EB-1A FAQ

A: There are three groups of foreign nationals designated as priority workers. EB-1A: Aliens of Extraordinary Ability; EB-1B: Outstanding Researchers and Professors; and EB-1C: Multinational Company Executives and Managers.

A: An Alien of Extraordinary Ability is an alien who 1) has extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics, which has been demonstrated by sustained national or international acclaim and whose achievements have been recognized in the field through extensive documentation; 2) seeks to enter the U.S. to continue work in the area of extraordinary ability; and 3) whose entry into the U.S. will substantially benefit prospectively the U.S.

A: According to the Federal Regulations, extraordinary ability means a level of expertise demonstrating that the individual is one of a small percentage who have risen to the very top of the field of endeavor.

A: Any foreign national who is at the very top of his or her field of endeavor, and who is able to demonstrate the extraordinary ability by extensive documentation may file a self-petitioned EB-1A. Alternatively, a U.S. employer may file an EB-1A petition on behalf of the foreign national.

A: Immigration Form I-140 is the form to file an EB-1A petition.

A: There are two key parties: Petitioner and Beneficiary. In a self-petition, the foreign national is both the Petitioner and Beneficiary. In an employer-sponsored petition, the employer is the Petitioner and the foreign national is the Beneficiary.

A: No job offer is required to file an EB-1A petition.

A: No. Because a job offer is not required for an EB-1A petition, the foreign national does not need to undergo a labor certification before filing.

A: There are a couple of major advantages in applying for a green card through an EB-1A petition. First, the foreign national is not required to have a job offer; second, there is no labor certification requirement; third, the foreign national can self-petition; and lastly, because EB-1A is an employment-based first preference category, visas are always available.

A: The submitted evidence should establish that 1) the foreign national has sustained national or international acclaim for his or her achievements, and 2) the foreign national will continue to work in that same area of endeavor after entry into the United States.

A: There are two ways to establish sustained national or international acclaim. One way to establish this requirement is to show the foreign national’s one-time achievement or the receipt of one major internationally recognized award or prize. The other way is to show that the foreign national has met at least three of ten evidentiary criteria established by the Federal Regulations. These include:

(i)Documentation of the alien’s receipt of lesser nationally or internationally recognized prizes or awards for excellence in the field of endeavor;
(ii) Documentation of the alien’s membership in associations in the field for which classification is sought, which require outstanding achievements of their members, as judged by recognized national or international experts in their disciplines or fields;
(iii) Published material about the alien in professional or major trade publications or other major media, relating to the alien’s work in the field for which classification is sought. Such evidence shall include the title, date, and author of the material, and any necessary translation;
(iv) Evidence of the alien’s participation, either individually or on a panel, as a judge of the work of others in the same or an allied field of specialization for which classification is sought;
(v) Evidence of the alien’s original scientific, scholarly, artistic, athletic, or business-related contributions of major significance in the field;
(vi) Evidence of the alien’s authorship of scholarly articles in the field, in professional or major trade publications or other major media;
(vii) Evidence of the display of the alien’s work in the field at artistic exhibitions or showcases;
(viii) Evidence that the alien has performed in a leading or critical role for organizations or establishments that have a distinguished reputation;
(ix) Evidence that the alien has commanded a high salary or other significantly high remuneration for services, in relation to others in the field; or
(x) Evidence of commercial successes in the performing arts, as shown by box office receipts or record, cassette, compact disk, or video sales.

A: This issue is common among foreign nationals who reside outside of the United States at the time of filing their EB-1A petitions. The foreign national may provide letters from prospective employers in the United States, contracts or agreements entered with U.S. organizations to demonstrate his or her potential employment or regular activities in the specific field after entry into the U.S.

A: Petitioner or foreign national has the burden of proving that he or she has satisfied all the requirements for classification as an alien of extraordinary ability under the statute.

A: It must be a major, internationally recognized prize or awards, such as winning the Nobel Prize or an Academy Award.

