The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has published eight specific requirements that foreign nationals holding skilled worker visas must meet to qualify for a Green Card through employment-based immigration. These conditions apply to applicants seeking to adjust their status to lawful permanent residence under the EB-1, EB-2, and EB-3 preference categories.
Employment-Based Preference Categories Explained
US immigration law provides several pathways for foreign workers to become lawful permanent residents, grouped into preference categories based on qualifications and type of employment. The first preference category, EB-1, covers priority workers, including individuals with extraordinary ability in science, the arts, education, business, or athletics, as well as outstanding professors and researchers, and certain multinational managers and executives.
The second preference category, EB-2, is designated for professionals holding advanced degrees or those with exceptional ability. This category also includes individuals who qualify for national interest waivers. The third preference category, EB-3, covers skilled workers, professionals, and other workers who do not fall under the first two groups.
The Eight Conditions for Adjustment of Status
For foreign nationals already living in the United States who wish to adjust their status to permanent resident under the EB-1, EB-2, or EB-3 categories, USCIS has set out a list of conditions that must all be met. The first condition is that the applicant must properly file Form I-485, the Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status. Second, applicants must be physically present in the country at the time of filing.
Third, they must have been lawfully inspected and admitted or paroled into the United States. Fourth, an immigrant visa must be immediately available both at the point of filing and when USCIS reaches a final decision on the case. Fifth, the job listed in the Form I-140 petition must still exist with the employer who filed it, and the applicant must intend to accept that role upon approval.
Additional Requirements and Job Change Provisions
Sixth, none of the applicable bars to adjustment may apply. Seventh, the applicant must be admissible to the United States for lawful permanent residence, or be eligible for a relevant waiver. Eighth, they must merit a favourable exercise of USCIS discretion.
US immigration law does make provision for applicants who change jobs before their case is decided. Under Section 204(j) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, an approved Form I-140 can remain valid for adjustment of status purposes if the new role falls within the same or a similar occupational classification as the original petition, and the Form I-485 has remained pending for at least 180 days.
Broader Green Card Eligibility Context
In related news, the United States government earlier published a list of eight categories of people who qualify to apply for a permanent resident card, commonly known as a Green Card. Eligibility ranges from family ties to US citizenship and employment in specialised fields to refugee or asylum status and victims of abuse.
