EB-1 Outstanding Researcher – Professor Green Card candidates are granted a waiver of the labor certification requirement for the green card application, but must have an offer of employment.

Please click here for information on a free initial assessment of your options in this category.  But please review this page before you do.

EB-1 Outstanding Researcher – Professor Green Card: General Legal Requirements

To qualify in the EB-1 Outstanding Researcher – Professor Green Card category, a candidate must be internationally recognized as outstanding in a specific academic area; have at least 3 years of experience in teaching or research in his/her particular area of expertise; and must seek to enter the US to occupy:

1. A tenure-track position within a university or institution of higher education to teach in his/her area of expertise.
2. A comparable, permanent position within a university or institution of higher education to conduct research in his/her area of expertise. Or,
3. A comparable position to conduct research in his/her area of expertise with a department, division, or institute of a private employer, if that employer employs at least 3 persons full-time in research activities, and has achieved documented accomplishments in an academic field.

EB-1 Outstanding Researcher – Professor: Specific Regulatory Requirements

The EB-1 Outstanding Researcher – Professor Green Card category requires an offer of employment from a US employer-sponsor. In addition, a petition in the EB-1 Outstanding Researcher – Professor Green Card category must be accompanied by:

1. Evidence that a candidate is recognized internationally as outstanding in his or her field of expertise. This should consist of at least 2 of the following:

• Evidence of authorship of scholarly books or articles (in scholarly journals with international circulation) in the field of expertise. Citations of these articles by peers (excluding self-citations) should also be included, as USCIS considers these to be demonstrative of the impact of publications.
• Documentation of receipt of major awards or prizes for outstanding achievement in the candidate’s field of expertise (documentation must include information on the significance of each award as well as the criteria for choosing recipients of the award).
• Evidence of original scientific or scholarly research contributions to the academic field.
• Evidence of participation, either individually or on a panel, as the judge of the work of others in the same or allied academic field (this can include service as a review on a journal; however, quality is much more important than quantity for this criterion—although quantity can matter as well; requests for review not in the candidate’s name, but passed along from someone else will not be given substantial consideration).
• Membership in associations in the field that require members to have outstanding achievements (this does not include organizations that merely require membership dues, no matter how prestigious).
• Published material in professional publications written by others about the EB-1 candidate.

2. Evidence of at least 3 years of experience in teaching and/or research in the EB-1 candidate’s field of expertise. Such experienced gained while working on an advanced degree is only acceptable if the EB-1 candidate has acquired that degree, and if the teaching duties were such that s/he had full responsibility for classes taught, or if the research conducted toward the degree has been recognized within the academic field as outstanding. And,

3. An offer of employment that is indefinite in duration from:

• A US university or institution of higher learning offering a tenured or tenure-track position in the EB-1 candidate’s field of expertise.
• A US university or institution of higher learning offering a permanent (unlimited by a particular term) research position in the field of expertise. Or,
• A department, division, or institute of a private employer offering a permanent research position in the EB-1 candidate’s field of expertise. The department, division, or institute must show that it employs at least 3 full-time persons in research positions, and that it has achieved documented accomplishments in an academic field.

Please note that standards for the EB-1 Outstanding Researcher – Professor Green Card category have risen considerably. USCIS wants to see impact on the field of expertise that is substantially above the norm. A handful of publications is not likely to enable success in the EB-1 Outstanding Researcher – Professor Green Card category except in narrow circumstances, particularly since the Service’s current stance is that all professors and researchers are required to publish and to review the work of others. Note also that quality of evidence is of more importance than quantity.

Please note that we will accept an EB-1 Outstanding Researcher – Professor Green Card case only if we feel it has a high chance of success after examining the prospective client’s credentials and subjecting them to an analysis of the regulations and latest trends in adjudication of this case type.