CASE: I-485 Adjustment of Status (EB-2 Category) / Schedule A

APPLICANT: Kyrgyz Nurse Practitioner

LOCATION: Delaware

Our client is a family nurse practitioner who is from Kyrgyzstan. Her current employer was willing to petition her for a second-preference employment immigrant visa petition (I-140). Since she was a family nurse practitioner, she was eligible for “Schedule A” classification.

The Department of Labor (DOL) maintains a schedule of occupations in its regulations, Schedule A included, for which the individual permanent labor certification procedure is not required. The schedule of pre-certified occupations is referred to as Schedule A, and is included in DOL regulations at 20 CFR 656.10. Based on an occupation’s inclusion on Schedule A, an employer may file an immigrant visa petition (I-140) directly with the (USCIS) without first going to the DOL for a labor certification. Usually, prior to filing I-140 petitions (EB-2 or EB-3 category), the employer must file a Labor Certification to the Department of Labor. However, for Schedule A cases, the employer does not have to go through the labor certification process. The position of Nurse Practitioner is included in Schedule A.

Our client has Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in nursing and is a certified Nurse Practitioner. Our office was retained on August 18, 2015 and we filed the Prevailing Wage Determination immediately.

We filed the I-140 application on February 1, 2016 via premium processing. We included the job offer letter, the notice of filing, employment letter, and other necessary supporting documents.

In our cover brief, we included the “ability to pay” argument and why nurse practitioners must fall under the Schedule A designation.  However, on February 12, 2016, the USCIS issued Request for Evidence (RFE) and asked our client’s recent W-2. Our office filed the Response to RFE on February 23, 2016. Eventually, on March 2, 2016, the USCIS approved her EB-2 I-140 petition.

Once the I-140 petition was approved, our client retained our office again for her I-485 adjustment of status application. Our office filed an I-485 adjustment of status application for our client on March 3, 2016. Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices and fingerprint appointment came on time.

Eventually, on May 2, 2016, the USCIS Texas Service Center approved our client’s adjustment of status application. Now, she finally is a green card holder.

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CASE: I-140 (EB-2 Category) / Schedule A / Premium Processing

EMPLOYER: Nursing Care Facility

BENEFICIARY: Filipino

LOCATION: Beneficiary: Philippines / Petitioner: Houston, TX

The beneficiary is in the Philippines. His prospective employer-sponsor was willing to petition him for a second-preference employment immigrant visa petition (I-140). Since he has a registered nurse license and the proffered position for him is a nurse manager at the nursing care facility, the petitioner wanted to try going for a “Schedule A” classification. They also wanted to do EB2 (requiring at least a Masters degree or Bachelors degree + 5 yrs experience).

The Department of Labor (DOL) maintains a schedule of occupations in its regulations, Schedule A included, for which the individual permanent labor certification procedure is not required. The schedule of pre-certified occupations is referred to as Schedule A, and is included in DOL regulations at 20 CFR 656.10. Based on an occupation’s inclusion on Schedule A, an employer may file an immigrant visa petition (I-140) directly with the (USCIS) without having to file a Labor Certification with the Department of Labor. Usually, prior to filing I-140 petitions (EB-2 or EB-3 category), the employer must file a Labor Certification to the Department of Labor. However, for Schedule A cases, the employer does not have to go through the labor certification process. We argued that the position of Health Services Manager should be classified under Schedule A. We argued that it falls under the broad spectrum of “professional nurse” occupations. We also argued that the job description has excerpts that fall under “professional nurse” and that the description justifies the requirements also of Bachelor’s degree in nursing and five years of related experiences.

Our client has a Master’s Degree in Nursing. He also has a registered nursing license in the state of Texas. Our office was retained and we started on the Prevailing Wage Determination filing and other related matters.

Once the prevailing wage was determined, we filed the I-140 application on February 26, 2016 via premium processing. We included a job offer letter, the notice of filing, employment letter, and other necessary supporting documents. In our cover brief, we included the “ability to pay” argument and why the nurse manager position falls under a Schedule A and EB2 designation.

However, on March 10, 2016, the USCIS Texas Service Center issued Request for Evidence (RFE) and requested our client to submit his prospective employer’s most recent tax return record and his degree evaluation report. Our office prepared the response and filed the Response to RFE on March 14, 2016. Eventually, on March 25, 2016, the USCIS Texas Service Center approved his EB-2 I-140 petition. Now, with the approved EB-2 I-140 petition (priority date for EB2 Philippine nationals is current), he can file an immigrant visa in the Philippines.

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CASE: I-140 (EB-2 Category) / Schedule A / Premium Processing

EMPLOYER: Physician’s Office

BENEFICIARY: Taiwanese

LOCATION: Brooklyn, NY

Our client is a family nurse practitioner. Her current employer was willing to petition her for a second-preference employment immigrant visa petition (I-140). Since she was a family nurse practitioner, he was eligible for “Schedule A” classification.

