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Employment-Based Immigrant Petitions
Our Chicago immigration law office can help employers sponsor valuable foreign employees to work and live in the United States. An immigrant is a foreign-born person who has been approved for lawful permanent residence in the US. Immigrants have permanent, unrestricted eligibility for employment authorization. In 1990, Congress created a priority system for granting permanent residence to noncitizens based on employment skills. Annually, 140,000 immigration visas are available for principal noncitizens who qualify under the following five employment-based ("EB") preference categories:
First "EB-1" Priority Workers- 40,000 visas per year
- Noncitizens of extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics
- Outstanding professors or researchers
- Certain managers and executives transferred to the United States to work for their foreign employer or a U.S. affiliate or subsidiary firm.
- 40,000 visas per year
- Noncitizens of exceptional ability in the sciences, arts, or business.
- Members of the professions, if they hold an advanced degree (or the equivalent).
- 40,000 visas per year
- Professionals with bachelor's degrees (not qualifying for a higher preference category)
- Skilled workers (minimum two years training and experience)
- Unskilled workers (maximum 10,000 visas available per year, of which 5,000 have been dedicated to noncitizens who can adjust status under the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act (NACARA).
- 10,000 visas per year
- This classification is comprised of all special
- Former U.S. citizens who are eligible to become citizens again
- Religious workers
- 10,000 visas per year
- Noncitizen entrepreneurs whose new commercial enterprises will directly create 10 or more new jobs in the U.S.; 3,000 visas reserved for investors in targeted employment areas and 300 for Immigrant Investor Pilot Program.
If you have questions about permanent residence through employment, out Firm can help you. Call the Chicago immigration law office of Zneimer & Zneimer P.C. at 773-516-4100 or contact us online for a consultation to discuss your immigration law issues or questions.
