On April 3^rd, 2017, we received another EB-2 NIW (National Interest Waiver) approval for a Postdoctoral Researcher in the Field of Electrical Engineering (Approval Notice).

General Field: Electrical Engineering

Position at the Time of Case Filing: Postdoctoral Researcher

Country of Origin: India

Service Center: Nebraska Service Center (NSC)

State of Residence at the Time of Filing: California

Approval Notice Date: April 3^rd, 2017

Processing Time: 11 months, 9 days

Case Summary:

An Indian postdoctoral researcher based in California sought assistance from our firm –– North America Immigration Law Group (NAILG) –– for his EB-2 NIW (National Interest Waiver) petition filing. After evaluating his credentials, we confirmed that he holds a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering obtained from a top rung university in the United States. Moreover, his substantial contributions to the field of electrical engineering, specifically focused on developing image processing algorithms for better interpretation of medical and fingerprint images, had been well-received by the American scientific community. Based on the widespread reach of his research, we were convinced that we could help him secure the national interest waiver in reference to the Matter of Dhanasar.

We countersigned the retainer agreement and commenced case preparation. With ample supporting evidence, we built a strong case to prove that our client possesses unique and innovative skills and knowledge that serve the national interest. These are the key points featured in his NIW petition:

– Research that is national in scope: We argued that our client’s research results directly contribute to improving medical diagnostics and security fingerprint testing in the US. Additionally, we emphasized that our client’s specific research efforts in developing image processing algorithms contribute to the United States’ national security and public health.

– Important scholarly contributions: In order to showcase the immense benefits of retaining our client in the US, we drew attention to his scholarly contributions that comprised of 14 scientific articles and a book chapter. His published work had already garnered 46 citations at the time of filing. Moreover, he had a patent to his name.

– Strong recommendation letters: To establish a persuasive case for our client, we incorporated recommendation letters volunteered by six other electrical engineering experts. The merits of our client’s research and prospective benefits of granting him the national interest waiver were eloquently expressed in these letters. An excerpt from one of these letters read:

“[Client] specializes in improving and developing the image processing algorithms used to obtain both medical images and identify individuals. As such, the continuation of his work provides the United States with the unique opportunity to strengthen both its healthcare and national security entities. Given [Client’s] strong background in successfully improving these techniques, his uninterrupted research will provide innumerable benefits to the country if he is permitted to continue his work.”

Filing the NIW Petition:

Once the well-assembled NIW petition was ready, we filed it at Nebraska Service Center. After waiting 10 months without a response, we raised a service request on behalf of our client. Not long after, our client’s NIW petition was approved.

Cross-chargeability:

Thanks to the rules of cross chargeability, our client does not have to wait years for his priority date to become current to adjust his status for permanent residence (unlike other applicants from India with NIW petitions approved around the same time). Instead he is able to file I-485 applications for himself and his wife based on the priority date set for her birth country of the United Arab Emirates. To learn more about cross-chargeability, please head to http://blog.wegreened.com/uncategorized/cross-chargeability/.