- What is the NIW Green Card?
The National Interest Waiver (NIW) is a special category within the EB-2 green card. Common fields for NIW include business, medicine, science, arts, sports, and education. Under normal circumstances, applying for an EB-2 requires sponsorship from a U.S. employer who must provide a permanent job offer and apply for a labor certification from the U.S. Department of Labor before filing the I-140 immigrant petition for the applicant.
However, the NIW green card application is an exception to the EB-2 requirements. Based on national interest considerations, the U.S. government waives the requirement for a permanent job offer and the lengthy labor certification process for foreign nationals who make significant contributions to U.S. national interests, allowing them to directly apply for a green card with the immigration authorities.
- NIW Green Card Advantages
The NIW green card does not require compliance with the EB-2 green card application requirements, which is its significant advantage. Specific advantages of the NIW green card include:
- No employer sponsorship required: Unlike other categories of employment-based applications, NIW applications do not require employer sponsorship. The NIW applicant is the beneficiary, who does not need a job offer or support letter from an employer and can independently apply for a U.S. green card.
- No labor certification required: Typically, an EB-2 immigration application requires a U.S. employer to provide a permanent job offer and apply for a PERM labor certification from the Department of Labor. With NIW, this requirement is waived.
- Wide range of coverage: NIW is applicable across various industries, not limited to specific fields or occupations. As long as the beneficiary can demonstrate unique abilities and contributions to U.S. national interests, approval is possible.
- Family immigration: The beneficiary and their dependents (spouse and unmarried children under 21) are eligible to apply for permanent green cards, enjoying benefits equivalent to citizens. After obtaining the green card, they can apply for citizenship after residing in the U.S. for 30 months within a 5-year period.
- Promising prospects: NIW green card holders have more opportunities to engage in senior positions, important projects, and collaboration opportunities. Their professional abilities and contributions are widely recognized, opening up broader career development prospects.
- Expedited processing: Compared to other green card application categories, NIW green cards are typically processed faster. Due to the outstanding abilities and significant contributions to national interests recognized in NIW applications, approval times are relatively shorter, sometimes shortening waiting times to several months to a year.
- NIW Green Card Application Requirements
First, let’s briefly understand the EB-2 application requirements before introducing the NIW application conditions. EB-2 application requirements:
- Individuals with “advanced degrees” or “exceptional ability” in fields such as science, technology, education, arts, and business, such as engineers, doctors, researchers, artists, etc.
- Applicants need a U.S. employer, and the employer must provide a permanent job offer. The employer must apply for a labor certification from the Department of Labor (PLC). After the labor certification is approved, the I-140 is submitted to the immigration authorities.
Note: During the immigration application process, applicants can only change employers at specific time points; otherwise, it may require starting the application process from scratch.
- NIW Green Card Application Requirements
- General requirements:
NIW applicants must meet the requirements of having an “advanced degree” or “exceptional ability.” Applicants must work in the field of their “advanced degree” or in traditional professional fields such as lawyers, doctors, architects, engineers, or teachers.
- Special requirements:
- For academic professionals such as doctors, professors, researchers, etc., having published articles with a certain citation count is sufficient for application.
- For individuals with exceptional abilities, having received personal awards, media coverage, membership in nationally or internationally recognized professional associations, or serving as professional judges is sufficient for application.
- What are the latest NIW application conditions and requirements?
- Basic requirements: Advanced degree or exceptional ability
Since the National Interest Waiver belongs to the employment-based second preference (EB-2), applicants must meet the EB-2 criteria, namely having “advanced degrees” or “exceptional ability” and working in their field of “advanced degrees” or in traditional professional fields such as lawyers, doctors, architects, engineers, or teachers.
- “Advanced degree” refers to any of the following:
- Having a master’s degree or higher from a U.S. university.
- Having a master’s degree or higher from a foreign university equivalent to a U.S. degree.
- Having a bachelor’s degree from a U.S. or foreign university equivalent to a master’s degree, along with at least 5 years of relevant professional experience. Combined, these two criteria are considered equivalent to a master’s degree.
If the above “advanced degree” criteria are not met, applicants can claim to have “exceptional ability,” meaning possessing exceptional skills in science, arts, or business compared to their peers.
