CASE: Immigrant Visa / Consular Processing / I-140 (EB-2 Category) / Schedule A
APPLICANT: Filipina Physical Therapist
LOCATION: Manila, Philippines
Our client is a physical therapist in the Philippines. Her prospective employer-sponsor was willing to petition her for a second-preference employment immigrant visa petition (I-140). Since she is a physical therapist, she 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 Physical Therapist is included in Schedule A.
Our client has U.S. equivalent Master’s degrees in Physical Therapy and is a licensed physical therapist in the State of Texas. Our office was retained on May 9, 2018 and we filed the Prevailing Wage Determination immediately.
We filed the I-140 application on September 10, 2018 via premium processing. We included the job offer letter, the notice of filing, employment letter, and other necessary supporting documents. In our cover brief, we included the “ability to pay” argument and why nurse practitioners must fall under the Schedule A designation. Eventually, on September 24, 2018, the USCIS Texas Service Center approved her EB-2 I-140 petition.
After the approval of the I-140 petition, our client retained us again for her immigrant visa processing. Once we were retained, our office filed the immigrant visa packets to the National Visa Center on October 31, 2018, who in turn forwarded the client’s materials to the U.S. Embassy in Manila, Philippines. An interview notice was set for the client at the U.S. Embassy in Philippines. On January 9, 2019, our client appeared at the U.S. Embassy in Manila, Philippines. Eventually, after the interview, the Immigrant Visa was issued for our client.
With the approved Immigrant Visa, our client can come to the United States immediately, and she will get her green card within two months of entry.