1.
The Employment-based First Preference Immigration Category
(EB1)
The Immigration and Nationality Act
(INA) permits multinational executives and managers to apply for U.S. permanent residence under the employment-based
immigration first preference category (EB1). The employment-based first preference
category are not subject to a Labor
Certification requirement. The first preference
immigration category consists of three subcategories, each has different eligibility requirements:
a)
Aliens
with extraordinary ability in sciences, arts, education, business or athletics
(EB-1A or EB1-EA);
b)
Outstanding professors
or researchers (EB-1B or EB1-OR);
c)
Multinational executives or managers (EB-1C).
Certain
multinational executives or managers can obtain their Green Cards by showing
that they served for at least one year in another country in an executive or
managerial position with the parent, subsidiary, or affiliated company of an U.S.
company. The EB-1C petition requires the individual to have a permanent
job offer from the U.S. company to work in an executive or managerial position.
2.
Applying
for U.S. Permanent Residency as a Multinational Executive or Manager
Owners,
executives, or managers of
multinational companies seeking to expand to
or relocate in the United States may wish to seek permanent residence in the
United States. The most appropriate immigration category for owners, executives
and managers of such companies is the EB1 Multinational Executives and Managers.
Most
executives and managers of
multinational companies will be able to seek permanent residence under the first
employment-based preference as multinational managers and executives (EB-1C). This
process does not require Labor Certification. The
requirements for multinational executives and managers under the first
employment-based preference are similar to those for executives
and managers under the L-1A non-immigrant
visa.
In
addition to the requirements applicable to L-1A non-immigrants visa, a
multinational executive or manager seeking permanent residence must have assumed
an executive or managerial position abroad, and the U.S. operation must already
have been doing business for at least one year.
There is
no requirement for the alien to have first obtained L-1A status. For example, an
eligible alien may enter under E-1 or E-2 status and then seek
permanent residence as a multinational executive or manager once the U.S.
business has been operating for at least one year. To
obtain permanent residency as a Multinational Executive or Manager, the alien
must have been employed outside the U.S. in a managerial or executive capacity
for at least one of the three years immediately preceding the filing of the
petition; the foreign worker must be coming to U.S. to work in an executive or a
managerial capacity; and there must have been corporate relationship for at least one year
between the two affiliated companies.
3.
Advantages of EB1 Multinational Executives or Managers over Other Green Card Options
The
EB1 Multinational Executives or Managers
Green Card is attractive because it is fast, and there is no
Labor Certification required. Also, It is more likely than other immigration
categories to be approved by United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS),
if the
applicant meets all the regulatory requirements.
If you
are a multinational executive or manager, you do not have to follow the requirements of
Labor Certification to obtain an U.S. Green Card. To be eligible to the EB-1C immigration category, you must have been employed as a manager or executive for at least one of the last three years by the same employer, an affiliate, or a subsidiary. The employer
petitioning your Green Card application must have been conducting business in the United States for at least one year.
The
immigration category of EB1 Multinational Executives or Managers for U.S. permanent residency
has the following advantages:
4.
The Priority Date of an EB1 Multinational Executives or Managers Petition
The
EB-1C immigrant executive or manager receives a "priority date" upon approval of the Form I-140 petition. The date is retroactive to the date of "receipting" of the Form I-140. The priority date (i.e., the Receipt Date) is noted on the Form I-797, Approval Notice.
Immigrant visa numbers for
EB-1C and other first preference priority workers are immediately available
for most time. However, the Department of State's monthly Visa Bulletin should be consulted to be sure that the priority date of the
EB-1C beneficiary is CURRENT at the time the beneficiary seeks to file the Form I-485 application to
obtain Permanent Residence or adjust the beneficiary's legal status in the
United States.
At the time the Form I-485 is filed, the beneficiary must be in a lawful nonimmigrant status, must not have worked without authorization, and the priority date must be current
In other words, a visa number in the EB-1C category must immediately be available. If the priority date is not
current - that is, if the quota cut-time backlogs, the beneficiary of the
EB-1C immigrant petition cannot file the Form I-485 concurrently with the Form I-140. The I-485 would have to be held until the priority date becomes
current.
5.
The EB-1C Beneficiary's Spouse and Children
Assuming the priority date for the
EB-1C immigrant petition is current, the spouse and unmarried minor children under twenty-one years old (the derivative aliens) of the
EB-1C beneficiary (the principal alien) are eligible to apply for lawful permanent resident status, either by an accompanying Form I-485 application to adjust status if they are already in the United States in a lawful status, or by a following-to-join application through consular processing if they are not in the United States.
Both the spouse and unmarried children under twenty-one
years old but of working age may apply for an EAD (Employment Authorization
Document) when filing their Form I-485 applications to adjust status.
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