• Overview
  
  
• Criteria
  
  
• Documents
  
  
• FAQ
  
  

Petitioner has the burden of proof to provide sufficient evidence for National Interest Waiver application.

Following documents may be submitted for NIW based green card petition:

• Form I-140, Petition for Immigrant Worker
  
  
• Form ETA-750B
  
  
• Documents supporting that the beneficiary is an "Advanced Degree Professional" or an "Alien of Exceptional Ability".
  
  
• Strong petition letter drafted by an experienced immigration attorney.
  
  
• Letters of Recommendation from prominent members or experts in your field such as substantial, recognized national or international organizations/institutes/government agencies.
  
  Letters could also be from top level management of prospective companies using the alien's work, and current and former employers. Letters should be from persons who have not personally worked with the alien but are still aware of his/her achievements, as this gives more weight than the letters from people who know you well. The letters should clearly state how they became familiar with the alien's work.
  
  Such letters should discuss the alien's abilities and accomplishments as well as alien's work importance to the national interest. It should state that you have made a significant contribution to your field and have achieved a degree of recognition. Even though it is not mandatory to get a strong letter of recommendation from your current employer, you should get such a letter if they are willing to provide one.
  
  Even though there are no required minimum number or maximum number of such letters, five to seven letters would be good enough. The stronger the letter is, the better it would be as a lot of weightage is given to such letters.
  
  These letters must be placed directly beneath the Form I-140. That will eliminate the examiner's time spent wading through academics articles, field surveys, general reports etc. which often add minimal weight to bolster the claim for the alien's specific achievements are of national interest. This would reduce the request for further evidence (RFE).
  
  USCIS will examine such letters and review the credentials of the individuals who write such letters to determine whether they are qualified to make such evaluations.
  
  Along with the letters, on a separate paper, submit a list of persons providing you with recommendation letters, including their names, titles and employers. Also, include newspaper articles describing the professional reputation of persons preparing your references.
  
  
• Affidavits from well-known, established and influential people or organizations.
  e.g., Affidavits from leading scientists, representatives, and from the organizations associated with the type of research to be pursued would be helpful for an application being submitted for a scientist.
  
  
• Documentation of past achievements, proof that the alien has already created jobs, created an increase in exports, turned around a business or other economic improvements.
  
  
• Documentation of any past record that substantiates projections of future benefits to the national interest of US. You must establish, in some capacity, your ability to serve the national interest to a substantially greater extent than majority of your colleagues. You must demonstrate to some degree, your influence on your field of employment as a whole.
  
  
• If submitting the petition through an employer, a letter from the employer stating their support for the petition.
  
  
• Satisfactory demonstration that the national interest would be adversely affected if a labor certification were required. Evidence that it would be contrary to national interest to deprive the prospective employer of the services of the alien by making the position available to US workers that is being sought by the alien.
  
  Purpose of the labor certification is to protect the jobs and job opportunities of US workers having the same minimum qualifications as an alien seeking employment in the national interest. The petitioner (either an alien himself/herself or the employer) must establish that the alien will serve the national interest to a substantially greater degree than would an available US worker having the same minimum qualifications.
  
  
• Do NOT submit the evidence of labor shortage in NIW beneficiary's professional as it is excluded from waiving the job offer and labor certification requirement for NIW petition.
  
  
• Evidence of at least two years of experience in the area in which the alien will benefit the US. USCIS looks at this very closely to determine whether the alien has a serious commitment to the activity which promotes the national interest.
  
  
• Evidence of alien's significant role in the undertaking, and alien must not be simply a minor constituent who took part.
  
  
• Evidence that the benefits of your proposed employment will be in national scope. Even though your employment may be limited to a particular geographic area, it must establish benefit to more than one particular region of the country. Moreover, there should be little or no adverse impact on the interests of other regions of the country.
  
  
• Evidence that the alien's employment is in an area of substantial intrinsic merit and important to the national interests of the US.
  
  
• If you hold a patent or are responsible for an innovation, you must demonstrate that specific innovation serves the national interest. Otherwise, don't submit any documentation as it would be irrelevant for the petition.
  
  
• All publications, publication citation, abstracts, invitations to conferences, if any.
  
  
• Resume.
  Your chances of NIW approval are not solely determined by your resume and background. All components of the petition must be looked at for determining the chances of approval.
  
  
• Details of the funding for your research projects or grants, if any.
  
  
• Requests for reprints of your publications, if any.
  
  
• Evidence of awards or honors received, if any.
  
  
• Comments on your published work by critics/journal referees, if any.
  
  
• Evidence of membership in professional associations, if any.
  
  

Submitting above mentioned documents only allows the case to be reviewed and there is no guarantee that the petition will be successfully approved. Also, the benefits of the employment should be immediately apparent to the national interests of the US.

Recently, USCIS has been requesting evidence of "how the beneficiary is the head of the project or a critical member". The RFEs specify that this may be proved by "funding documents from the government agency or major scientific organization, showing where the beneficiary is listed as the principal investigator". It is reasonable to assume that the person filing NIW petition plays a critical role, requiring the person to be the head or principal investigator is beyond what should be expected of an NIW alien as such status is rarely given to anyone who is not a US citizen or green card holder.

Some RFEs require to submit the proof that the alien has received "critical acclaim" which is not a requirement of NIW and can't be the sole means for showing the significance of an alien's abilities and responsibilities. "Critical acclaim" is required for someone who qualifies under the EB1 category of "Aliens of Extraordinary Ability" while NIW petition is EB2 petition.