- The “exceptional ability” requires meeting at least three of the following conditions:
- Having received official academic credentials from colleges, universities, or other educational institutions in their field.
- Having over ten years of full-time work experience in their field, usually requiring proof from former and current employers.
- Holding professional licenses in their field.
- Receiving compensation for their “exceptional ability.”
- Being a member of a professional association.
- Being recognized in their field and making significant contributions, verified by colleagues, government agencies, professional or business organizations.
- Applicants only need to meet either the “advanced degree” or “exceptional ability” condition; there is no need to meet both conditions simultaneously. Additional conditions: Meeting the three principles of the National Interest Waiver Standard. The Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) states that merely having an “advanced degree” or “exceptional ability” is not sufficient to meet the NIW application requirements. Applicants must also meet specific standards established in the Dhanasar case, namely the three-pronged Dhanasar standard:
- Whether the field the applicant is engaged in has substantial merit.
- Whether the applicant’s achievements in this field are sufficiently outstanding.
- Whether the applicant can make significant contributions to this field in the United States.
In immigration practice, the standards currently used by USCIS primarily come from the AAO’s ruling in the New York State Department of Transportation case (also known as the “NYDOT” case). These special standards can be summarized as follows:
- The applicant’s work and field must have intrinsic merit to U.S. national interests. In general, almost all professional work can be related to U.S. national interests, including research, engineering, business, education, finance, film, and music. Proving this is relatively easy.
- The applicant’s work and contributions must have a beneficial impact nationwide in the United States. Proving this is also relatively easy. For example, the applicant has published articles in national journals, presented at national-level academic conferences, or holds one or more patents.
- If requiring the applicant to immigrate through a labor certification would adversely affect U.S. national interests. The labor certification is designed to protect the basic interests of American workers.
In the immigration bureau’s review practice, the main criteria currently used by the immigration bureau are primarily derived from the AAO’s ruling on the New York State Department of Transportation case (also known as the “NYDOT” case). These specific standards can be summarized as follows:
- The applicant’s work and field of engagement must have intrinsic merit that is inherently substantial to the national interest of the United States. Generally speaking, almost all professional work can be linked to some extent to the national interest of the United States, including fields such as research, engineering, business, education, finance, film, and music. Proving this point is relatively easy.
- The applicant’s work and contributions must have a beneficial impact on a national scale in the United States. Demonstrating this point is also relatively easy. For example, if the applicant has published articles in journals distributed nationwide, delivered speeches at national-level academic conferences, or holds one or more patents.
- If requiring the applicant to immigrate through a labor certification would adversely affect the national interest of the United States. The purpose of labor certification is to protect the basic interests of American workers. If it is demonstrated that the applicant’s abilities surpass those of similarly qualified American counterparts and that their contributions to the national interest outweigh the need to protect American labor interests, then the applicant may be eligible for a national interest waiver.
- Specific assessment criteria or standards for the NIW green card:
Many international students, scholars, researchers, and other scientific and technical professionals in the United States feel unsure whether they have made outstanding achievements or significant contributions to the United States and are therefore uncertain whether they meet the criteria for a national interest waiver. Generally, when the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) reviews an applicant’s application, they often comprehensively evaluate whether the applicant’s qualifications meet the standards for a national interest waiver. It is suggested that applicants can use the following criteria for self-assessment:
- Do you have a master’s degree or higher?
- Do you have work experience in your field, both domestically and internationally?
- Have you received awards, big or small, domestically or internationally (including national or regional levels)?
- Have you published research articles in domestic or international academic journals, and how many as the first author?
- Do your articles have a significant number of independent citations and/or downloads?
- Have your articles ever been cited by U.S. government departments?
- Can you find experts or authoritative figures in your field to write recommendation letters for you?
- Can you find materials related to your field and the national interest?
- Are you a member of one or more professional industry associations?
If you answer yes to some or all of the above questions, then you are more likely to meet the eligibility criteria for an NIW application. Moreover, having an NIW application denied will not affect the applicant’s ability to apply for other types of immigration visas later on.
- How to apply for an NIW green card?
