Comment by christina97
12 hours ago
I’m an Australian PhD student graduating into the US job market. I’m considering an EB-2 NIW. How does that work with the E-3 visa? What’s a good resource or law firm with experience in this kind of arrangement to refer to?
You may find this passage from USCIS relevant, particularly the last sentence.
> E-3 Specialty Occupation Workers may be admitted initially for a period not to exceed the validity period of the accompanying E-3 labor attestation (i.e., for a maximum of two years), and extensions of stay may be granted indefinitely in increments not to exceed the validity period of the accompanying E-3 labor attestation (i.e., for increments of up to two years each). As there is no limit on the total length of stay for an E-3 alien in the legislation, there is no specified number of extensions a qualify ing E-3 Specialty Occupation Worker may be granted. Under the current E regulation, 8 CFR 214.2(e)(5) , an alien classified under section 101(a)(15)(E) as an E-3 nonimmigrant shall maintain an intention to depart the United States upon the expiration of termination of E status. An application for initial admission, change of status or extension of stay in E-3 classification, however, may not be denied solely on the basis of an approved request for permanent labor certification or a filed or approved immigrant visa preference petition.
https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/document/policy-ma...
Not a lawyer. Visas and green card applications are orthogonal. Do your EB2-NIW however you like - either yourself or with the help of a law firm. It has no bearing on anything else. You'll get the green card when your number is up (somewhere in the next 5 years).