On August 28^th, 2016, and September 19^th, 2016, we received another EB-1A (Alien of Extraordinary Ability) and EB-2 NIW (National Interest Waiver) approval for a Resident in the Field of Neurosurgery (Approval Notice).

General Field: Neurosurgery

Position at the Time of Case Filing: Resident

Country of Origin: India

Service Center: Nebraska Service Center (NSC)

State of Residence at the Time of Filing: Pennsylvania

Approval Notice Date: August 28^th, 2016 (EB-1A) and September 19^th, 2016 (EB-2 NIW)

Processing Time: 222 Days (EB-1A) and 266 Days (EB-2 NIW)

Case Summary:

Last year, a gifted physician from India hired North America Immigration Law Group (WeGreened.com) to help him and his family become American permanent residents. Obtaining a green card is no easy feat and the lengthy process involves two steps: filing an I-140 petition and an I-485 application. In this case, our client hired us to file two I-140 petitions for him—one under EB-1A (Alien of Extraordinary Ability) and another under EB-2 NIW (National Interest Waiver). Although EB-2 NIW was filed ahead of EB-1A, he received notification of EB-1A approval first. Several weeks later, the EB-2 NIW approval notice followed suit. We are especially pleased that our client obtained an EB-1A approval as he can now adjust his status for permanent residence. In fact, that is exactly what he is doing. He recently retained our firm to file I-485 applications for himself and his family and we look forward to helping them obtain their green cards.

What did both petition packets contain?

We accumulated a wealth of information to support our argument that our client is an asset to the United States and that he deserved to have both his petitions approved. Despite being different visa categories, several key points in the petition packets were similar. They were:

1. Professional accomplishments: In order to prove to the USCIS that our client is a leader in the field of neurosurgery, we listed his various professional and academic achievements. From his M.D. to publication record (35 journal articles, 5 textbook chapters, 14 podium and numerous poster conference presentations), we noted it all. We also detailed the 104 times researchers around the world cited his work as well as the 21 times he conducted peer reviews for scientific periodicals.
2. Testimonials: As both petition packets were submitted less than a month apart, we used the same set of recommendation letters to strengthen both petitions. These letters were obtained from other influential members of the medical community. Not only did they briefly detail our client’s research, they also confirmed the importance of his findings to the United States. This is what one of our client’s recommenders said about his work: “…a world without [Client’s] innovative work would be severely lacking in concrete progress in medical research, something modern medicine cannot afford.”
3. Research details: Our comprehensive services involved accounting for and understanding our client’s research on delineating the differences in results and efficacy between different types of surgery, as well as on developing new techniques for surgical practice. We established that our client’s investigations address some of the medical sector’s most pressing issues in understanding the clinical differences between invasive and non-invasive lumbar surgery, direct and indirect bypass surgery, and anterior and posterior cervical spine surgery.

Overall, our client waited 222 days and 226 days respectively for his EB-1A and EB-2 NIW approvals. We are relieved that the USCIS did not issue a Request for Evidence (RFE) for either petition (this would have significantly lengthened the overall timeline). We congratulate our client for obtaining two petition approvals, and we thank him for choosing our law firm to guide him and his family to green card success.