CASE: I-485 Adjustment of Status (EB-3)

EMPLOYER: School

BENEFICIARY: Filipino Social Studies Teacher

LOCATION: Warren, MI

Our client has an employer willing to petition him for a third-preference I-140.  Our client has a Bachelor’s degree in Secondary Education, a valid Michigan Teaching license, and has worked for his employer since May 2018. Based on his education and credentials, our office determined that he is eligible for EB-3 classification for his I-140 petition. He retained us in October 2019.

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 application could only be filed at least 60 days from the job posting date or 30 days from the last ad. Within a week from our retention, the prevailing wage request was filed.  After we obtained the PW determination, our office assisted the Petitioner to file the job order on June 26, 2020.  On October 20, 2020, we filed PERM. 

On May 28, 2021, the Department of Labor issued a request for audit. The DOL requested documents from the Petitioner to determine whether the recruitment process was done properly. In response to the Audit request, our office prepared the response to Audit brief along with Employer’s declaration, notice of filing, and recruitment documentation on June 16, 2021.  Eventually, on August 26, 2021, the PERM Labor Certification was approved – an EB3 position for the Filipino beneficiary.

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 documents. The I-140 Petition was filed on September 28, 2021 via regular processing. On June 30, 2022, the I-140 EB3 Petition for our Filipino client was approved without any Request for Evidence (RFE).

Our client decided to file his I-485 adjustment of status concurrently with the I-140 petition. Our office prepared and filed his I-485 application to the USCIS on September 28, 2021 along with the I-140 petition. On August 12, 2022, our client’s adjustment of status application was approved by the USCIS without any Request for Evidence (RFE). 

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CASE: Immigrant Visa / I-140 (EB-3 Category) 

EMPLOYER: Public School District in Mohave Valley, AZ

BENEFICIARY: Filipina Elementary School Teacher in the Philippines

LOCATION: Manila, Philippines

Our client has an employer (public school district in Mohave Valley, AZ) that was willing to petition her for a third-preference I-140.  Our client used to work for this employer as an elementary school teacher for several years on a J-1. With our office’s legal assistance, our client’s PERM Labor Certification was certified on December 23, 2020. Later, her employer filed an I-140 (EB-3 classification) petition for our client and it was approved by the USCIS on June 8, 2021. While her I-140 pending was pending, our client went back to the Philippines to fulfill her two year requirement, and we eventually started the consular processing phase for her immigrant visa. 

Our office filed the immigrant visa packets to the National Visa Center on August 3, 2021, who in turn forwarded the client’s materials to the U.S. Embassy in Manila, Philippines. An interview notice was set for the client at the U.S. Embassy in Manila. On August 12, 2022, our client appeared at the U.S. Embassy in Manila, Philippines. The interview went well, and the Embassy approved and issued her immigrant visa. With the approved Immigrant Visa, our client can come to the United States immediately, and she will get her green card within two months of entry.

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CASE: H-1B Visa Petition

PETITIONER: School District in Forrest City, AR

BENEFICIARY: Filipina High School Science Teacher

ISSUES: Cap-Exempt, Nonprofit Organization Affiliated with an Institution of Higher Education

Our client is a public school district affiliated with several institutions of higher education. They contacted our office in May 2022 to seek legal assistance from our office for their foreign employee. The beneficiary is a High School Science Teacher from the Philippines who has been working for this employer for the last several years under J-1 status. Her J-1 visa was not subject to the 2 year foreign residency requirement. 

The proffered position for the Beneficiary is a High School Science Teacher. We showed that this is a “specialty occupation” because the minimum requirement for this position is a Bachelor’s Degree in Education or its equivalent.

In the first week of April, the numerical cap of H-1B visas for fiscal year 2023 was already reached. However, our client is qualified for cap-exempt petitions since it is a non-profit organization affiliated with an Institution of Higher Education as defined in 8 C.F.R. 214.2(h)(19)(iii)(B). 

Upon retention, our office filed the H-1B visa petition with various supporting documents on June 28, 2022, via premium processing. On July 12, 2022, the USCIS California Service Center issued a Request for Evidence (RFE) and requested our client to submit additional documents to prove that the Petitioner is a non-profit organization affiliated with an Institution of Higher Education. Our office filed Response to RFE on July 19, 2022. Eventually, our client’s H-1B application was approved on August 2, 2022. She can now work for her employer for three years on an H-1B status.

