CASE: I-140 / National Interest Waiver

CLIENT: Korean

LOCATION: South Korea

Our client contacted us about the possibility of doing a National Interest Waiver self-petition. She is a clinical psychologist in South Korea and she did her Ph.D. in Psychology in the United States. While she was in the U.S., she pursued a career path to become a culturally sensitive and competent psychologist, focusing on working with underserved and/or marginalized diverse populations, while developing specialties in trauma-focused/informed clinical intervention.

Upon review of her credentials and qualifications, our office determined that she was definitely qualified for the National Interest Waiver (NIW) category. Being qualified for NIW is beneficial since you would not need an employer nor family member to petition for you for green card purposes. You’d be eligible for a self-petition and unless you are from China or India, in which case you’d still have to wait for priority dates to be current, you would be eligible to apply for adjustment of status (green card) immediately without any lag in priority dates.

As a primer, NIW applicants must have a master’s or higher degree. The AAO set the new standards for NIW cases in Matter of Dhanasar, 26 I&N Dec. 884 (AAO 2016). Under the new standard, the petitioner must demonstrate that the foreign national’s proposed endeavor has both substantial merit and national importance. Next, it must be shown that he or she is well positioned to advance the proposed endeavor. Finally, the petitioner seeking the waiver needs to demonstrate that, on balance, it would be beneficial to the United States to waive the job offer and labor certification requirements. Id. 

Our office concluded that our client’s research and clinical work is of substantial merit, has already aided, and will continue to aid the underserved and/or marginalized diverse population in the United States. Additionally, her trauma-focused/informed clinical care will be beneficial to treat populations (e.g., students, veterans, refugees, women with sexual abuse or domestic violence) who had struggled with developmental and/or shock trauma, and co-occurring conditions including substance use, major depressive disorder, panic disorder, and eating disorder.

Our office prepared a 25-page brief for our client’s NIW filing. Our client also obtained 10 letters of recommendation from her colleagues, clinical psychologists, and internationally-recognized researchers. Our office also included her publication records, work experience records, presentations, and conference materials in the NIW application. We demonstrated that our client is one of the few clinical psychologists who have made significant and substantial contributions to her field of endeavor, that she is well positioned to advance the proposed endeavor, and it would be beneficial to the United States to waive the requirements of a job offer and thus of a labor certification for our client. 

Our office filed her I-140(NIW) petition to the USCIS Texas Service Center on July 17, 2020. However, on September 27, 2021, the USCIS Texas Service Center issued a Request for Evidence (RFE) and requested our client to provide more evidence to demonstrate that her work is of national importance and she is well positioned to advance the proposed endeavor. 

Our office prepared the RFE Response brief and explained that our client’s psychology and counseling field and practice, especially as it pertains to the uniqueness of her skills with cross-culture and multinationals, with its growing importance nationwide, is indeed of national importance. Considering the rising problems of mental health and discrimination being an issue even to Asian-Americans, her practice and presence in the U.S. is a benefit nationwide. We filed our RFE response brief on December 15, 2021. Eventually, on January 11, 2021, the USCIS approved her I-140 petition. She can file her immigrant visa via consular processing.

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CASE: J-1 Waiver of Two-Year Foreign Residency Requirement, No Objection Statement

NATIONALITY: Korean

LOCATION: Greenbelt, MD

Our client is from South Korea who came to the U.S. on a J-1 Visa in November 2020 to work as a postdoctoral researcher. His J-1 program made him subject to the two-year foreign residence requirement. He retained our office to seek legal assistance for his I-140 (National Interest Waiver Classification) and I-485 Adjustment of Status applications. However, before we file his I-485 application, he had to get a waiver for his two-year foreign residency requirement. 

Our office filed the waiver request through the No Objection Statement (NOS) from the Korean Embassy in the United States.

Attorney Sung Hee (Glen) Yu from our office contacted the Korean Embassy in DC to pursue the waiver for our client.  The Embassy requested six different documents including a statement of reason for the waiver, the applicant’s resume, a J-1 visa waiver confirmation application, and a letter of reason for obtaining the J-1 waiver.  Most of those documents needed to be written in Korean, so Attorney Yu, a Korean himself, assisted our client in completing those documents.

On August 23, 2021, the J-1 Waiver (Form DS-3035) Application was filed to the Department of State.  We also sent a request to the Korean Embassy to issue a No Objection Statement and recommend this waiver based on the fact that our client is eligible to file a National Interest Waiver petition and adjustment of status application.

