With limited exceptions, all EB-2 and EB-3 green card applications require that the company acquire a Labor employment Certification from the U.S. Department of Labor. For petitions requiring this step, the Labor Certification procedure is often the hardest and most arduous action. Prior to having the ability to submit the Labor Certification application, the company needs to obtain a fundamental wage from the Department of Labor and show that there are no minimally qualified U.S. workers offered for the positions through the completion of a competitive recruitment process.

When it comes to positions which contain teaching duties, the company should document that the selected applicant is the "finest qualified" for the position. This process is called "Special Handling."

In both the "basic" and the "special handling" process, the employer must finish a formal recruitment process to record that there are no minimally certified U.S. workers readily available or that, in the case of positions that have a mentor part, that the picked candidate is the very best qualified. It prevails that this recruitment process should be completed well after the foreign national worker started their position at the University.

As quickly as the Labor Certification has been filed with the Department of Labor, the "priority date" for the candidate is developed. This date is essential to figure out when somebody can finish action # 3, i.e. the Adjustment of Status. (If no Labor Certification is needed, the concern date is developed with the filing of the Immigrant Petition/ Form I-140.

2. Immigrant Petition

Once the Department of Labor approves the Labor Certification, the Immigrant Petition (Form I-140) can be submitted with USCIS. In cases where no Labor Certification is needed (e.g. EB-1), the filing of the I-140 is the initial step of the permit procedure.

3. Adjustment of Status or Obtaining an Immigrant Visa

Once the I-140 application has actually been authorized by USCIS, the foreign national can apply for the change of their non-immigrant status (Form I-485) to that of a legal long-term homeowner. Instead of making an application for the Adjustment of Status, a foreign national may also look for an immigrant visa at a U.S. consulate or embassy abroad.

The I-485 Adjustment of Status application can not be submitted until and unless the "top priority date" is existing. In practice this suggests that, depending upon one's country of birth and EB-category, there may be a backlog. The stockpile exists since more individuals request permits in an offered classification than there are readily available permit visa numbers. The total variety of permits is further limited by the fact that, with some exceptions, no greater than 7 percent of all green cards in an offered preference classification can go to people born in a given nation. The stockpile is updated every month by the U.S. Department of State and is published in the Visa Bulletin.

Once somebody's concern date date has actually been reached, as indicated in the Visa Bulletin, the I-485 can be submitted. The concern date is the date on which the Labor Certification was filed with the Department of Labor, or, if no Labor Certification was needed, USCIS got the I-140 petition.

Note that the Visa Bulletin includes two different tables with top priority cut-off dates. The real cut-off dates are indicated in table A "Application Final Action Dates for Employment-based Preference Cases." However, in some circumstances, USCIS may accept the I-485 application if the concern date is current based upon table B "Dates for Filing of Employment-based Visa Applications." Note that USCIS will make a decision whether Table B might be utilized a number of days after the main Visa Bulletin is released. USCIS releases this info on its website devoted to the Visa Bulletin.

In some cases, it might be possible to submit the I-140 and employment I-485 at the same time. This is not always advised, even if it is possible. If the I-140 is rejected, the I-485 will likewise be denied if submitted concurrently.