EB-1 Visas for Priority Workers

Boston Attorneys Skilled in Complex Immigration Matters

Obtaining legal status in the United States can be long and cumbersome, requiring a substantial amount of paperwork and patience. At Maiona Ward, our diligent business immigration lawyers have assisted many individuals and entities in the Boston area with understanding and navigating this process. There are many ways to become a resident of the U.S., so the path you choose will depend on your specific case and background. One avenue to lawful permanent residency (green card) status is through an EB-1 visa. Our lawyers can inform you about what you need to apply for this type of status and can help answer your questions at every step of the process.

Seeking EB-1 Legal Status

The EB-1 is an employment-based green card process that allows individuals to apply for permanent residency through their educational and/or employment background. A person may qualify for this status if he or she possesses extraordinary ability, is an outstanding professor or researcher, or is a multinational executive or manager. Each one of these categories has its own requirements that must be fulfilled.

For the “extraordinary ability” category called EB-1A, a person must show extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics through sustained national or international acclaim. Essentially, the individual’s accomplishments must be recognized in his or her field through extensive documentation. He or she need not have a job offer to qualify for this type of visa. This means an EB-1 extraordinary ability applicant can bypass the lengthy and cumbersome PERM/labor certification process at the US Department of Labor.

An “outstanding professor or researcher” in the EB-1B category must show international recognition for his or her accomplishments in a specific academic field. The individual must possess at least three years of experience in teaching or research in that area. Additionally, he or she must be entering the U.S. to seek tenure or a tenure-track teaching or comparable research position at a university or other institution of higher education. No labor certification is required. The outstanding professor or researcher category requires a job offer from a U.S. employer intending to employ the applicant as a professor or researcher.

The “multinational executive or manager” is the EB-1C category, which is an option when an employer has transferred a non-citizen employee working abroad to a U.S. branch of its company. The employment experience outside the U.S. must have been in a manager or executive position and with the same employer, an affiliate, or a subsidiary of that employer. No labor certification is required for this classification. However, the employer in the U.S. affiliate must offer the employee a position that is at the managerial or executive level in order to qualify for an EB-1C green card.

Explore Your Visa Situation with a Boston Lawyer

At Maiona Ward, our immigration attorneys are knowledgeable in applications for EB-1 visas as well as L-1 visas and other forms of legal status. Many clients from Boston and the surrounding region have sought our assistance on these issues over the years. We are here to explain your legal rights and options, as well as answer any other questions you may have. To learn more, you can call us at 617-695-2220 or contact us online. We have assisted individuals and businesses from communities such as Worcester and Waltham as well as Providence and other cities in Rhode Island.

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