First, the requirements for the position are based on actual job requirements and not your qualifications; Secondly, the salary of the position must be considered in making a final decision in this matter. Porting your EB3 priority date to a later filed EB2 petition is possible. However, this matter is best handled through a private consultation with our Firm.

1. An official academic record showing the alien has a degree, diploma, certificate or similar award from a college, university, school or other institution of learning relating to the area of exceptional ability;
2. Letters documenting at least ten years of full-time experience in the occupation being sought;
3. A license to practice the profession or certification for a particular profession or occupation;
4. Evidence that the alien has commanded a salary or other remuneration for services which demonstrates exceptional ability;
5. Membership in professional associations;
6. Recognition for achievements and significant contributions to the industry or field by peers, government entities, professional or business organizations.

• Aliens with at least two years of experience as skilled workers;
• Professionals with a baccalaureate degree; and
• Other workers with less than two years experience, such as an unskilled worker who can perform labor for which qualified workers are not available in the United States.

Your priority date is the date of acceptance (filing date) of the substitute labor – January, 2002. Priority date is not always reflected on the I-1485 receipt.

Employment-based adjustment of status applicants (from any nonimmigrant status) whose I-485s have been pending for 180 days or more and who currently have an approved I-140 petition may change jobs or employers without invalidating the underlying I-140 or labor certification, as long as the new job is in the same or a similar occupational classification as the one for which the petition was filed.

The USCIS will sometimes accept secondary evidence where letters from former employers are unavailable. However, you must as stated in the relevant paragraph from the RFE, explain and show why these letters are unavailable.

You can file an Application to allow your spouse to join you in your Green Card application up until the final adjudication or your Application to Adjust Status. In other words, it is not necessary to get married prior to filing the Form I-485, Application to Adjust Status. You are allowed to file an application on behalf of your spouse after the filing of the Application to Adjust Status, but prior to final adjudication.

Birth Certificate and Documents in Lieu of Birth Certificate
You will need to provide a photocopy of your birth certificate and a photocopy of the birth certificate of each family member applying with you. Please be advised that each of the birth certificates must include all of the following information

Applicant’s Full Name
Full Date of birth (Month, Day and Year)
Place of birth (City, Province/State if applicable, country)
Full Name of Mother (BOTH First Name and Last Name – maiden or married name.) Both first name and last name must be spelled out. An initial is not sufficient.
Full Name of Father (Both First Name and Last Name.) Both first name and last name must be spelled out. An initial is not sufficient.

Birth documentation must comply with the State Department Foreign Affairs Manual (“FAM”), which specifies documents required and available from each country. A Birth Certificate is available from most countries. In some instances, a Birth Certificate may not exist or may not contain all of the required information. If that is the case, the FAM will describe what alternative documentation may be submitted in place of a birth certificate.

Indian Nationals

If a birth certificate does not exist or it does not contain all of the required information as stated above, a sworn affidavit executed by both parents (mother and father) may be submitted. For a sample affidavit by both parents, click [here].

Alternatively, if either or both parents are not living, then the missing affidavit(s) can be signed by any other close relative older than the applicant, who is not party to the application and who has direct knowledge of the birth event and circumstances. Two affidavits are required. Here is a sample of the affidavit – word doc or pdf

The affidavit must specify the relationship between the signer and the applicant, how well the signer knows the applicant, date and place of the applicant’s birth, the names of both parents, and any other related facts. The affidavit must be signed and notarized. Here is a sample affidavit by a close relative- word doc or pdf. The affidavit can be modified accordingly.

Certificate of Non-Availability

When a birth certificate does not exist, a “Certificate of Non-availability” issued by a competent governmental authority confirming that the birth certificate does not exist should accompany an affidavit of birth. There is no set format for certificates of non-availability, but the document must indicate the reason the record does not exist, and indicate whether similar records for the time and place are available.

Translations
Any document containing foreign language submitted to the INS must be accompanied by the full English translation, which the translator has certified as complete and accurate, and the translator must certify that s/he is competent to translate from the foreign language into English. The translation must be done by a third party (non-family member).

Certification of Translation
I, ________________________, certify that I am familiar with the English and _______________________languages, and certify that the above is a correct and accurate translation of the following documents attached hereto.

Date: ______________________ ______________________________ Name of Signer