How You Can Get Lawful Permanent Residency Through Your Job
You’ve left your native land and come to the United States to start a new life. You want to get a green card, granting you lawful permanent residency, so that you won’t ever have to worry about staying here. One of the most common ways to secure a green card is through your employment. Let’s look at the different options under U.S. law for obtaining an employment-based green card.
The Different Employment-Based Visa Options
There are five different employment-based visas available under American law:
- EB-1 visas—EB-1 visas, also known as “priority worker” visas, are the first preference category of employment-based visas. To potentially qualify for an EB-1 visa, you must fall into one of the following subcategories:
- EB-1A—A worker of extraordinary ability—someone with a “level of expertise indicating… the very top level of the[ir] field of endeavor,” in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics.
- EB-1B—Outstanding professors or researchers
- EB-1C—Executives or management level employees of multinational companies who are being transferred to positions in the United States
A person who qualifies may obtain an EB-1A visa without having a job offer from an employer.
- EB-2 visas—These visas are potentially available to people in two categories: professionals with an advanced degree and people with “exceptional” ability. To obtain an EB-2 visa, a person must have a job offer from an employer who sponsors their application. An exception to the job-offer requirement is available for persons whose work will benefit the United States due to its “substantial merit and national importance.”
- Professionals with an advanced degree—The applicant must have completed all requirements to earn an advanced academic degree, such as a J.D. (law degree), M.D. (medical doctor), Ph.D., or a master’s degree, including an M.B.A.
- Persons with exceptional ability—The standard here is not as high as for the EB-1A visa. A person may qualify for this visa by having significantly above-average ability in science, the arts, education, business, or athletics.
- EB-3 visas—These are available to professional, skilled, and unskilled employees. There are only 40,000 EB-3 visas granted every year, and 10,000 of those are set aside for unskilled workers. Workers applying for an EB-3 visa must have a full-time job offer from an American employer. An EB-3 visa also requires that the employer obtain a labor certification from the U.S. Department of Labor, demonstrating that the employer tried to find American workers to do the job but could not.
- EB-4 visas—The EB-4 visa is a bit of a catchall category, also referred to as the “special immigrant” visa. Less than 10,000 are typically approved in any given year, and there’s a ceiling of 5,000 visas for religious workers. Currently, some of these visas are set aside for, among others, Afghan nationals, Panama Canal Treaty employees, Iraqi nationals, and children in the care of the U.S. government.
- The EB-5 “investor” visa—A person who invests money to create a new American business with at least 10 employees may qualify for a green card. Currently, to qualify, a person must invest at least $800,000 in a targeted economic area or rural area, or at least $1,050,000 in any location in the United States.
Let Bailey & Galyen Help You Explore Your Options to Get a Green Card
At the law offices of Bailey & Galyen, we bring more than 40 years of experience to people in Texas and nationwide who have questions or concerns about any aspect of immigration, including how to obtain a green card. We have a comprehensive knowledge of American immigration laws, and we can help you take the right steps to apply for lawful permanent residency. To learn more about how we can help you secure an employment-based green card, contact us by e-mail or call our offices at one of the convenient locations listed below. Our phones are answered 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