The Department of Labor (DOL) maintains a schedule of occupations in its regulations, Schedule A included, for which the individual permanent labor certification procedure is not required. The schedule of pre-certified occupations is referred to as Schedule A, and is included in DOL regulations at 20 CFR 656.10. Based on an occupation’s inclusion on Schedule A, an employer may file an immigrant visa petition (I-140) directly with the (USCIS) without first going to the DOL for a labor certification. Usually, prior to filing I-140 petitions (EB-2 or EB-3 category), the employer must file a Labor Certification to the Department of Labor. However, for Schedule A cases, the employer does not have to go through the labor certification process. The position of Nurse Practitioner is included in Schedule A.

Our client has Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in nursing and is a certified Nurse Practitioner. Our office was retained on December 17, 2015 and we filed the Prevailing Wage Determination immediately.

We filed the I-140 application on March 17, 2016 via premium processing. We included the job offer letter, the notice of filing, employment letter, and other necessary supporting documents.

In our cover brief, we included the “ability to pay” argument and why nurse practitioners must fall under the Schedule A designation.  On March 25, 2016, without any Request for Evidence (RFE), the USCIS Nebraska Service Center approved her EB-2 I-140 petition. Since the priority date for a Taiwanese national is current for the EB-2 category, she is eligible to file her adjustment of status application now.

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CASE: I-485 / I-140 (EB-2)

EMPLOYER: Home Health Services in Chicago Illinois

BENEFICIARY: Nigerian Director of Business Technology and Strategy

Our client is a Nigerian individual who was in the U.S on H-4 status. His prospective employer was willing to do an immigration petition for him, second-preference. Our client has a Master’s degree in Engineering Management.

After talking to our client, our firm concluded that his employer can petition him as a Director of Business Technology and Strategy. Based on our client’s educational, professional and working background, our office determined that he is eligible for EB-2 classification.

Prior to filing PERM labor certification, our firm prepared the prevailing wage request, job order, advertisements, internal job posting, recruitment report, and all other steps which are important pre-PERM filing. Take note that the PERM Labor Certification application could be filed at least 60 days from the job posting date or 30 days from the last ad.

On October 28, 2014, the prevailing wage request was filed.  On April 17, 2015, we filed the PERM labor certification application.  Eventually, on November 17, 2015, the PERM labor certification was approved – an EB2 position for the Nigerian Director of Business Technology and Strategy.

We then proceeded with the I-140 Petition filing. We submitted the “ability to pay” letter for the I-140 petition application. We included the job offer letter, employer’s tax records, and other necessary supporting documents.

The I-140 Petition was filed on November 24, 2015 via premium processing service. However, on December 7, 2015, the USCIS issued a Request for Evidence (RFE) for our client’s petition. In the RFE, the USCIS requested our client to submit any documentation that demonstrates his specific software usages in the past. Our office filed the Response to RFE on December 8, 2015 to USCIS. Eventually, on December 16, 2015, the I-140 EB2 Petition for our Nigerian client was approved.

Once his I-140 petition was approved, our office prepared his adjustment of status application. On December 23, 2015, our office filed I-485 adjustment of status applications for our client and his wife. Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices and fingerprint appointment came on time.

Eventually, on March 23, 2016, the USCIS approved our client and his wife’s I-485 adjustment of status applications. Now, he is a green card holder.

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CASE: PERM Labor Certification

EMPLOYER: IT Consulting Company

BENEFICIARY: Indian Computer Systems Analyst

LOCATION: Jacksonville, FL

Our client is a computer systems analyst from India, who is currently working at an IT consulting company in Jacksonville, Florida which was willing to do an immigration petition him for a second-preference position (I-140 EB-2).  Our client has a Master of Science degree in Computer Information Systems and has worked for this company under H-1B status.  After talking to our client, our firm concluded that his employer can petition him as a Computer Systems Analyst II. Based on our client’s education and professional background, our office determined that he is clearly eligible for the EB-2 classification for his I-140 petition.

Prior to filing PERM, our firm prepared the prevailing wage request, job order, advertisements, internal job posting, recruitment report, and all other steps which are important pre-PERM filing. Take note that the PERM Labor Certification application could be filed at least 60 days from the job posting date or 30 days from the last ad. Once retained, our office filed the prevailing wage request in April 2015.  On October 16, 2015, we filed the PERM labor certification application.  Eventually, on March 24, 2016, less than 6 months from filing, the PERM labor certification was approved – an EB2 position for the Indian Computer Systems Analyst. Now our client can file the I-140 Petition.