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CASE: I-140 (EB-3)

EMPLOYER: Public School District

BENEFICIARY: Filipina Special Education Teacher

LOCATION: McIntosh, SD

Our client has an employer who was filling to file an I-140 Petition for her.  Our client has a Bachelor’s degree in Special Education, a valid South Dakota Teaching license, and has worked for her current employer since August 2018. Based on our client’s education and work background, our office determined that she is eligible for EB-3 classification for her I-140 petition.  Our client eventually retained us in June 2020.

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 application could be filed at least 60 days from the job posting date or 30 days from the last ad. Within a week from our retention, the prevailing wage request was filed.  After we obtained the PW determination, our office filed the job order on February 11, 2021. On June 17, 2021, we filed PERM. 

On November 16, 2021, the Department of Labor issued a request for audit. The DOL requested documents from the Petitioner to determine whether the recruitment process was done properly. In response to the Audit request, our office prepared the response to Audit brief along with Employer’s declaration, notice of filing, and recruitment documentation on December 14, 2021.   

Eventually, on March 21, 2022, the PERM Labor Certification was approved – an EB3 position for the Filipina beneficiary.

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, employee’s W-2 copy, and other necessary supporting documents.

The I-140 Petition was filed on April 26, 2022 via regular processing service. Eventually, on July 19, 2022, the I-140 EB3 Petition for our Filipina client was approved without any Request for Evidence (RFE).

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CASE: EB-3 I-140

EMPLOYER: School

BENEFICIARY: Filipino Social Studies Teacher

LOCATION: Mt. Clemens, MI

Our client has a current employer that was willing to petition for a third-preference I-140.  Our client has a Bachelor’s degree in Secondary Education, a valid Michigan Teaching license, and has worked for him current employer since May 2018. Based on his education and credentials, our office determined that he is eligible for EB-3 classification for his I-140 petition.  Our client eventually retained us in October 2019.

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 application could only be filed at least 60 days from the job posting date or 30 days from the last ad. Within a week from our retention, the prevailing wage request was filed.  After we obtained the PW determination, our office assisted the Petitioner to file the job order on June 26, 2020.  On October 20, 2020, we filed PERM. 

On May 28, 2021, the Department of Labor issued a request for audit. The DOL requested documents from the Petitioner to determine whether the recruitment process was done properly. In response to the Audit request, our office prepared the response to Audit brief along with employer’s declaration, notice of filing, and recruitment documentation on June 16, 2021.  On August 26, 2021, the PERM Labor Certification was approved – an EB3 position for the Filipino beneficiary.

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 September 28, 2021 via regular processing service. On June 30, 2022, the I-140 EB3 Petition for our Filipino client was approved without any Request for Evidence (RFE).

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CASE: EB-3 I-140

EMPLOYER: School

BENEFICIARY: Filipina Middle School Science Teacher

LOCATION: Mt. Clemens, MI

Our client has a current employer that was willing to petition for a third-preference I-140.  Our client has a Bachelor’s degree in Education, a valid Michigan Teaching license, and has worked for her current employer since May 2018. Based on our client’s education and credentials, our office determined that she is eligible for EB-3 classification for her I-140 petition.  Our client retained us in October 2019.

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 application could only be filed at least 60 days from the job posting date or 30 days from the last ad. Within a week from our retention, the prevailing wage request was filed.  After we obtained the PW determination, our office assisted the Petitioner to file the job order on June 26, 2020.  On October 12, 2020, we filed PERM.  Eventually, on May 3, 2021, the PERM Labor Certification was approved – an EB3 position for the Filipina beneficiary. 

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 July 2, 2021 via regular processing. On June 17, 2022, the I-140 EB3 Petition for our Filipina client was approved without any Request for Evidence (RFE).

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CASE: H-1B Visa Extension Petition
PETITIONER:  Public School District in Saint Francis, SD
BENEFICIARY: Filipina Special Education Teacher

Our client is a Public School District in Saint Francis, SD. They contacted our office in May 2022 to seek legal assistance from our office for their foreign employee’s H-1B extension.  The beneficiary obtained her Bachelor’s Degree in Special Education. The proffered position for the Beneficiary is a Special Education Teacher which qualifies as a specialty occupation. The Beneficiary has worked for her employer under a H-1B status since July 2020.   

Our office filed the H-1B visa petition on June 3, 2022 via premium processing. Eventually, our client’s H-1B application was approved on June 16, 2022.  Her H-1B is good until June 30, 2025. 