A: Sometimes the prize or award the foreign national has received is not easily recognizable or readily determined as satisfying the one-time achievement standard. The EB-1A petition should then include extensive evidence to demonstrate that the award is a major, internationally recognized award. According to USCIS guidance, these documents may include, but are not limited to: the criteria used to grant the award; the significance of the award in the field; the reputation of the organization or the panel granting the award; previous winners of the award who enjoyed international acclaim at the time of receiving the award; and evidence the award attracts competition from internationally recognized individuals in the field.

A: To satisfy this criterion, the foreign national must demonstrate that the awards or prizes are either nationally or internationally recognized in the field of endeavor. This criterion has eliminated those awards, prizes or grants from local authorities, institutions, colleges, and universities. The foreign national must prove that he or she has received at least two lesser nationally or internationally recognized prizes or awards.

A: The foreign national should submit as much evidence or documentation as possible to satisfy this evidentiary criterion. According to USCIS guidance, this evidence should include at least some of the following: 1) a copy or photocopy of each prize or award received; 2) public announcement or articles about the awards; 3) documentation verifying the origination, purpose, significance, and scope of each award; 4) the reputation of the organization or panel granting the prize or awards; 5) criteria used to nominate and judge the participants and award winners; 6) the reputation of the organization or panel granting the prizes or awards; 7) how many prizes or awards are awarded each year; or 8) previous winners of each award.

A: According to the plain language of the Federal Regulations, there are three elements to satisfy this criterion. First, the foreign national is a member of an organization or association in the field of endeavor. Second, the membership requires “outstanding achievement” in the field. Third, such “outstanding achievement” must be judged by nationally or internationally recognized experts in the field. It is important to note that outstanding achievement should be an “essential condition” for admission to membership, so it is generally insufficient to demonstrate outstanding achievement as a member of an association without regard to the membership requirements of the association. Thus, evidence of membership in associations such as the National Academics of Sciences and Engineering, where members are elected to membership by their peers based on outstanding achievements will likely satisfy this criterion. On the contrary, membership in associations to which all individuals in a particular profession or occupation are expected to belong (such as state bar associations for attorneys) or membership that requires a certain level of education or years of experience, will not satisfy this criterion.

A: The foreign national may submit the following evidence to meet the membership requirement: 1) documents describing the association’s goals, mission, size, target membership, and standing within the national and international community; 2) documents showing the minimum requirements and criteria used for membership in the association; 3) evidence of national or international experts who make determinations about membership; and 4) other relevant requirements for membership.

A: There are three elements to satisfy for this evidentiary criterion. First, the publication must be about the foreign national, which means his or her name must be mentioned. Second, the publication must be related to the work of the foreign national. Third, the publication must be in a professional or major trade publication or other major media.

A: According to USCIS guidance, the following evidence may be submitted to demonstrate professional or major trade publications and/or major media have published material about the foreign national’s work in the field:
1) Copies of the publications, including the name, title, date, and author
2) Documents showing the significance of the published material
3) Circulation information for the publication, including the number of copies in circulation, the scope of publication (local, national or international), and frequency of publication
4) Any other published material, outside the scope of marketing materials created to sell products or promote the company

A: The foreign national has to establish that he or she has been invited to participate as a judge of the work of others and that he or she actually did participate as a judge of the work of others. Additionally, the work of others judged by the foreign national must be in the same or an allied field of endeavor. The foreign national should submit the following evidence to satisfy this criterion:
1) Documents about the event or panel and the significance of the work judged
2) Information about the criteria used to select the individual judges
3) An explanation of how and why you received an invitation to be a judge

A: First, the foreign national must establish his or her contribution to the field. These contributions must have already been realized rather than being potential, future contributions. Second, the foreign national must also demonstrate that the contributions are original and scientific, scholarly, artistic, athletic, or business-related in nature. Third, the contributions must rise to the level of major significance in the field as a whole, rather than to a project or to an organization. Contributions of major significance suggest that the petitioner’s work has significantly impacted the field. The foreign national must satisfy all of these elements to meet this evidentiary criterion.

