationally recognized prizes or awards for excellence.
2. Evidence of your membership in associations in the field which demand outstanding achievement of their members.
3. Evidence of published material about you in professional or major trade publications or other major media.
4. Evidence that you have been asked to judge the work of others, either individually or on a panel.
5. Evidence of your original scientific, scholarly, artistic, athletic, or business-related contributions of major significance to the field.
6. Evidence of your authorship of scholarly articles in professional or major trade publications or other major media.
7. Evidence that your work has been displayed at artistic exhibitions or showcases.
8. Evidence of your performance of a leading or critical role in distinguished organizations.
9. Evidence that you command a high salary or other significantly high remuneration in relation to others in the field.
10. Evidence of your commercial successes in the performing arts.

You must demonstrate international recognition for your outstanding achievements in a particular academic field. You must have at least 3 years of experience in teaching or research in that academic area. You must be entering the United States to pursue tenure or tenure-track teaching or a comparable research position at a university, institution of higher education, or private employer. You must meet at least 2 of the 6 criteria listed below and provide an offer of employment from the prospective U.S. employer. The private employer must show documented accomplishments and that it employs at least 3 full-time researchers. No labor certification is required.

Outstanding Professors and Researchers Criteria

1. Evidence of receipt of major prizes or awards for outstanding achievement.
2. Evidence of membership in associations that require their members to demonstrate outstanding achievement.
3. Evidence of published material in professional publications written by others about the noncitizen’s work in the academic field.
4. Evidence of participation, either on a panel or individually, as a judge of the work of others in the same or allied academic field.
5. Evidence of original scientific or scholarly research contributions in the field.
6. Evidence of authorship of scholarly books or articles (in scholarly journals with international circulation) in the field.

You must have been employed outside the United States for at least 1 year in the 3 years preceding the petition or the most recent lawful nonimmigrant admission if you are already working for the U.S. petitioning employer. The U.S. petitioner must have been doing business for at least 1 year, have a qualifying relationship to the entity you worked for outside the U.S., and intend to employ you in a managerial or executive capacity. No labor certification is required.

Extraordinary Ability: You may apply for yourself by filing Form I-140, Petition for Alien Worker.

Outstanding Professors and Researchers: Your U.S. employer must file Form I-140, Petition for Alien Worker. The employer must demonstrate a continuing ability to pay the offered wage as of the priority date using an annual report, federal income tax return, or audited financial statement.

Multinational Manager or Executive: Your U.S. employer must file Form I-140, Petition for Alien Worker. The employer must demonstrate a continuing ability to pay the offered wage as of the priority date using an annual report, federal income tax return, or audited financial statement.

If your I-140 petition is approved, your spouse and unmarried children under the age of 21 may be eligible to apply for admission to the United States in E-14 or E-15 immigrant status, respectively.