Thereafter, the Korean Embassy issued a No Objection Statement for our client, and sent this letter to the State Department’s Waiver Review Division.  On December 9, 2021, the Waiver Review Division issued a favorable recommendation based on the No Objection statement. Eventually, on December 30, 2021, the USCIS issued the I-612 approval notice and waived our client’s 2 year foreign residency requirement.

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CASE: Marriage-Based Adjustment of Status

NATIONALITY: Indian                                                                                             

LOCATION: Cleveland, OH 

Our client is from India who came to the U.S. on a B-2 visitor’s visa in February 2016. Since then, she has remained in the United States. In January 2021, our client married her U.S. citizen husband.  She retained our office on February 24, 2021 for her green card application.  Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 Petition and I-485 Adjustment of Status Application on May 11, 2021.  Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices, fingerprint appointment, and work permits all came on time. Prior to the interview, we thoroughly prepared our clients at our office via conference calls. On January 4, 2022, our client was interviewed at the Cleveland, OH USCIS office. Attorney Sung Hee (Glen) Yu accompanied our clients as well. Eventually, on January 6, 2022, her green card application was approved.

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CASE: Marriage-Based Adjustment of Status

NATIONALITY: Chinese                                                                                           

LOCATION: Somerville, MA 

Our client is from China who came to the U.S. on an O-1A visa to work as a researcher. In February 2021, our client married her U.S. citizen husband.  She retained our office on February 12, 2021 for her green card application.  Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 Petition and I-485 Adjustment of Status Application on March 24, 2021.  Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices, fingerprint appointment, and work permits all came on time. Prior to the interview, we thoroughly prepared our clients at our office via conference calls. On January 5, 2022, our client was interviewed at the Boston, MA USCIS office. On the same day of her interview, her green card application was approved.

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CASE: PERM Labor Certification

EMPLOYER: Online IT Service Petitioner 

BENEFICIARY: Kyrgyz Network and Computer Systems Administrator in Chicago, IL

Our client has a prospective employer that was willing to file an I-140 petition for.  Our client has a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and worked for IT consulting companies in the past. 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.  

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, the job order was filed on April 9, 2021.  On July 16, 2021, we filed PERM. 

Eventually, on January 5, 2022, the PERM Labor Certification was approved without an audit. Our client can file the I-140 petition at any time.

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CASE: I-360 Petition

NATIONALITY: Chinese

LOCATION: Ohio

Our client is from China who came to the U.S. on a F-1 Visa in 2011.  She had a LPR (Green Card Holder) husband who was abusive.  

In 2019, she contacted our office to seek legal representation for her I-360 petition. With her story and other evidence, our office determined that she would be eligible for the VAWA I-360 self-petition as a spouse of an abusive LPR. 

Our client experienced domestic violence and spousal abuse during her marriage. Her husband physically and mentally abused her throughout the years. We prepared and filed her I-360 petition, which included several exhibits and a detailed brief to the USCIS Vermont Service Center on November 4, 2019.  

Finally, on December 17, 2021, the USCIS Vermont Service Center approved our client’s I-360 petition. With the approved I-360, our client can file her I-485 adjustment of status application to the USCIS for her permanent residency.

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CASE: EB-3 I-485

APPLICANT: Filipino KRB Electronic Test Engineer

LOCATION: Maricopa, AZ

Our client had a prospective employer that was willing to petition for a third-preference I-140.  Our client has a Bachelor’s degree in Electronics Engineering and has worked for his current employer since September 2017. Based on our client’s education and work background, our office determined that he is eligible for EB-3 classification for his I-140 petition.  Our client eventually retained us on December 12, 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 April 28, 2020.  On September 24, 2020, we promptly filed PERM. Eventually, on May 7, 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 June 10, 2021 via premium processing service. Eventually, on June 24, 2021, the I-140 EB3 Petition for our Filipino client was approved without any RFE. 

Once his I-140 petition was approved, he retained our office again to file adjustment of status applications for him and his family members. On September 3, 2021, our office filed the I-485 adjustment of status applications for our clients. Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices and fingerprint appointment came on time. Eventually, on December 27, 2021, his green card application was approved without any RFE. His adjustment of status application was approved less than 3 months from the filing date.