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CASE: I-140 (EB-3)

EMPLOYER: Public School District

BENEFICIARY: Filipino High School Biology Teacher

LOCATION: Casa Grande, AZ

Our client has an employer that was willing to file a third-preference I-140 for him. Our client has a Bachelor’s degree in Biology, a valid Arizona Teaching license, and has worked for his current employer since July 2016. Based on our client’s education and credentials, our office determined that he is clearly eligible for EB-3 classification for his I-140 petition.  Our client eventually retained us in May 2020.

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 application could only be filed at least 60 days from the job posting date or 30 days from the last ad. Within a week from our retention, the prevailing wage request was filed.  After we obtained the PW determination, our office filed the job order on September 3, 2020.  On November 20, 2020, we filed the PERM application. 

On June 17, 2021, the Department of Labor issued a request for audit. The DOL requested documents from the Petitioner to determine whether the recruitment process was done properly. In response to the Audit request, our office prepared the response to Audit brief along with Employer’s declaration, notice of filing, and recruitment documentation on June 29, 2021.  Eventually, on September 29, 2021, the PERM Labor Certification was approved – an EB3 position for the Filipino beneficiary. 

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, employee’s W-2 copy, and other necessary supporting documents.

The I-140 Petition was filed on November 12, 2021 via regular processing service. Eventually, on June 2, 2022, the I-140 EB3 Petition for our Filipino client was approved without any Request for Evidence (RFE).

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CASE: I-140 (EB-3)

EMPLOYER: Public School District

BENEFICIARY: Filipino High School Math Teacher

LOCATION: Casa Grande, AZ

Our client has an employer willing to do an I-140 Petition for him. He has a Bachelor’s degree in Math, a valid Arizona Teaching license, and has worked for his employer since July 2016. Based on his education and credentials, our office determined that he is eligible for EB-3 classification for his I-140 petition.  We were retained in May 2020.

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 application could only be filed at least 60 days from the job posting date or 30 days from the last ad. Within a week from our retention, the prevailing wage request was filed.  After we obtained the PW determination, our office filed the job order on September 10, 2020.  On December 11, 2020, we filed PERM. 

On July 7, 2021, the Department of Labor issued a request for audit. The DOL requested documents from the Petitioner to determine whether the recruitment process was done properly. In response to the Audit request, our office prepared the response to Audit brief along with Employer’s declaration, notice of filing, and recruitment documentation on July 23, 2021. Eventually, on November 1, 2021, the PERM Labor Certification was approved – an EB3 position for the Filipino beneficiary. 

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, employee’s W-2 copy, and other necessary supporting documents.

The I-140 Petition was filed on November 19, 2021 via regular processing. On May 17, 2022, the I-140 EB3 Petition for our Filipino client was approved without any Request for Evidence (RFE).

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CASE: I-485 Adjustment of Status / EB-3 I-140

EMPLOYER: Public School District in Mohave Valley, AZ

APPLICANT: Filipina Elementary School Teacher in Laughlin, NV

Our client has an employer willing to do an I-140 Petition for her. Our client has a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education, a valid Arizona Teaching license, and has worked for her current employer since July 2014. Based on our client’s education and work background, she is eligible for EB-3 classification for her I-140 petition.  We were retained in June 2019.

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 application could be filed at least 60 days from the job posting date or 30 days from the last ad. Within a week from our retention, the prevailing wage request was filed.  After we obtained the PW determination, our office filed the job order on October 14, 2019.  On January 10, 2020, we filed PERM. 

On July 29, 2020, the Department of Labor issued an audit. The DOL requested documents from Petitioner to determine whether the recruitment process was done properly. In response to the Audit request, our office prepared the response to Audit brief along with Employer’s declaration, notice of filing, and recruitment documentation on August 14, 2020.   

On December 21, 2020, the Department of Labor denied the PERM application due to non-receipt of the Audit response. In this case though, the 45-page audit response (including the audit, the cover letter, and all the supporting documents) was delivered by August 17, 2020, which was way before the deadline of August 31, 2020. Our office filed Motion to Reconsider to the Department of Labor on December 22, 2020. Eventually, on May 13, 2021, the PERM Labor Certification was approved – an EB3 position for the Filipina beneficiary. 

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 June 10, 2021 via regular processing service. We also filed her I-485 adjustment of status application simultaneously since her priority date was current. On September 7, 2021, our office filed a premium processing upgrade request to the USCIS. On September 22, 2021, the I-140 EB3 Petition for our Filipina client was approved without any Request for Evidence (RFE). On April 27, 2022, the I-485 adjustment of status applications for our client and her family members were approved by the USCIS. 

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