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CASE: I-140 (EB-2 Category) / Schedule A / Premium Processing

EMPLOYER: Nursing Care Facility

BENEFICIARY: Filipino

LOCATION: Beneficiary: Thailand / Petitioner: Houston, TX

Our Filipino client is currently working in Thailand as a nurse coordinator. His prospective employer-sponsor was willing to petition him for a second-preference employment immigrant visa petition (I-140). Since he has a registered nurse license and the proffered position for him is a nurse manager at the nursing care facility, the petitioner wanted to try going for a “Schedule A” classification. They also wanted to do EB2 (requiring at least a Masters degree or Bachelors degree + 5 yrs progressive experience).

The Department of Labor (DOL) maintains a schedule of occupations in its regulations, Schedule A included, for which the individual permanent labor certification procedure is not required. The schedule of pre-certified occupations is referred to as Schedule A, and is included in DOL regulations at 20 CFR 656.10. Based on an occupation’s inclusion on Schedule A, an employer may file an immigrant visa petition (I-140) directly with the (USCIS) without having to file a Labor Certification with the Department of Labor. Usually, prior to filing I-140 petitions (EB-2 or EB-3 category), the employer must file a Labor Certification to the Department of Labor. However, for Schedule A cases, the employer does not have to go through the labor certification process. We argued that the position of Health Services Manager should be classified under Schedule A. We argued that it falls under the broad spectrum of “professional nurse” occupations. We also argued that the job description has excerpts that fall under “professional nurse” and that the description justifies the requirements also of Bachelor’s degree in nursing and five years of related experiences.

Our client has a Bachelor’s degree in nursing and 5 years of experience as a nurse coordinator and a coordination nurse. He also has a registered nursing license in the state of Texas. Our office was retained and we started on the Prevailing Wage Determination filing and other related matters.

Once the prevailing wage was determined, we filed the I-140 application on February 16, 2016 via premium processing. We included a job offer letter, the notice of filing, employment letters, and other necessary supporting documents. In our cover brief, we included the “ability to pay” argument and why the nurse manager position falls under a Schedule A and EB2 designation.

However, on March 2, 2016, the USCIS Texas Service Center issued the Notice of Intent to Deny (NOID) for our client’s I-140. The USCIS alleged that our client’s past experience was not progressive in nature. We submitted new past experience letters showing that they were indeed progressive in nature and submitted the response to NOID on March 11, 2016.

Eventually, on March 17, 2016, the USCIS Texas Service Center approved his EB-2 I-140 petition. Now, with the approved EB-2 I-140 petition (priority date for EB2 Philippine nationals is current), he can file and obtain an immigrant visa.

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CASE: I-140 (EB-2)

EMPLOYER: Data Marketing Company

BENEFICIARY: Nepali Computer Systems Analyst

LOCATION: Omaha, NE

Our client is a computer systems analyst from Nepal, who is currently working at a data marketing company in Omaha, Nebraska who was willing to do an immigration petition him for a second-preference petition (I-140 EB-2).  Our client has a Master of Science degree in Computer Science and has worked for this company since January 2013. He has maintained his status as an H-1B visa holder in the United States.  After talking to our client, our firm concluded that his employer can petition him as a Computer Systems Analyst II. Based on our client’s educational, professional and working background, our office determined that he is clearly eligible for an EB-2 classification for his I-140 petition.

Prior to filing PERM labor certification, our firm prepared the prevailing wage request, job order, advertisements, internal job posting, recruitment report, and all other steps which are important pre-PERM filing. Take note that the PERM Labor Certification application could be filed at least 60 days from the job posting date or 30 days from the last ad. Once retained, our office filed the prevailing wage request in December 2014.  On May 26, 2015, we filed the PERM labor certification application.  Eventually, on November 19, 2015, less than 6 months from filing, the PERM labor certification was approved – an EB2 position for the Nepali Computer Systems Analyst.

We then proceeded with the I-140 Petition filing. We submitted the “ability to pay” letter for the I-140 petition application. We included the job offer letter, employer’s tax records, and other necessary supporting documents.

The I-140 Petition was filed on March 1, 2016 via premium processing service. Eventually, on March 11, 2016, the I-140 EB2 Petition for our Nepalese client was approved without any Request for Evidence (RFE). He can file an I-485 adjustment of status application for his green at any time since his priority dates are current.

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CASE: I-140 (EB-2 Category) / Schedule A / Premium Processing

EMPLOYER: Physician’s Office

BENEFICIARY: Kyrgyz

LOCATION: Delaware

Our client is a family nurse practitioner who is from Kyrgyzstan. Her current employer was willing to petition her for a second-preference employment immigrant visa petition (I-140). Since she was a family nurse practitioner, she was eligible for “Schedule A” classification.

