EB-1 Alien of Extraordinary Ability
I. EB-1 ALIEN OF EXTRAORDINARY ABILITY
A. Overview
You can get a green card under employment-based first preference: Alien of Extraordinary Ability (Employment-Based first preference (EB-1), as provided for under § 203(b)(1)(A) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (the Act), 8 U.S.C. §1153(b)(1)(A)).
EB-1is generally the fastest way to get a green card under the employment-based categories. See USCIS processing times here.
To get a green card under EB-1 Alien of Extraordinary Ability, there are two independent steps. The first step is to file form I-140 along with a petition to verify that you are of extraordinary ability. After your I-140 is approved, you may file for green card using form I-485. You may file both I-140 and I-485 concurrently, if your priority date is current. See current information on priority date here.
B. The Advantages of EB-1 Alien of Extraordinary Ability
Most people prefer to file under first preference for several reasons.
1. You can self-petition
Under EB-1 Alien of Extraordinary Ability, you can file for green card for yourself by yourself. You do not need to be employed, but should be working in the same field that the petition is based on.
2. Relatively fast approval time
The approval time under EB-1 Alien of Extraordinary Ability is generally faster than other employment preferences. USCIS usually process this preference the fastest, often sending approval notices in a few months.
3. Concurrent filing of I-485
If your priority date is current, then you can file for green card under I-485 immediately, in which case you will have the ability to stay in the U.S. and obtain Employment Authorization Document allowing you to work. This is particularly useful, if for example, you lose your job under H1-B, and must move onto another status immediately.
C. There Are Some Disadvantages For EB-1 Alien Of Extraordinary Ability
The disadvantage to this preference is that USCIS requires you to be “one of that small percentage who have risen to the very top of the field of endeavor.” It is not easy to qualify under this preference.
II. THE SUCCESS OF YOUR PETITION DEPENDS ON HOW IT IS WRITTEN
USCIS never meets with you face-to-face, and so everything depends on your petition.
III. THE KENZL LAW METHODS
To create the best petition possible, Kenzl Law Offices can help you in one of two methods.
A. Method One: You Act As The Expert And We Act As Your Lawyer
In the first method, you act as a creditable expert, and tell us about your accomplishment. Using your explanations, and we translate the words into a legally sufficient petition of why you are an alien of extraordinary ability.
B. Method Two: We Become Your Expert And Act As Your Lawyer
In the second method, you teach us about your accomplishments, so that we become creditable experts. Using our newly learned expert knowledge, we create the necessary theories on why you are an alien of extraordinary ability. Finally we write everything down in a legally sufficient petition.
The first method is easier to do because most lawyers do not have the ability to become experts. Nevertheless, by putting in enough effort, we can become experts and give you both factual suggestions and legal advice. This second method is difficult to do, but the results are very good.
IV. THE KENZL LAW ADVANTAGES
Our law offices try to gain as much advantage for our clients as possible, and the following are what we routinely provide.
A. Advantage One: We Look For The Best EB-1 Strategy
The threshold requirements for EB-1 alien of extraordinary ability are very high. Thus, we have to use every available accomplishment to make our client appear as being qualified. A good strategy goes a long way toward the success of the final approval.
B. Advantage Two: We Find and/or Create Useful Evidence To Support Your Petition
Our clients often overlook important evidence. Hence, one of our many duties is to find useful evidence that can support the petition. We put ourselves in USCIS’ position and look for that USCIS would like to see. At other times, the supporting evidence is there but is a mess, and so we have to use our skills to separate or recreate the useful evidence from the rest. To do this well, we must first become experts in your field.
C. Advantage Three: We Use Creativity To Boost Your Petition
There are many small advantages for each case, but it is impossible to identify them all. Nevertheless, by learning about a case and discussing the facts with our clients, we can use creativity to discovery many new advantages. If the USCIS agent reading the petition agrees with the advantages, then we have made meaningful impact on the petition.
D. Advantage Four: Our Petitions Are Easy To Understand
If the USCIS does not understand what you have done, then you have done nothing. Considering that most USCIS officers are not experts, your petition must be simple enough that an average person can understand it. At Kenzl Law Offices, we write and rewrite the petition until it is simple enough that the extraordinary ability is obvious.
E. Advantage Five: We Allow Unlimited Revisions
To ensure that each client is completely satisfied with the petition, we allow unlimited revisions. When we take on a case, we continue to revise the draft until our clients are satisfied with the end result.
V. THE REST OF THE SERIES
The rest of this series will provide information on the requirements of EB-1 alien of extraordinary ability.