US employers may sponsor immigrants to the US by offering qualified job opportunities to them. Frequently this process involves filing applications to the Department of Labor as well as USCIS. Each situation is unique and the process is complex. The Buffington Law Firm works closely with employers and immigrants to achieve a successful result.

What follows is a brief description of the types of employment-based immigration categories currently available.

Categories of Employment-based Immigration

• EB-1: This employment-based immigration category is available to individuals (including their immediate family members) of extraordinary ability, professors and researchers and multi-national executives and managers. In some cases a job offer by US employers is not required nor must the intending immigrant obtain certification from the Department of Labor.
• EB-2: The EB-2 employment-based category is available to individuals who hole advanced degrees (such as a Master’s Degree or PhD) or a bachelor’s degree plus at least 5 years of work experience in the field. In addition, this visa category is available to individuals who have a specialized degree and have significant achievement in art, business or science. Finally, an individual seeking this classification may request a “National Interest Waiver” that eliminates the need for Labor Certification because it in the national interest of the United States to do so.
• EB-3: EB-3 visas are an employment-based immigrant visa. This visa is available to three categories of people: skilled workers, unskilled workers, and professionals. The visa requires a US employer/sponsor offering full-time employment and Labor Certification. A professional is a person who has a bachelor’s degree (or foreign equivalent) and a job offer that requires a bachelor’s degree in that field. A skilled worker is one who has a least 2 years of relevant experience and an unskilled worker is one whose job requires less than 2 years experience. The unskilled category has a limited number of visas available can take years to obtain.
• EB-5: The EB-5 visa program establishes a path to permanent residence for up to 10,000 immigrants (and their immediate family members) annually who invest in an existing or new business in the United States and create or preserve at least 10 U.S. jobs. The minimum investment amount will be $900,000 as of November, 2019. In addition, the initial term of residency is 2 years and an application to remove the condition must be filed before the end of the initial 2-year period. If the condition is removed the applicant will receive a normal 10 year permanent resident card (“green card”).