A: The foreign national can satisfy this evidentiary criterion by submitting the following evidence or documentation:
1) Evidence of the foreign national’s work being implemented by others such as:
a. Objective documentary evidence of the significance of foreign national’s contribution to the field (e.g. patents, pioneering new technology, etc.)
b. Testimony or support letters from experts that discuss the foreign national’s contributions of major significance, which could include:
i. Letters of recommendation from prominent scientists, researchers, scholars or CEO’s/founders of distinguished organizations, which describe, in detail, the foreign national’s achievements and how they are of major significance in the field
2) Evidence that the foreign national’s significant contributions have provoked widespread public commentary in the field of endeavor and have been widely cited
3) If foreign national’s business successes are primarily based online, information about website usage/visitor traffic, the number of online purchases or downloads, or other data showing the success and contributions online
When submitting letters or testimonies, it is best to provide as much detail as possible about the contribution. The letters should explain, in detail, how the contribution was “original” (not merely replicating the work of others) and how they were of “major” significance. General statements regarding the importance of the endeavors are normally insufficient.

A: This refers to the scholarly or academic articles written by the foreign national and published in professional or major trade publications or other major media. The key here is that the articles must be scholarly or academic. Generally, the scholarly article is written by and for experts in a particular field of study and are peer-reviewed.

A: The evidence should include: 1) copy of the article written by the foreign national; 2) background information regarding the professional or major trade publication that has published the foreign national’s scholarly article; 3) if the article was published in major media, evidence regarding the number of circulation should be included. Additionally, the foreign national should include evidence regarding the significance of the articles in the field.

A: There are two elements for this evidentiary criterion. The foreign national has to show that he or she is either the leader or plays a critical role in organizations or establishments. Secondly, organizations or establishments must have a distinguished reputation. It is important to note that the foreign national must demonstrate that he or she has the leading or critical role in at least two organizations or establishments. Playing a leading or critical role in only one organization or establishment is not sufficient.

A: To satisfy this criterion, the foreign national should submit the following evidence: 1) letters or affidavits from the officials or employees of the organizations or establishments containing specific details regarding the foreign national’s role and how it was critical or essential, with emphasis on the specific accomplishments, how the accomplishments are attributed to his or her role, and why these accomplishments are important; 2) Documents showing the distinguished reputation of the company or companies where the foreign national played a critical or essential role; 3) organizational chart of the organizations; or 4) any other documents showing the foreign national’s major contributions in a critical or essential role.

A: To satisfy this criterion, the foreign national must demonstrate that compared to other professionals in the same field, he or she commanded a high salary or other significantly high remuneration for his or her services. The comparison must be between the foreign national and other professionals in the same field. The foreign national cannot compare his or her salary with the general public of his or her country. The salary must be high or the remuneration must be significantly high. Thus, if the foreign national’s salary is only around 75th percentile of the national level, this is not considered high salary to satisfy the evidentiary criterion.

A: Some of the evidence to demonstrate a high salary or other remuneration for the foreign national’s services includes:
1) Copies of employment contracts detailing the salary paid or to be paid
2) Copies of payroll documents or tax returns detailing the wages paid
3) Evidence establishing receipt of other significant forms of compensation for the foreign national’s services, which may include but is not limited to: equity in-lieu of cash remuneration, deferred compensation, profits from the sale of a business started by the foreign national, or other forms of remuneration in addition to salary
4) A statistical comparison of salaries in the field in which the foreign national is starting his or her business that has been prepared by a government or private institution, or similar organization, which demonstrates the salary or other remuneration commanded or to be commanded by the foreign national is higher than that commanded by others in the field.

A: USCIS will only accept other evidence if the foreign national can establish that the evidentiary criteria designated in the federal regulations is not available. This is a very high standard of proof.

A: Your EB-1A petition package should be organized in such a way that evidence establishing the requested evidentiary criteria can be easily identified and reviewed by the immigration officer. Therefore, an exhibit list, index and a comprehensive petition letter serving as a roadmap for your petition should all be included.

