EB1 Visa Requirements

The EB1 Visa is an employment-based visa for noncitizens who are (1) of extraordinary ability, (2) outstanding professors and researchers, and (3) those who are certain multinational executives or managers. Each of these eligibility categories has its own requirements, as discussed in detail below.

EB1 Visa: Extraordinary Ability

If you are applying for an EB1 Visa based on having Extraordinary Ability, you must be able to show this ability in sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics through sustained national or international acclaim.

To prove your extraordinary ability to USCIS, you must meet at least 3 of the listed criteria below OR provide evidence of a one-time achievement (such as a Pulitzer, Oscar, Olympic Medal) as well as showing that you will continue to work in the area of your expertise. Notably, no offer of employment or labor certification is required. The application for an EB1 Visa based on Extraordinary Ability involves applying for yourself with a Form I-140.

The following criteria may be met to demonstrate extraordinary ability:

• Evidence of receipt of lesser nationally or internationally recognized prizes or awards for excellence
• Evidence of your membership in associations in the field which demand outstanding achievement of their members
• Evidence of published material about you in professional or major trade publications or other major media
• Evidence that you have been asked to judge the work of others, either individually or on a panel
• Evidence of your original scientific, scholarly, artistic, athletic, or business-related contributions of major significance to the field
• Evidence of your authorship of scholarly articles in professional or major trade publications or other major media
• Evidence that your work has been displayed at artistic exhibitions or showcases
• Evidence of your performance of a leading or critical role in distinguished organizations
• Evidence that you command a high salary or other significantly high remuneration in relation to others in the field
• Evidence of your commercial successes in the performing arts

EB1 Visa: Outstanding Professors and Researchers

If you are applying for an EB1 Visa based on being an outstanding professor or researcher, you must be able to show that there has been international recognition of your achievements in a particular academic field and must have had at least 3 years of experience in teaching or research in that academic area. Additionally, to be granted an EB1 as an outstanding professor or researcher, you must be entering the United States to pursue tenure or tenure track teaching or a comparable research position at a university, an institution of higher education, or a private employer.

To prove that you are an outstanding professor or researcher, you must meet at least 2 of the 6 criteria listed below and provide an offer of employment from the prospective employer. The private employer must show documented accomplishments and that it employs at least 3 full-time researchers. As with the EB1 for Extraordinary Ability, no labor certification is required for outstanding professors and researchers. However, there must be an offer of employment. The application for an EB1 Visa for professors and researchers involves the employer filing an I-140 and establishing that they have the ability to pay the offered wage as of the petition’s priority date.

Evidence of being an outstanding professor or researcher may include the following:

• Evidence of receipt of major prizes or awards for outstanding achievement
• Evidence of membership in associations that require their members to demonstrate outstanding achievement
• Evidence of published material in professional publications written by others about the noncitizen's work in the academic field
• Evidence of participation, either on a panel or individually, as a judge of the work of others in the same or allied academic field
• Evidence of original scientific or scholarly research contributions in the field
• Evidence of authorship of scholarly books or articles (in scholarly journals with international circulation) in the field

EB1 Visa: Certain Multinational Manager or Executive

If you are applying for an EB1 Visa based on being a multinational manager or executive, you must have been employed outside the US for at least 1 year in the 3 most recent years leading up to the petition or the most recent lawful non-immigrant admission if you are already working for the US employer. Also, the US petitioner must have been doing business for at least 1 year, have a qualifying relationship to the entity you worked for outside the US, and intend to employ you in a managerial or executive capacity.

To be eligible for an EB1 Visa as a multinational manager or executive, your petitioning employer must be a US employer and intend to employ you in a managerial or executive capacity. Additionally, the petitioner must have been doing business in the US for at least 1 year, as a legal entity with a qualifying relationship to the entity that employed you abroad in a managerial capacity. Again, as with the 2 options above for an EB1 visa, no labor certification is required. However, there must be an offer of employment. The application process for an EB1 Visa for multinational managers and executives requires that the US employer file the I-140 and demonstrate the ability to pay the offered wage as of the petition’s priority date.

My name is Michael Ashoori and I'm a U.S. immigration lawyer and the founder of Ashoori Law. As an immigration lawyer, I help families, professionals, investors, and entrepreneurs get visas, green cards, and citizenship to the United States.  If you have any questions, feel free to schedule a free consultation by clicking this link.