- Required documents for NIW green card application:
In addition to the immigration application form (L-140) and the Department of Labor foreign worker employment application form (ETA-750B), applicants for NIW national interest waiver must also prepare:
Personal identification;
Copy of the beneficiary’s passport;
Copy of the U.S. entry and exit form I-94 (both sides);
Proof of the beneficiary’s current non-immigrant status (such as -20s form, etc.);
Proof of Outstanding Talent:
Beneficiary’s latest resume;
Proof of education background, evaluation reports, and other materials that can prove the beneficiary’s education background. It should be demonstrated that the beneficiary’s education is at least equivalent to a master’s degree recognized by a U.S. university.
- All published articles, lecture posters, academic conference invitations, etc.;
- Proof of citation by other researchers for articles published by the beneficiary;
- Comments from reviewers or experts on the beneficiary’s published works;
- Requests for reprints of previously published works received by the beneficiary;
- Awards or honors received by the beneficiary;
- Proof of membership in professional associations;
- Funding information for the beneficiary’s research projects;
- Participation in peer review of research works of peers in the same field by the beneficiary, either individually or as a group;
- Reports on individuals who wrote recommendation letters for the beneficiary to prove the authority of the recommenders in their field;
- Information about all individuals who wrote recommendation letters for the beneficiary, including names, titles, job titles, and employers.
Please note that the above materials are only general requirements, and specific recommendations should be carefully reviewed in the official guidelines of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
- NIW application steps:
- Step 1: Determine eligibility for NIW green card application. NIW applicants must demonstrate that they possess special skills or professional knowledge, and that these skills or knowledge are in line with the national interests of the United States. Applicants can refer to the eligibility criteria mentioned above.
- Step 2: Prepare NIW application materials. The materials for NIW application include application forms, personal resumes, evidence of professional achievements, recommendation letters, document checklists, etc., as detailed above. Special attention should be paid to the applicant’s research achievements and proof of national interest in the United States. These proofs may include articles published in relevant fields, patents, conference papers, etc.
- Step 3: Fill out and submit application forms. According to the requirements of the NIW green card application, you need to fill out and submit relevant application forms, such as the I-140 form.
- Step 4: Pay fees. When submitting the application, you need to pay the relevant application fees, including application fees, biometric collection fees, etc. Specific fee information can be found on the official website of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
- Step 5: Submit the application and wait for approval. Once the preparation is complete, you can submit the application materials and fees to the USCIS. You can submit the application online through the USCIS website or mail the application materials to the designated USCIS address. After submission, USCIS will send a confirmation letter to the applicant (usually within 2-3 weeks) to notify them of the result. The processing time varies depending on individual cases and the workload of the immigration bureau. Expedited applications are also available, and results are generally obtained within 45 days.
- Step 6: Supplement materials and respond to requests. If the immigration bureau has any questions about your application or requires additional materials, they may issue an RFE (Request for Evidence) and may arrange for an interview. Upon receiving an RFE, you need to promptly provide the required supplementary materials or respond to the immigration bureau’s requests.
- Step 7: Approval and receipt of approval notice. Once the immigration bureau completes the review of your application, they will send you an approval notice. If the application is approved, the applicant will receive an I-140 form approval notice, indicating that the NIW has been recognized. After receiving the approval notice, you can proceed with the green card application process.
- NIW Green Card Application Fees and Timeline
NIW Application Fees
- The minimum total cost for the EB-2 NIW visa does not include all optional items, such as insurance processing fees, Form I-765, and business plan services, while the maximum total cost includes the highest cost of all fees. Specific NIW application fees are recommended to be carefully read in the official guide of the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) on how to minimize NIW green card application fees.
- Fully prepare documents: Organize and prepare the documents required for the application carefully to ensure they are complete and accurate.
- Research fee waivers: For certain application materials, such as Form I-485.
- Check all content carefully to avoid errors: To avoid additional fees due to errors in documents or applications.
- Write your own business plan: If you have a deep understanding of business and are confident in your research and writing skills.
- Consider hiring a limited scope immigration lawyer.
Timeline for NIW Application
NIW applications typically take 3-9 months to process.
- What to Do If Your NIW Application Is Denied?
If your NIW application is unfortunately rejected by immigration officials, you are not without recourse. At this point, you can take the following actions:
- Reapply to seek approval again.
- File a Motion to Reconsider or Motion to Reopen the case.
- Appeal to the USCIS Administrative Appeals Office (AAO).
- Resubmit the NIW application.
- Apply for other immigration categories.