The Department of Labor (DOL) maintains a schedule of occupations in its regulations, Schedule A included, for which the individual permanent labor certification procedure is not required. The schedule of pre-certified occupations is referred to as Schedule A, and is included in DOL regulations at 20 CFR 656.10. Based on an occupation’s inclusion on Schedule A, an employer may file an immigrant visa petition (I-140) directly with the (USCIS) without first going to the DOL for a labor certification. Usually, prior to filing I-140 petitions (EB-2 or EB-3 category), the employer must file a Labor Certification to the Department of Labor. However, for Schedule A cases, the employer does not have to go through the labor certification process. The position of Nurse Practitioner is included in Schedule A.

Our client has Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in nursing and is a certified Nurse Practitioner. Our office was retained on August 18, 2015 and we filed the Prevailing Wage Determination immediately.

We filed the I-140 application on February 1, 2016 via premium processing. We included the job offer letter, the notice of filing, employment letter, and other necessary supporting documents.

In our cover brief, we included the “ability to pay” argument and why nurse practitioners must fall under the Schedule A designation.  However, on February 12, 2016, the USCIS issued Request for Evidence (RFE) and asked for our client’s recent W-2. Our office filed the Response to RFE on February 23, 2016. Eventually, on March 2, 2016, the USCIS approved her EB-2 I-140 petition. Since the priority date for Kyrgyzstan nationals are current for the EB-2 category, she is eligible to file her adjustment of status application now.

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CASE: I-140 (EB-2)

EMPLOYER: Cultural Center

BENEFICIARY: Chinese Educational Services Market Research Analyst

LOCATION: Cleveland, OH

The beneficiary is a Chinese lady who is currently working at a cultural center in Cleveland Ohio. The company was willing to do an immigration petition for her, second-preference. She has a Master’s degree in Business Administration.

Our firm believed her employer can petition her as an Educational Services Market Research Analyst. Based on our client’s educational, professional and working background, our office determined that she may be clearly eligible for EB-2 classification.

Prior to filing the PERM labor certification application, our firm prepared the prevailing wage request, job order, advertisements, internal job posting, recruitment report, and all other steps which are important pre-PERM filing. Take note that the PERM Labor Certification application could be filed at least 60 days from the job posting date or 30 days from the last ad.

On September 26, 2014, the prevailing wage request was filed.  On January 28, 2015, we filed the PERM labor certification application.  Eventually, on August 19, 2015, the PERM labor certification was approved – an EB2 position for the Chinese Educational Services Market Research Analyst.

We then proceeded with the I-140 Petition filing. We submitted the “ability to pay” letter for the I-140 petition application. We included the job offer letter, employer’s tax records, and other necessary supporting documents.

The I-140 Petition was filed on February 10, 2016 via premium processing. However, on February 16, 2016, the USCIS issued a Request for Evidence (RFE) for our client’s petition. In the RFE, the USCIS requested our client to submit any documentation that demonstrated her specific software special skills in the past. Our office promptly filed the Response to RFE on February 25, 2016 to the USCIS by submitting a letter from her employer detailing her usage and knowledge of the specific software that was required. Eventually, on March 2, 2016, the I-140 EB2 Petition for our Chinese client was approved. She can file an I-485 adjustment of status application for her green card when her priority date becomes current.

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CASE: I-140 (EB-2 Category) / Schedule A / Premium Processing

EMPLOYER: Physician’s Office

BENEFICIARY: Canadian Nurse Practitioner

LOCATION: Chicago, IL

Our client is a family nurse practitioner. Her current employer was willing to petition her for a second-preference employment immigrant visa petition (I-140). Since she is a family nurse practitioner, she is eligible for “Schedule A” classification.

The Department of Labor (DOL) maintains a schedule of occupations in its regulations, Schedule A included, for which the individual permanent labor certification procedure is not required. The schedule of pre-certified occupations is referred to as Schedule A, and is included in DOL regulations at 20 CFR 656.10. Based on an occupation’s inclusion on Schedule A, an employer may file an immigrant visa petition (I-140) directly with the (USCIS) without first going to the DOL for a labor certification. Usually, prior to filing I-140 petitions (EB-2 or EB-3 category), the employer must file a Labor Certification to the Department of Labor. However, for Schedule A cases, the employer does not have to go through the labor certification process. The position of Nurse Practitioner is included in Schedule A.

Our client has  Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in nursing and is a certified Nurse Practitioner. Our office was retained and we filed the Prevailing Wage Determination on September 18, 2015.

We filed the I-140 application on January 25, 2016 via premium processing. We included the job offer letter, the notice of filing, employment letter, and other necessary supporting documents.

In our cover brief, we included the “ability to pay” argument and why nurse practitioners must fall under the Schedule A designation.  On February 1, 2016, without any Request for Evidence (RFE), the USCIS Nebraska Service Center approved her EB-2 I-140 petition. Since the priority date for Canadian nationals is current for the EB-2 category, she is eligible to file her adjustment of status application now.

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