EB-3: Skilled and Professional Workers

Two requirements sit underneath every EB-3 case, no matter which of the three subgroups you fall into.

• A permanent, full-time job offer from a United States employer. The job has to be real, permanent, and full-time, and the employer has to intend to employ you in it.
• An approved PERM labor certification from the Department of Labor. Before the employer can file the I-140, it generally has to obtain a certification from the Department of Labor confirming that there are not enough able, willing, qualified, and available United States workers for the position, and that hiring you will not harm the wages and working conditions of similar United States workers.

The core of EB-3, drawn from the USCIS Policy Manual, Volume 6, Part F, Chapter 7 (see the chapter on the USCIS Policy Manual), is that in every case you generally must meet the exact minimums listed on the labor certification. If the certification says a bachelor's degree in a given field is the minimum, you must have that degree or its foreign equivalent. If it says two years of college plus two years of experience, then simply holding a bachelor's degree without the two years of experience does not qualify you, even though it may meet the education part.

Skilled workers. These are positions that require at least two years of training or experience. The work is not seasonal or temporary. Relevant education after high school can count as training toward the two years. You must meet the training or experience minimum stated on the labor certification.

Professionals. These are positions that require at least a United States bachelor's degree or a foreign degree that is the equivalent, and the degree must be the normal requirement to enter the occupation. A key point here is that experience generally cannot be substituted for the degree if the job genuinely requires the degree. If you hold the degree but the certification calls for the degree plus a set number of years of experience, you need both.

Other workers (unskilled workers). These are positions that require less than two years of training or experience, that is, unskilled labor. This subgroup exists, but it is worth knowing that the number of green cards set aside for it each year is small compared with demand, so the wait in this subgroup is typically the longest of the three.

PERM is the Department of Labor step that comes before the I-140. At a high level, the employer generally does the following, and the details and rules are set by the Department of Labor.

1. Determines the minimum requirements and a prevailing wage for the position, and requests a prevailing wage determination from the Department of Labor.
2. Conducts recruitment to test whether there are able, willing, qualified, and available United States workers for the job.
3. Files the labor certification application (Form ETA-9089) with the Department of Labor, attesting to the results.
4. Once the Department of Labor certifies it, the employer can move on to filing the Form I-140 with USCIS.

Most of this runs through the employer, not you. For current PERM rules and filing, the official Department of Labor site is flag.dol.gov. Certain shortage occupations and certain sheepherder cases follow special procedures, which the Policy Manual chapter describes.

The sponsoring employer question. Do you have a United States employer that is willing to sponsor you for a permanent, full-time job and to run the PERM labor certification process? EB-3 does not work without this. No matter how strong your background is, you cannot self-petition in this category. If you do not have a sponsoring employer, EB-3 is not available to you right now.

The which-subgroup question. Look honestly at the job the employer is offering and what it genuinely requires. If it requires a bachelor's degree that you hold, you are likely looking at the professionals subgroup. If it requires at least two years of training or experience but not a degree, you are likely looking at the skilled workers subgroup. If it requires less than two years of training or experience, it falls in the other workers subgroup, which usually has the longest wait. The requirements that matter are the ones the employer lists on the labor certification, not your overall resume.

The do-I-meet-the-listed-minimums question. Do you actually meet the exact education and experience minimums that will appear on the labor certification, and can you prove them with documents such as degrees, transcripts, and letters from past employers? Meeting the general spirit of a job is not enough. If the certification says a degree plus two years of experience, you need both, documented.

The EB-2-versus-EB-3 question. Some people qualify for both EB-2 and EB-3 for the same or a similar job, depending on how the position and its requirements are structured. EB-2 generally requires an advanced degree or exceptional ability, or a bachelor's degree plus five years of progressive experience, while EB-3 generally has a lower bar. Where both are possible, the employer usually chooses which category to pursue, and the choice often comes down to which visa line is moving faster for your country of birth. Some people even switch between the two later, filing a second I-140 to move to whichever category is moving. The section on the one thing to know explains this queue dynamic.

Here is why. EB-2 and EB-3 each get a separate slice of the limited annual supply of employment-based green cards, and each slice is subject to per-country limits. For applicants from countries with high demand, especially those born in India or China, both categories can have long waits, and the two lines do not move in lockstep. In some months and years EB-2 is ahead; in others EB-3 is ahead. Neither one is universally faster. This is exactly why some employers and applicants who qualify for both will pick whichever line is moving, and why people sometimes downgrade from EB-2 to EB-3, or upgrade from EB-3 to EB-2, by filing a new I-140 while keeping their original priority date, to chase the faster line.

