EB-1A Extraordinary Ability Green Card

How the EB-1A category works

EB-1A is the first-preference employment-based immigrant category under INA 203(b)(1)(A), reserved for people with extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business or athletics. Applicants may petition for themselves on Form I-140, without an employer, a job offer or labor certification, and USCIS decides the petition. Eligibility rests either on a one-time major internationally recognized award or on meeting at least three of the ten evidentiary criteria in 8 CFR 204.5(h)(3), such as judging the work of others, original contributions of major significance, published material about the applicant or a high salary. Since Kazarian v. USCIS, officers apply a two-step review: first they count the criteria met, then they weigh all the evidence in a final merits determination of sustained acclaim.

An approved I-140 leads to a green card through adjustment of status on Form I-485 inside the US or through consular processing abroad. A denial can be challenged with a motion to reopen or reconsider, an appeal to the Administrative Appeals Office, or a lawsuit in federal court under the Administrative Procedure Act. EB-1A is often weighed against the EB-2 National Interest Waiver, which also allows self-petitioning but uses the Dhanasar test rather than proof of top-of-field acclaim, and against the O-1 visa, its temporary nonimmigrant counterpart.