A: A letter of recommendation is also known as a reference letter. It is a letter written and signed by an expert in the same field as the foreign national to attest that he or she is one of a small percentage who has risen to the very top of that field. Often times, letters of recommendation can be used as testimonial evidence establishing one or several evidentiary criteria under the regulation. For example, a letter of recommendation can help to show original contributions of major significance or demonstrate a leading or critical role in an organization or establishment with a distinguished reputation.

A: A letter of recommendation should be addressed to the USCIS adjudication officer, provide the name, address and title of the recommender and explicitly describe the author’s favorable position in support of the petitioner’s EB-1A petition. It should also include the following:
1) General introduction of the writer’s background and qualifications to provide the attestation: in this portion of the letter, the author should describe his or her background in the field of expertise, such as employment history, scientific publications, rewards or prizes awarded, and membership to the organizations or associations that require outstanding achievement, etc. This part should be a summary of the writer’s Curriculum Vitae to demonstrate the writer’s qualification to provide an advisory opinion on the foreign national’s EB-1A petition.
2) A brief description of how the author knows the petitioner: the author must indicate in the letter how he or she met the petitioner and under what circumstances the author agreed to provide testimony evidence through the letter.
3) Explanation, in detail, as to what particular elements the author believes the foreign national has satisfied. Letters of recommendation have been regularly used to establish a foreign national’s original contribution of major significance in the field. Usually, it is very difficult to find objective documents to establish the “original” and “major significance” elements for that criterion. Letters of recommendation are great examples of evidence to establish such elements. The author must describe in a detailed manner what contributions the foreign national had made; why they are original; and how significant such contributions have been in the field. If the foreign national tries to establish that he or she is a member of association that requires outstanding achievement judged by the experts in the field, and there is no readily available objective evidence to prove the required elements, a letter from the expert in the field attesting to those elements can bridge the gap of objective evidence. The author cannot simply repeat the language of the regulation, nor can he or she simply list the qualifications, unique skills or background the Petitioner possesses as well as the importance of the foreign national’s work. Letters containing nothing but conclusive statements without concrete examples of the Petitioner’s original contribution of major significance in the field will carry little evidentiary weight. In summary, the author must describe in a detailed manner how the Petitioner or Petitioner’s professional endeavors in the field have made him or her one of that small percentage that has risen to the very top in the field.

A: You should be very prudent in selecting persons writing letters of recommendation for you. Though it is easy to have persons close to you, such as your colleagues, classmates, co-authors, advisors or even personal acquaintances write letters of recommendation for you, the probative value of such letters in supporting your EB-1A petition will be substantially undercut as the USCIS adjudicators would consider letters from such persons partial. On the other hand, letters from independent, objective individuals such as third parties who can show your influence in the scientific or requisite field can be very persuasive in supporting your position.

A: No evidence or documentation can guarantee an automatic approval of the EB-1A petition. A letter from a Nobel Laureate will definitely enhance the Petitioner’s chances of approval, but only if it is a letter describing how the foreign national has satisfied one or several evidentiary criteria recognized by the regulations. On the other hand, such a letter will carry little weight if it indicates that the author has been solicited to comment on the petitioner’s work based on the review of his publications and Curriculum Vitae.

A: You should prepare four to seven letters of recommendation for your EB-1A petition.

A: The more, the better. Or you should prepare at least three letters from independent referees.

A: We can draft the letters for you. After being retained, we will discuss with you in detail a strategy on how to present your case before USCIS. Once you have determined which particular scholars or professionals you would like to solicit for the letters of support, we can assist you in one of two ways. First, you provide us with the writer’s qualifications, background, working relationship with you and how he or she would evaluate the contributions you made in the field. We will draft the reference letter for you after we obtain the above information in writing. Alternatively, with your authorization and the writer’s express, written consent to providing a letter, we can communicate with the writer directly to collect the necessary information on your behalf and draft the letter of recommendation. Once we finish drafting the letter, we will send the draft to you or the writer for possible or necessary revisions before it is finalized for signature.

A: You can change your job while your EB-1A petition is pending, so long as your new job is still in the same field of endeavor defined in your petition.

