On September 16^th, 2016, we received another EB-2 NIW (National Interest Waiver) approval for a Graduate Research Assistant in the Field of Applied Chemistry (Approval Notice).

General Field: Applied Chemistry

Position at the Time of Case Filing: Graduate Research Assistant

Country of Origin: Bangladesh

Service Center: Texas Service Center (TSC)

State of Residence at the Time of Filing: Kentucky

Approval Notice Date: September 16^th, 2016

Processing Time: 93 days (3 months, 1 day)

Case Summary:

A little over 3 months after filing an EB-2 NIW (National Interest Waiver) petition for a graduate research assistant, Texas Service Center approved his case. At first glance, our client was suitably qualified for the national interest waiver as amongst other things, he possessed an M.S. in Applied Chemistry and Chemical Engineering as well as many years of experience researching the field of applied chemistry.

Assembling a Strong NIW Petition:

Part of the process in getting our client closer to his green card involved presenting his various achievements to the USCIS. These were several of the points we focused on:

– We noted our client’s significant citation record: at the time of filing, he already had 86 citations to his published research. Moreover, he had 10 peer-reviewed articles, 4 of them first-authored, which we highlighted in the petition.

– Our client’s work is concentrated specifically on anion recognition sensors and he had developed techniques of binding biologically and environmentally important anions and successfully introduced new prototypes in the field of molecular recognition. His work addresses the need for increased understanding of the environmental impact of anions and directly contributes to improving efforts in environmental sustainability. The aforementioned points we highlighted in the petition persuaded the USCIS to see merit in his accomplishments. In a nutshell, we clearly demonstrate to the USCIS that our client’s findings have a profound impact on the United States’ water purification capabilities and agricultural industry.

– Of additional significance were the 5 recommendation letters that were signed by our client’s peers, all of which were included in our client’s well-planned EB-1A petition dossier. One of these letters stated: “His substantial background in supramolecular chemistry has allowed him to conduct particularly novel research, and there is no doubt that his future research will contribute as significantly to anion receptor research as has his work on fluoride, phosphate, and halide.”

Our client’s NIW petition was approved a little over 3 months after filing. As the average amount of time the USCIS spends adjudicating I-140 petitions is between 4-9 months, we are especially pleased with the accelerated timeline. We would like to take this opportunity to congratulate our client and wish him the best as he takes the final step towards his green card.