Employment Based immigration
Below you will find a brief description of the employment based preference categories.
Please note: Only "Investors" (see category E5) and "Persons of extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business or athletics" (see category E1) may file their own petition with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). All others must have the prospective employer file a petition on their behalf with the USCIS. Petitions for Employment Based Immigrants cannot be filed at U.S. Embassies abroad.
For detailed information (including petition filing instructions) regarding all categories of immigrant visas, please consult the Bureau of Consular Affairs website:
http://www.travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/immigrants_1340.html
and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website:
http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis
Employment Based
First Preference Category
(E1)
Priority Workers
• Persons of extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business or athletics.
Applicants in this category must have extensive documentation showing sustained national or international acclaim and recognition in the field of expertise. Such applicants do not have to have a specific job offer so long as they are entering the U.S. to continue work in the field in which they have extraordinary ability.
No labor certification is required. Such applicants can file their own petition with the USCIS, rather than through an employer.
• Outstanding professors and researchers with at least three years experience in teaching or research, who are recognized internationally.
No labor certification is required for this classification, but the prospective employer must provide a job offer and file a petition with the USCIS.
• Certain multinational executives and managers who have been employed at least one of the three preceding years by the overseas affiliate, parent, subsidiary, or branch of the U.S. employer. The applicant must be coming to work in a managerial or executive capacity.
No labor certification is required for this classification, but the prospective employer must provide a job offer and file a petition with the USCIS.
Employment Based
Second Preference Category
(E2)
Professionals with an
Advanced Degree
and
Persons with Exceptional Ability in the Sciences, Arts, or Business
• Members of "the professions" (see definition under category E3). Professionals with an advanced degree (beyond a baccalaureate degree), or a baccalaureate degree plus at least 5 years of progressive experience in "the professions".
• Persons with exceptional ability in the sciences, arts, or business. Exceptional ability means having a degree of expertise significantly above that ordinarily encountered within the field.
All Second Preference applicants must have a labor certification approved by the Department of Labor, or Schedule A designation. The prospective employer must provide a job offer and file a petition with the USCIS.
Employment Based
Third Preference Category
(E3)
Professionals with a Baccalaureate Degree,
Skilled Workers
and
Other Workers
• Professionals with a baccalaureate degree and who are members of "the professions".
THE PROFESSIONS
INA 101(a)(32) defines "profession" as including but not limited to architects, engineers, lawyers, physicians, surgeons, and teachers in elementary or secondary schools, colleges, academies, or seminaries. DHS regulations also include any occupation for which a U.S. baccalaureate degree (or foreign equivalent) is the minimum requirement for entry into the occupation.
• Skilled workers with at least two years training or experience (not of temporary or seasonal nature), and for which there are no qualified workers available in the United States.
• "Other workers" to mean qualified persons capable of performing unskilled labor, requiring less than two years training (not of a temporary or seasonal nature), and for which there are no qualified workers available in the United States.
Please note: The Embassy does not keep a list of these professions.
All Third Preference applicants must have a labor certification approved by the Department of Labor, or Schedule A designation, or evidence that they qualify for one of the shortage occupations in the Labor Market Information Pilot Program. The prospective employer must provide a job offer and file a petition with the USCIS.
Employment Based
Fourth Preference Category
(E4)
Special Immigrants
(Incl. interpreters and translators of Iraqi or Afghan nationality)
• Ministers of religion, certain international organization employees and their immediate family members, qualified and recommended current and former employees of the U.S. government, certain international broadcasting employees, and more………. For a complete list, please visit http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/types/types_1323.html
• Interpreters and translators of Iraqi or Afghan nationality who have worked directly with the United States armed forces or under Chief of Mission authority as a translator or interpreter for a period of at least 12 months and meet requirements. For applicants living overseas, see Special Immigrant Visas for Iraqi and Afghan Translators/Interpreters - Frequently Asked Questions for information about criteria, documentary requirements, filing the Form I-360, and more. Also, see USCIS Fact Sheet on Afghan and Iraqi Translators for information including instructions for applicants who are filing in the U.S.
Employment Based
Fifth Preference Category
(E5)
Employment Creation Investors
• Employment Creation Investors. To qualify, an applicant must invest between U.S. $500,000 and $1,000,000, depending on the employment rate in the geographical area, in a commercial enterprise in the United States which creates at least 10 new full-time jobs for U.S. citizens, permanent resident aliens, or other lawful immigrants, not including the investor and his or her family.
No labor certification is required for this classification. The petition must be filed directly with the USCIS.