A: You do not have to wait until you find an employer to file EB-1A petition. If you believe you can establish the EB-1A eligibility through extensive documentation, you should file your petition now. Please contact us for a free evaluation of your case.

A: Yes, you can file an EB-1A petition first and obtain an earlier priority date. After your EB-1A petition is approved, you can work on your J waiver. You must have the J waiver at the time you file your adjustment of status application in the United States. You do not have to have the J waiver approved before filing the EB-1A Petition. For a free evaluation of your EB-1A petition, please contact us.

A: There are several differences between EB-1A and EB-1B. First, EB-1B must be filed by an employer, and there is no self-petition in EB-1B. Second, the law has imposed several mandatory pre-conditions for EB-1B petitions. For example, in an EB-1B petition, the foreign national must have at least three years of experience in teaching and/or research in the academic field; there must be a permanent offer of employment in his or her academic field to the foreign national; and the employer must be either an institute of higher education, or a private employer that employs at least three full-time researchers and has attained documented accomplishments in the field. Once the above conditions are met, then the issue becomes whether the foreign national is recognized internationally as outstanding in a specific academic area. The foreign national can establish this by meeting two of the six evidentiary criteria listed in the federal regulations.
The evidentiary criteria under EB-1B is considerably lower than those under EB-1A, thus it can be satisfied with much more ease than EB-1A.
It is possible to file two petitions at the same time. Practically, because EB-1B maintains a lower evidentiary threshold than EB-1A and both EB-1A and EB-1B belong to the employment-based first preference classification, EB-1A might be redundant if the employer would already agree to file EB-1B for the foreign national.

A: No. Each EB-1A petition has to undergo two steps of adjudication by USCIS. At the first step, USCIS will examine the evidence in the record to determine whether foreign national has met at least three evidentiary criteria under the federal regulations. If the foreign national has failed at the first step, the petition will be denied. If the foreign national has met the burden of proof under at least three evidentiary criteria, USCIS will conduct the second step in the analysis of the petition, which is known as the final merits analysis. The final merits analysis focuses on whether, under the totality of the circumstances, the evidence submitted demonstrates the foreign national has sustained national or international acclaim and is one of a small percentage who has risen to the very top of the field of endeavor.

A: Yes, premium processing is available for I-140 EB-1A petitions. The premium processing fee is $1225.00 at this time. Once the foreign national pays the premium processing fee, USCIS guarantees a decision within 15 calendar days after receiving the petition.

A: Yes. You can file your EB-1A petition with regular service at the beginning. After USCIS has received it and while it is pending, you can request to switch to premium processing by filing form I-907 and paying USCIS $1225.00 as premium processing fee.

A: The filing fee for I-140 is $580.00.

A: Although your spouse and children are not beneficiaries in your EB-1A petition, they will be benefitted as derivative beneficiaries. That means they can file adjustment of status with you or apply for the consular process to obtain a green card after approval of your EB-1A petition.

A: It depends. Publications of scholarly articles might be an essential part to demonstrate extraordinary ability in the scientific research area. Thus, for researcher or scientists, the more publications, the better chance of approval becomes. Normally, a larger number of publications of scholarly articles will also result in a large number of citations to the articles. Heavy citations to the foreign national’s publications may become the best evidence to demonstrate his or her original contributions. In other areas such as business, publications of scholarly articles are not regular activities engaged by business professionals. In that case, a lack of publications should not prevent the foreign national from filing EB-1A petition if he or she can satisfy three evidentiary criteria among the remaining nine ones.

A: Yes. You can file a separate immigrant visa petition with supporting documents to demonstrate eligibility for the separate immigrant visa classification while you file an EB-1A petition. Many scholars, researchers or scientists choose to file both EB-1A and EB-1A (National Interest Waiver) petitions at the same time.

A: You can file the EB-1A petition in one of two ways. You can file the petition the traditional way by sending your EB-1A petition package to the designated USCIS service center. Or you can file the I-140 petition electronically first, then submit your supporting documentation after you receive the notice from the USCIS. Right now, there are two USCIS service centers that adjudicate EB-1A petitions. One is Nebraska Service Center and the other Texas Service Center. You should file your EB-1A petition to either of the Service Centers based on your residence in the U.S.