So the practical takeaway is to look at two things together. First, which subgroup and category your job and your background actually fit. Second, where EB-3 and EB-2 currently sit for your country of birth. A licensed attorney can help you weigh the EB-2 versus EB-3 choice for your own situation.

Before anything is filed with USCIS, the employer generally has to get a permanent labor certification from the Department of Labor. This is the step where the employer requests a prevailing wage, conducts recruitment to test the local labor market, and files the labor certification application. The date the labor certification is filed usually becomes your priority date. The official Department of Labor site is flag.dol.gov.

Once the labor certification is approved, the United States employer files Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers, asking USCIS to classify you in the correct EB-3 subgroup. The employer is the petitioner. This is where the employer submits the approved labor certification, documents that you meet the education, training, or experience requirements listed on it, and shows that the company has the ability to pay your offered wage.

The employer can choose to pay for faster handling of the I-140 by filing Form I-907, Request for Premium Processing Service. Premium processing commits USCIS to act on the petition within a set number of business days, or refund the fee. Whether EB-3 is currently eligible and what the timeframe is can change, so confirm the current details on the official I-907 page.

Your priority date is generally the date the labor certification was filed. A green card number has to be available for that date before the final step can be completed. Whether you wait, and for how long, depends on your country of birth and the monthly Visa Bulletin. For some applicants a number is available right away; for others, especially those born in India or China, and especially in the other workers subgroup, there can be a long wait.

If you are in the United States in a valid status, you generally file Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status once a visa number is available for your priority date. If you are abroad, you go through consular processing at a United States consulate instead. This is the step that actually grants permanent residence.

The themes that come up most often in EB-3 RFEs are the following.

Proving the education or the required experience for the subgroup. USCIS often asks for evidence that you actually meet the exact minimums listed on the labor certification. For the professionals subgroup, this can mean proof of the bachelor's degree or a credential evaluation showing that a foreign degree is the equivalent of a United States degree. For the skilled workers subgroup, it can mean detailed letters from past employers establishing the required years of training or experience. The response needs to line up your documented background precisely with what the certification requires.

Proving the employer's ability to pay the offered wage. USCIS expects the petitioning employer to show it can pay the wage from the priority date onward. This is often supported with tax returns, annual reports, or audited financial statements. A common RFE trigger is a record that does not clearly show the company can afford the salary, so the response usually needs stronger financial documentation.

Showing the job and the beneficiary match the labor certification. USCIS checks that the offered job, its requirements, and your qualifications all match what was certified. If the job description, the requirements, or your background appear to differ from the certified position, USCIS may ask the employer to reconcile them. The response needs to demonstrate that the position and the worker are the same ones the Department of Labor certified.

Because EB-3 is employer-sponsored, the RFE goes to the employer, and drafting the response is a job for the employer's immigration counsel or a licensed immigration attorney, working with the company. As the employee, the most useful things you can usually do are respond quickly to requests for your own records, such as degrees, transcripts, and past employment letters, and make sure the response is on track well before the deadline on the notice. This guide cannot tell you how to answer a specific RFE. Get a licensed attorney involved.

The employer's counsel represents the employer's interest in getting the labor certification and petition approved, which usually aligns with yours, but it is worth understanding that the company, not you, is generally their client. You will still be closely involved, because much of the evidence, such as your degrees, transcripts, and past employment history, comes from you. Being organized and responsive with your own documents makes the case stronger.

It is reasonable to ask the employer's counsel or your company the following.

• Who is running the PERM process and who to contact with questions.
• What evidence they need from you and by when.
• What your priority date is once the labor certification is filed.
• Whether premium processing will be used on the I-140.
• What the plan is for the green card step, adjustment of status or consular processing, once a visa number is available.
• How any RFE would be handled.

Clear communication early prevents surprises later.

Ask what you are entitled to see and keep copies of. At a minimum you generally want to know your priority date and to have copies of the approved labor certification and the documents you personally provided. Some company financial and internal records may be confidential to the employer, and that is not unusual, but understanding what has been filed on your behalf helps you plan.

Even when the employer's counsel is handling the case, you are allowed to get independent advice from your own licensed immigration attorney, for example about your personal timeline, your options if you change jobs, the EB-2 versus EB-3 choice, or how EB-3 fits with the rest of your immigration plans. That independent advice can be valuable precisely because it is focused on you rather than on the company. You can also request your own immigration records from USCIS through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.