Question:

I am a postdoctoral fellow recently joined in a  Women hospital in H1B visa status. I have done my PhD from Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India in the field of Molecular Human Genetics. I have 2 first author papers in —— and 2 more in 2 other international Journals. I have also attended some 10 conferences where I have presented my work as poster and oral presentations. I was wondering whether I am eligible for a processing my green card now under national interest waiver program or any other category and how long does it takes to process the green card. If yes then can I do it myself?
Answer:

Self petitioning (no employer sponsorship is needed) is possible in EB1A or EB2-NIW. And you can apply on your own (by your self or using a lawyer) in these categories. From your short description, it is hard for to judge what is the best option for you. Also we do not provide legal advice. So we generally let you decide on whether you should apply and what is the best suited category. In general we have found that if a phd collects all the publications, awards, various efforts along his/her phd and during his/her work experience, they may collectively be sufficient evidence for a NIW or EB1A self-petition. We suggest you look at the USCIS criteria and some example petitions (from us or else where).

Usually i-140 approvals are quick (generally few months and rarely a year). Processing time for I-485 depends on your country of origin and applied category (EB1 or EB2). If the priority dates are current it can be a few months otherwise longer. Please looks at the current visa bulletin to see the visa number availability.
Best of luck

Sincerely
Green card for Phd Team

Disclaimer:
The contents in this web site are only for your information and are not intended to be legal advice.

Bookmark and Share