A: After submitting your EB-1A petition, USCIS will send a receipt notice confirming its receipt of your petition. This usually arrives within a few weeks of filing your petition. After the receipt notice, USCIS will send you or your attorney a second correspondence. This can either be an approval notice or a Request for Evidence (RFE) notice. An approval notice means you have established your eligibility as an alien with extraordinary ability, and you and your qualifying relatives can move on to file an adjustment of status application (I-485). An RFE means that USCIS has found the documentation you submitted with your EB-1A petition insufficient to establish your eligibility. You must provide the additional documents requested in the RFE within the designated time frame (usually around 12 weeks) to resolve the insufficiency.

A: RFE is effectively a notice of intent to deny. If you have hired an attorney to handle your EB-1A petition, you should work with your attorney to find out what kind of documents you should submit to respond RFE. If you have not hired an attorney, we strongly suggest that you consult Law Offices of Yongbing Zhang or a licensed immigration attorney experienced in EB-1A petitions and discuss a plan or strategy to respond the RFE.

A: Approval of your EB-1A petition will result in a green card automatically. You still have to take one more step to obtain your green card. You have to either file an adjustment of status application with USCIS if you are physically in the United States, or start the consular process at National Visa Center if you are outside the United States. If you have filed your adjustment of status application concurrently with your EB-1A petition, then you do not have to do anything but wait for USCIS decision regarding the adjustment of status application. If you have not done the concurrent filings, you can go ahead and file adjustment of status application right away because visas are always available for employment-based first preference classifications such as EB-1A. You can do so even if you are a foreign national born in China or India, which usually require a long wait time for other visa classifications.

A: Yes, like visas for the EB-1 category are always available. You have a choice of filing concurrent I-485 applications while filing I-140 EB-1A petition, as you do not have to wait for your visa to become available.

A: The benefit of concurrent filings is that you, your spouse and children born outside of the U.S. can enjoy such immigration benefits as Employment Authorization (EAD) and Advance Parole (travel document) while your I-485 applications are pending with USCIS. The drawback to concurrent filing is that if your I-140 EB-1A petition is denied, your I-485 will also be denied. This will result in revocation of your already approved EAD and Travel document and the $1070 adjustment of status filing fee for each applicant will not be refunded.

A: Yes. You have an option of filing EB-1A self-petition. One downside of the PERM process is that the case is controlled by all other parties, rather than the foreign national him or herself. The PERM application can be time-consuming on the employer’s side and also requires extra time for the Department of Labor to process. Sometimes, it is not guaranteed that the PERM can be filed timely after recruitment. Other times, a PERM application may be hit by an audit from the Department of Labor, which may eventually lead to a denial. This requires the entire process to start from the beginning once again. By this time, months or even years have passed, and there is no concrete progress in your immigration process. The benefit of the EB-1A petition is that you can control your own petition process. All you have to do is consult a licensed, experienced immigration attorney to understand the legal requirements, then prepare objective documentation and find experts who agree to attest that you are the one of that small percentage who has risen to the very top of the field of endeavor by signing letters of recommendation. Once you have all the documents ready, you can file the case with USCIS right away.

A: If hired, our firm will provide the following services:

1) Answer all the questions you have regarding your EB-1A petition;
2) Direct, advise and counsel you to prepare the necessary evidence and documentation supporting your petition;
3) Collect sufficient information from you regarding the area of your expertise and the background of the persons who would provide letters of recommendation for your EB-1A petition;
4) Draft, revise, amend or proofread the letters of recommendation;
5) Draft, revise, amend or proofread letters, statements, or affidavits establishing your eligibility;
6) Draft a comprehensive petition letter in support of your EB-1A petition;
7) Complete all the required forms based on the information you provide with us;
8) Organize the petition package and file it with USCIS service center;
9) Monitor and keep track of your petition, and follow up with USCIS regarding the progress of the adjudication if necessary; and
10) Work with you to collect, draft, prepare and file additional evidence or documentation to respond to USCIS Request for Evidence if necessary.

