If you are looking to move to the United States for professional reasons, you may be exploring your options and trying to determine what type of visa might fit your needs. As important as deciding what type of visa might fit your needs is determining whether you are likely to meet the criteria for that visa, and one type of employment-based visa commonly sought by professionals like you is the second-preference EB-2 visa.

You may be able to pursue this type of visa if you have an advanced degree in your field, and you can furnish proof of it and show you have at least five years of post-baccalaureate work under your belt. You might also be able to seek a second-preference EB-2 visa if you can demonstrate you have an exceptional ability. A third option involves applying for what is known as a National Interest Waiver, which may be given to those who can prove their moving to the United States would benefit the country in its entirety. To apply for a National Interest Waiver or a visa on the basis of an exceptional ability, you must also meet at least three specific eligibility criteria from a list of numerous options.

Eligibility criteria specifics

You may be able to seek a second-preference EB-2 visa if you can showcase standout academic abilities in the form of a degree, diploma, certificate or similar indication that you successfully completed your academics. You may also be able to do so using letters that show you have at least 10 years of full-time experience in your field.

Furnishing a license to practice in your field may also help you meet the criteria needed for this type of employment-based visa, and your membership in a professional organization may also qualify. If your previous salary is high enough to indicate your exceptional ability and you can provide proof of it, this might also fit the bill, as can recognition by your peers and colleagues relating to your considerable contributions within your line of work.

While this information about second-preference EB-2 visas seeks to inform you, this is not a comprehensive list of all qualifying criteria.