CASE: I-140 (EB-3 Category) / Schedule A
EMPLOYER: Hospital
BENEFICIARY: Filipina Registered Nurse
LOCATION: Crosby, ND
Our client’s beneficiary is a registered nurse from the Philippines who is currently working in UAE. Her prospective U.S. employer was willing to petition her for a third-preference employment immigrant visa petition (I-140).
Since he is a registered nurse, he is eligible for “Schedule A” classification. The Department of Labor (DOL) maintains a schedule of occupations in its regulations, Schedule A included, for which the individual permanent labor certification procedure is not required. The schedule of pre-certified occupations is referred to as Schedule A, and is included in DOL regulations at 20 CFR 656.10. Based on an occupation’s inclusion on Schedule A, an employer may file an immigrant visa petition (I-140) directly with the (USCIS) without first going to the DOL for a labor certification. Usually, prior to filing I-140 petitions (EB-2 or EB-3 category), the employer must file a Labor Certification to the Department of Labor. However, for Schedule A cases, the employer does not have to go through the labor certification process. The position of Professional Nurses is included in Schedule A.
Our client has a Bachelor’s of Nursing degree and has passed the NCLEX exam. Our firm told her that her employer can petition her as a Registered Nurse under the schedule A category. Our office was retained on January 14, 2020, and we started on her Prevailing Wage Request.
We filed the I-140 application on June 9, 2020 via regular processing. We included the job offer letter, the notice of filing, and other necessary supporting documents. On July 17, 2020, upon our client’s request, we upgraded her processing to premium processing by filing a I-907 application with the required fee.
On July 27, 2020, the USCIS issued a Request for Evidence (RFE) regarding our clients name change (married name). Our office filed the RFE responses immediately. On August 14, 2020, the I-140 was approved. Now, our client can file an immigrant visa application based on the approved I-140 petition when her priority date becomes current.