With minimal exceptions, all EB-2 and EB-3 green card applications need that the company acquire a Labor Certification from the U.S. Department of Labor. For petitions requiring this action, employment the Labor Certification procedure is frequently the hardest and employment most arduous action. Prior to having the ability to submit the Labor Certification application, the employer should get a fundamental wage from the Department of Labor and show that there are no minimally qualified U.S. workers available for employment the positions through the of a competitive recruitment procedure.

When it comes to positions which contain mentor tasks, the company must document that the picked candidate is the "best certified" for the position. This process is typically called "Special Handling."

In both the "basic" and the "unique handling" process, the company must complete a formal recruitment procedure to document that there are no minimally qualified U.S. workers offered or that, when it comes to positions that have a teaching part, that the selected prospect is the very best qualified. It prevails that this recruitment process should be finished well after the foreign nationwide worker began their position at the University.

As soon as the Labor Certification has been submitted with the Department of Labor, the "top priority date" for the applicant is established. This date is crucial to determine when someone can complete step # 3, i.e. the Adjustment of Status. (If no Labor Certification is needed, employment the concern date is established 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 employment Certification is needed (e.g. EB-1), the filing of the I-140 is the primary step of the green card procedure.

3. Adjustment of Status or Obtaining an Immigrant Visa

Once the I-140 application has actually been authorized by USCIS, employment the foreign nationwide can get the adjustment of their non-immigrant status (Form I-485) to that of a legal permanent homeowner. Instead of requesting the Adjustment of Status, a foreign national may also obtain an immigrant visa at a U.S. consulate or embassy abroad.

The I-485 Adjustment of Status application can not be filed up until and unless the "top priority date" is present. In practice this indicates that, depending upon one's country of birth and EB-category, there might be a stockpile. The stockpile exists since more people request permits in an offered category than there are available green card visa numbers. The overall number of green cards is further restricted by the truth that, with some exceptions, no greater than 7 percent of all permits in a given preference category can go to individuals born in an offered country. The backlog is upgraded every month by the U.S. Department of State and is published in the Visa Bulletin.

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

Note that the Visa Bulletin contains two different tables with concern 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 instances, employment USCIS may accept the I-485 application if the top priority date is present based upon table B "Dates for Filing of Employment-based Visa Applications." Note that USCIS will make a decision whether Table B might be used several days after the main Visa Bulletin is released. USCIS publishes this info on its site devoted to the Visa Bulletin.

Sometimes, it may be possible to file the I-140 and I-485 at the same time. This is not always suggested, even if it is possible. If the I-140 is denied, the I-485 will also be denied if filed concurrently.