EB-2: Advanced Degree

If you possess an advanced degree (i.e., generally considered to be a "Masters Degree" or higher), or an equivalent foreign degree, or you have a U.S. baccalaureate degree or an equivalent foreign degree and have at least 5 years of progressive post-baccalaureate experience in your specialty, and you have a U.S. employer who is offering you a full time position which requires that type of degree (this may be waived in the National Interest), then you may be able to qualify for U.S. Permanent Residency under the EB-2 category for individuals with "ADVANCED DEGREES".

A key advantage is that if you qualify for a National Interest waiver of the job offer, you do not need to go through the Labor Certification process, thereby making the process considerably faster than the EB-3 category, and you may also be able to self-petition (if you obtain the National Interest waiver of the job offer).

The main requirements for the EB-2 Advanced Degree category are as follows:

1. You must possess a U.S. advanced degree (i.e., generally considered to be a "Masters Degree" or higher), or an equivalent foreign degree, OR you have a U.S. baccalaureate degree or an equivalent foreign degree and have at least 5 years of progressive post-baccalaureate experience in your specialty (note that where a doctorate is customarily required by the specialty, nothing less will do); and
2. A LABOR CERTIFICATION obtained by the petitioning U.S. employer which must offer you a full time position in your field, unless you have obtained a WAIVER of the labor certification in the NATIONAL INTEREST in which case you may also be able to self-petition.

Note that if you are a health care worker, it may be necessary for you to obtain the necessary health care certification (e.g., Commission on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools (CGFNS)).

Physicians and the labor certification waiver. Doctors of medicine and doctors of osteopathy who commit to a qualifying period of full-time clinical service in a federally designated shortage area, or in a Department of Veterans Affairs facility, may obtain a national interest waiver that removes both the job offer and the labor certification requirements, and unlike the general waiver this one must be granted once the statutory conditions are satisfied. 8 U.S.C. § 1153(b)(2)(B)(ii); 8 C.F.R. § 204.12. The conditions, the length of the required service, the filing sequence and the interim reporting obligations are set out at National Interest Waiver for Physicians.