On April 20^th, 2017, we received EB-2 NIW (National Interest Waiver) and EB-1A (Alien of Extraordinary Ability) approvals for an Assistant Project Scientist in the Field of Biochemistry (Approval Notice).

General Field: Biochemistry

Position at the Time of Case Filing: Assistant Project Scientist

Country of Origin: China

Service Center: Nebraska Service Center (NSC)

State of Residence at the Time of Filing: North Carolina

Approval Notice Date: April 20^th, 2017

Processing Time: 11 months, 4 days (NIW and EB1A)

Case Summary:

Nearly a year after North America Immigration Law Group (NAILG) filed two I-140 petitions on behalf of an assistant project scientist from China, he received the good news that both petitions had been approved. It is not unusual for clients to file two I-140 petitions as it essentially give them a higher chance of obtaining petition approval. In this case, our client walked away with approved EB-2 NIW (National Interest Waiver) and EB-1A (Alien of Extraordinary Ability) petitions.

Building two strong cases:

Despite being two different I-140 categories, some of the main information we included in the petitions overlapped. Overall, we had to prove to the USCIS that our client is an asset to the United States and we did this by focusing on these key points:

1. Publication Record: When we filed his case, our client had already published 10 articles, all of which appeared in high-impact scientific journals.
2. Citation Count: His work had gathered 142 citations from both dependent and independent researchers around the world.
3. Peer Review Experience: Our client’s two petition packets also contained evidence that he had already conducted 25 peer reviews by the time we were ready to file his petitions.
4. Recommendation Letters: As we filed our client’s petitions simultaneously, we used the same set of seven recommendation letters to further fortify both cases. These letters were contributed by other respected researchers in the field of biochemistry, one of whom firmly stated that our client “…is at the top of his field of biochemistry, and thus is extremely important in the ongoing research surrounding herbs. Without his ongoing research, the United States will have far less information on the physiology of these herbs going forward.”
5. Research Results: Perhaps one of the most important elements of both petitions had to do with our client’s research findings. As part of our services, we carefully read and understood our client’s work so that we could build the strongest case possible. Based on what we learned, we convinced the USCIS that our client’s work addresses some of the United States’ most pressing issues in understanding the biosynthesis of crucial types of metabolic mechanisms found in plants, leading to increased abilities to tailor plants to suit specific needs, such as the increased resilience to cold or the production of useful compounds.

We are extremely pleased that our diligent efforts led to not one, but two, petition approvals. We congratulate our client for getting one step closer to his green card and we wish him the best as he continues to conduct important research on the application of molecular and structural biology and biochemical techniques in the biosynthesis of materials.