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CASE: J-2 Waiver of Two-Year Foreign Residency Requirement / Over 21-year-old dependent child

NATIONALITY: Filipina

LOCATION: Hendersonville, NC

Our client is a citizen of the Philippines who came to the U.S. on a J-2 Visa in July 2019.  She came with her mother who came on a J-1 Visa for her employment in the United States. Both were subject to the two-year foreign residency requirement, meaning they had to get a waiver or go back to their home country for two-years before they can apply for permanent residency or some non-immigrant visa such as the H, L, and O visas.

She turned 21 in January 2021.  She wanted to file her I-485 adjustment of status application with her U.S. citizen spouse’s I-130 petition. However, because of her two-year foreign residency requirement, our client cannot adjust her status in the United States without the fulfillment of requirement or the waiver. 

Although J-2 dependents cannot independently apply for a waiver, in cases where a J-2 child reaches 21, the Waiver Review Division may consider requests for waivers on behalf of the J-2 dependent.  The Department of State’s policy allows for that process in instances where the J-2 dependent obtains a divorce form the J-1 principal, the J-1 principal dies, or in cases where the J-2 dependent turns 21, which is our client’s case. In fact, our client turned 21 in January 2021.

Our firm was retained to do her J-2 waiver, and on September 15, 2021, the J-2 Waiver application (Form DS-3035 and supporting documents) was filed to the Department of State. We also sent a request to the DOS to be an interested government agency and recommend this waiver based on the fact that our client reached the age of 21 and was not a dependent of a J-1 visa holder anymore.  Eventually, on November 18, 2021, the DOS recommended to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) that our client be granted a waiver.  On December 15, 2021, the USCIS issued an I-612 approval notice for our client’s waiver request.

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CASE: EB-2 I-485

EMPLOYER: Public School District

APPLICANT: Filipina Elementary Special Education Teacher in Laughlin, NV

Our client has a current employer that was willing to petition for a second-preference I-140.  Our client has a Bachelor’s degree in Education, a valid Arizona Teaching license, and has more than 5 years of experience as a Special Education Teacher. Based on our client’s education and work background, our office determined that she is eligible for EB-2 classification for her 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 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 15, 2020.  On January 8, 2021, we filed PERM. On July 6, 2021, the PERM Labor Certification was approved without any audit – an EB2 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 29, 2021 via premium processing service. However, on August 5, 2021, the USCIS issued a Request for Evidence (RFE) and requested our client to submit her past experience verification letter from her former employer in the Philippines. Our office filed the Response to RFE on August 10, 2021. On August 19, 2021, the I-140 EB2 Petition for our Filipina client was approved. 

Once her I-140 petition was approved, she retained our office again for the adjustment of status applications for her and her immediate family members. On September 10, 2021, our office filed the I-485 adjustment of status applications. Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices and fingerprint appointment came on time. Eventually, on December 10, 2021, she and her family members’ green card applications were approved. Her adjustment of status application was approved within 3 months from the filing date.

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CASE: Marriage-Based Green Card (Same Sex Marriage Case)

CLIENT: Filipino

LOCATION: Parma, OH

Our client came to the United States from the Philippines with a J-1 exchange visitor’s visa in November 2019. Since then, he has remained in the United States. His J-1 program was not subject to the two-year foreign residency requirement. In February 2021, he married his U.S. Citizen same-sex spouse in Ohio.

On June 26, 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court held that restricting U.S. federal interpretation of “marriage” and “spouse” to apply only to heterosexual unions, by Section 3 of the defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), is unconstitutional under the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment. United States v. Windsor, 570 U.S. ___ (2013). After Windsor decision, the USCIS implemented a new policy that the USCIS officer must review immigration via petitions filed on behalf of a same-sex spouse in the same manner as those filed on behalf of an opposite-sex spouse. As long as a same-sex couple is married in a U.S. state that recognizes same-sex marriage, their marriage shall be considered a valid marriage under the immigration law. 

They married in Ohio where same-sex marriage is recognized. Our client contacted our office and retained us on March 2, 2021 for his I-130 petition and I-485 adjustment of status application. Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 petition and I-485 adjustment of status application together with all necessary supporting documents on March 23, 2021. Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices, fingerprint appointment, and work permit all came on time. 

Prior to the interview, we thoroughly prepared our client via conference call. On December 13, 2021, our client was interviewed at the Cleveland, Ohio USCIS office. Attorney Sung Hee (Glen) Yu accompanied our clients. The green card application was approved on December 14, 2021.

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