A: Depending on the strength of your EB-1A petition, you can choose one of two options after your EB-1A petition is denied. First, you may appeal the denial to the Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) of USCIS in Washington, DC for review of the Service Center’s decision. You will have 30 days to file such appeal. Once an appeal is filed, the Service Center will review the appeal first and treat it as a motion to reopen/reconsider. If they agree with your position, they may withdraw the denial and enter a new decision approving the EB-1A petition. If the Service Center does not agree with your position, it will transfer your case to AAO for further review. Second, you can always file another EB-1A petition with a set of new evidence indicating your increased acclaim in your field. If the circumstances surrounding your academic development or scientific research have substantially changed since your submission of first EB-1A petition, such as dramatic increase of independent citations to your publications, receipt of national or international awards or prizes, or additional applications of your patents by other institutions, you should file a new EB-1A petition based on the new documentation. Although you must disclose the denial of your previous EB-1A petition in any subsequent petitions, USCIS will not deny a new EB-1A petition only based on the previous denial. Additionally, USCIS is required to review your entire petition package and make a decision based on the set of new evidence provided. If the evidence you submit for the second petition has clearly established your eligibility, USCIS must approve the petition despite the previous denial.

A: 1) Please contact us by filling out the online questionnaire and attach your comprehensive curriculum vitae to obtain a free evaluation by one of our experienced attorneys;

2) One of our attorneys will contact you and provide you with a free assessment of your case;

3) If we believe you are eligible for EB-1A petition, and your petition stands a decent chance of being approved, we will notify you so and offer our service as your attorney. If based on your credentials, we believe you are not eligible for EB-1A petition, we will recommend other immigration options such as EB-1A petition or PERM with employer;

4) After we indicate our willingness to represent you in your EB-1A petition, you may agree to engage our services by signing the fee agreement and paying the first half of the legal fee;

5) The attorney will sign the fee agreement and send a copy of the agreement back to you, establishing the attorney-client relationship;

6) Your attorney will prepare and send you a list of requested documents, which will be specifically tailored to your background and credentials. You will also be asked to fill out the general questionnaire;

7) You will send all the documents to the attorney, including all the information (name, job position, employer name and address, background, etc.) on the experts who are willing to provide letters of recommendation;

8) Your attorney will draft the letters of recommendation, as well as other letters, statement or affidavits for your petition and send to you or the experts for signatures;

9) Your attorney will draft the petition letter, and our office will prepare and organize the package for submission;

10) We will file the petition package with USCIS Service Center and notify you upon receiving the receipt notice from USCIS;

11) We will notify you upon USCIS’ approval of your petition, completing our representation;

12) alternatively, we will notify you upon receiving USCIS RFE notice and work with you, which may include but is not limited to, providing a list of additional documents based on RFE notice, drafting additional letter of recommendation if necessary, preparing and organizing the response package, and filing the response package prior to the deadline;

13) notify you upon receiving the approval notice of your EB-1A petition, marking the completion of our service at that time.

A: Yes, even though you are in Alaska, we can still represent you in your EB-1A petition. United States immigration law is federal law. Any attorney admitted to a federal court can practice federal law nationwide. Therefore, you can hire an attorney who does not have an office or practice in Alaska to represent you in your immigration matters. The Law Offices of Yongbing Zhang regularly takes cases from other states and even outside the United States.

A: We charge a flat fee of $4,500.00 for an EB-1A petition. Upon signing the fee agreement, the client must pay the first half of the $4,500.00 fee; the remaining half of the $4,500.00 will be due upon the approval of the EB-1A petition. There is no additional legal fee for the service of responding to an RFE notice. For each case, we also charge an additional $150 case processing fees for the costs of printing, mailing and case management. In addition to the legal and case processing fees, clients are also responsible for the filing fee to the government for each petition. Click here for a copy of our EB-1A petition fee agreement.