CASE: I-485 / I-140 / National Interest Waiver
CLIENT: Korean
LOCATION: Palo Alto, CA
Our client contacted us about the possibility of doing a National Interest Waiver self-petition. He is a researcher from South Korea and he is an exceptional researcher and scientist in the field of Neurology and Neuroscience research.
Our client’s significant contributions have placed him at the pinnacle of his field. Throughout his research career, our client has pioneered the development of cutting-edge neuroscience methods to both enable and accelerate the investigation of the functional brain circuits. Specifically, his research studies provide critical insights into how we can restore dysfunctional motor circuits in patients suffering from devastating motor diseases. Because of his innovative research, our client’s research works were highly evaluated by the reviewers of various journals and by colleagues and experts in the field.
Upon review of his credentials and qualifications, our office determined that he 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. While we prepared his case, 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 prepared a 23-page brief for our client’s NIW filing. Our client also obtained 5 letters of recommendation from his colleagues and internationally-recognized researchers. Our office also included his publication records, presentation records, and conference materials in the NIW application. We demonstrated that our client is one of the few elite researchers who have made significant and substantial contributions to his field of endeavor, that he 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 his I-140(NIW) petition to the USCIS Nebraska Service Center on August 27, 2018. Eventually, on April 19, 2019, the USCIS approved his I-140 petition without any Requests for Evidence.
When we filed his I-140, he concurrently filed his I-485 adjustment of status application. Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices and fingerprint appointment came on time.
Prior to the interview, we thoroughly prepared our client via conference call as well. On October 17, 2019, our client was interviewed at Santa Clara California USCIS office. Eventually, on October 18, 2019, our clients’ green card applications were approved. The derivative applicants of this case (his wife and daughters) also received I-485 approval. Now, our client and his family members become green card holders.