On April 27^th, 2016, we received another EB-1A (Alien of Extraordinary Ability) approval for a Research Associate in the Field of Immunology (Approval Notice).

General Field: Immunology

Position at the Time of Case Filing: Research Associate

Country of Origin: India

Service Center: Nebraska Service Center (NSC)

State of Residence at the Time of Filing: Maryland

Approval Notice Date: April 27^th, 2016

Processing Time: 2 Days (Premium Processing Requested)

Case Summary:

A research associate from India received the good news that his EB-1A (Alien of Extraordinary Ability) petition had been approved just 2 days after we filed it on his behalf. The speedy processing time was thanks to Premium Processing (PP), an add-on service offered by the USCIS. By paying $1,225 more, petitioners secure rapid adjudication (within 15 days instead of 4-9 months) and trim down the overall time that it takes to get through the green card process. Our client, an expert in the field of immunology, hired us to help him obtain a green card. We started off by evaluating his credentials and once we established that we could build a strong case for him, we initiated an attorney-client relationship. Our client’s strong qualifications made him a suitable candidate for EB-1A, a visa category with a very high standard of law.

Building a convincing EB-1A case:

This EB-1A petition focused on our client’s research projects on the development of vaccines and therapies targeting bacterial infections. Amongst other things, his investigations are applied to the prevention of typhoid outbreaks in the developing world, the treatment of rare and severe bacterial infections, and heightened defenses against bioterrorism-related outbreaks, all of which are important to the American pharmaceutical and medical sectors and the overall economy. We also incorporated recommendation letters signed by other influential immunologists, one of whom stated that our client’s work is in the nation’s best interest: “In the event that [Client’s] work were impeded or discontinued entirely, the field’s progress toward these vaccines would unquestionably be slowed. More broadly, the attainability of an effective defense against anthrax outbreaks would be significantly lowered. Thus, his continuing and uninterrupted contributions to on-going federally-funded projects are in our nation’s national interest.” 

At the time of filing, our client had conducted 8 peer reviews, published 13 scientific articles, and had a citation count of 229. Taken together, these numbers denoted the value that his findings, insights, and opinions have on the overall field of immunology and the many researchers working to progress it.

Moving on to the next step:

Our client’s approved EB-1A petition allowed him to move forward with the second (and final) step of the green card process without needing to wait several years for his priority date to become current. We recently filed an I-485 application for him and join him as he awaits a positive outcome from the USCIS. In the meantime, we thank him for working with our firm and wish him well as he continues to advance the field of immunology.