The EB-2A visa is a subcategory of the employment-based second preference greed card category and grants permanent residency in the United States to approved applicants. Eligible EB-2A applicants include advanced degree professionals defined as “members of the professions holding advanced degrees or their equivalent.”
Advanced degree professionals under the EB-2A visa category must hold a master’s degree or its foreign equivalent, or must hold a bachelor level degree with a minimum of five years of increasing experience. Not all advanced degrees are eligible, and applicants should confirm their qualifications satisfy USCIS regulations.
EB-2A Requirements
EB-2A applicants must fulfill the following requirements in order to be eligible for the advanced degree category.
- Applicant has an advanced degree.
You can prove this by providing evidence such as:
- Copies of official transcripts
- Certified copies of degree, diploma, or certificate held
- Other official documentation from the institution
- Evaluation from educational evaluation agency if degree was obtained outside the US
- If only a bachelor’s degree is held, letters from current and/or previous employers demonstrating increasing experience
- Applicant’s advanced degree is related to the field in which they will be working.
You may demonstrate this by providing evidence such as:
- Letter describing current or proposed work
- Documents that describe company
- Copy of your company’s annual report, if applicable
Applying for EB-2A Visa
The following is a summary of the procedure to apply for an EB-2A Visa.
To apply for EB-2A visa, applicants must
- Obtain a labor certification;
- Have a job offer; and
- The employer must file Form I-140, Petition for Alien Worker.
If the applicant is filing for a National Interest Waiver, he/she may self-petition his/her EB-2A visa application and is exempt from the job offer and labor certification requirements.
