From Januaryto June 2017, our firm received 50 NIW case approvals. USCIS approved 41 of these cases without Requests for Evidence (RFEs). In addition, from January to June 2017, our firm also received 137 EB-1 case approvals. 

Out of the 50NIW cases approved in the past three months, most applicants had a Ph.D. degree when applying. However, 9of these applicants, or approximately 18%, only had a Master’s degree when their cases were filed. Among samples of approved applicants, most conduct research in Medical Science, Biology and Engineering, while others focus on belly dancing, financial services, and human resources, etc. Those who work in fields related to Engineering, Medical Science and Biology are forced to compete with a large number of applicants from which the USCIS can only approve the strongest applications.

Ph.D.	34	68%
Master	9	18%
Bachelor & others	7	14%

Those who work as a “Postdoctoral Research Associate”, “Research Scientist/Engineer”, “Assistant Professor’, or any other similar title mainly conduct research, produce papers, and attend conferences. Because of the nature of scientific work, such applicants find it easier to show that they have exerted national influence and sustained a past record of achievement through more objective evidence (i.e. citations, downloads, commercialization of work, etc.). Of course, this should not discourage you from applying if you feel you lack such evidence. On the contrary, each case varies and USCIS could deem your particular qualifications and skill set to be of intrinsic merit to the United States. USCIS does not adjudicate petitions solely on the basis of concrete numbers. With our highly experienced attorneys, we will help you highlight your strongest professional assets, while downplaying your weaker ones.

In addition to the above, we have also compiled other relevant data from our samples. The median number of journal papers published by these applicants was 7. The median number of independent citations they received was 97. The average processing time for these applications was 233days, or about 8 months. The longest it took to approve an application was 479 days, while the shortest was 28days.

Median number of Journal papers	7
Median number of independent citations	97
Average Processing days	233

Before you start the application process, it is imperative that you consult a highly trained legal professional. As you may know, On December 27, 2016, the Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued new guidelines for adjudicating National Interest Waiver (NIW) cases in a decision known as the Matter of Dhanasar. This new standard replaces the previous guidelines decided in Matter of New York State Department of Transportation, more commonly referred to as NYSDOT, and serves to make the adjudication of NIWs clearer and less ambiguous.
By consulting with an attorney at our firm, you will learn not only about your options, but also specific application strategies tailoring to the new standard.

If you are interested in contacting us for a free consultation, please call our offices at 1-800-230-7040 or email us at info@hooyou.com.

For more information on the 50 NIW cases approved from Januaryto June 2017, please refer to the table below.

Client	Degree	Research field	Journal papers	Independent Citations	Job title	RFE	Processing days
1	N/A	Belly Dancing	N/A	N/A	belly dancer	No	28
2	Master	Environmental engineering	8	236	Research Assistant	Yes	111
3	Ph.D.	wireless communications	3	123	Researcher	Yes	124
4	Ph.D.	biomedical	N/A	54	Postdoctoral Research Fellow	Yes	414
5	Bachelor	Civil engineering	N/A	N/A	Senior Civil Engineer	Yes	408
6	Ph.D.	Biomedical Sciences	5	97	Postdoctoral Fellow	Yes	447
7	Ph.D.	Computer engineering	6	86 total	Software Developer	No	330
8	Ph.D.	signal processing	1	31	Software Engineer	No	332
9	N/A	Information Technology	N/A	N/A	Deputy General Manager	No	158
10	Master	Cancer	15	149	Surgeon	No	155
11	Ph.D.	Neurosurgery	15	149	Researcher	No	165
12	Ph.D.	Physics	6	10	Assistant Professor	No	365
13	Ph.D.	Intelligent Information Processing	17	287	Associate Professor	No	152
14	Ph.D.	business management	N/A	N/A	CEO	No	171
15	Ph.D.	Biotechnology	37	56	Research Associate	No	352
16	Ph.D.	Electrical engineering	6	12	Postdoctoral Fellow	Yes	338
17	Ph.D.	Soil Science	13	70	Postdoctoral Associate	Yes	388
18	Ph.D.	Ophthalmology	10	134	Ophthalmologist	No	354
19	Ph.D.	Internet Security	11	90	Research Associate	No	128
20	Ph.D.	Biochemistry	6	N/A	Medical Doctor	No	267
21	Bachelor	Oil and Gas	N/A	N/A	Operations Manager	No	218
22	Ph.D.	Biostatistics	11	56	Research analyst	No	270
23	Ph.D.	Computer Science	6	52	Postdoctoral Fellow	Yes	148
24	Ph.D.	Petroleum engineering	3	26	Postdoctoral fellow	No	147
25	Ph.D.	Cancer	6	115	Postdoctoral Fellow	No	164
26	Bachelor	Biotechnology	7	68	Research Specialist	No	439
27	Ph.D.	Theoretical Nuclear Physics	21	266	Postdoctoral Researcher	No	197
28	Ph.D.	Aerospace Engineering	8	83	Researcher	No	380
29	Master	Geophysics	3	7	Project Leader	No	121
30	Bachelor	financial services	N/A	N/A	Executive Director	No	166
31	Master	Investment Management	N/A	N/A	Executive Director	No	166
32	Ph.D.	Organic Chemistry	16	353	Lead Investigator	No	160
33	Ph.D.	immunology	6	288	Research scientist	No	405
34	Ph.D.	Materials Science /engineering	8	13	Scientist	No	112
35	Ph.D.	Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering	2	N/A	Chief Engineer	No	170
36	Ph.D.	Materials Science	14	110	Postdoctoral researcher	No	401
37	Master	Petroleum Engineering	N/A	N/A	Petroleum Engineer	No	183
38	Ph.D.	cardiology	7	53	Researcher	No	264
39	Ph.D.	Computational Biology	20	11504	Computational Biologist	No	197
40	Master	Human Resources	N/A	N/A	Senior Manager	No	131
41	Master	Geophysics	7	14	Geophysicist	No	225
42	Ph.D.	Petroleum engineering	3	8	Research scientist	Yes	269
43	Ph.D.	Computer Science	11	90	Researcher	No	395
44	Master	Visual effect	N/A	N/A	Creative Designer	No	479
45	Bachelor	container shipping	N/A	N/A	Deputy General Manager	No	139
46	Ph.D.	Pediatrics	4	8 total	Research fellow	No	98
47	Ph.D.	Strategic Management	1	N/A	VP	No	71
48	Master	computer science	4	71 total	Researcher	No	139
49	Ph.D.	Mechanical Engineering	5	401	Senior Research Scientist	No	118
50	Ph.D.	Microbiology	8	32	Researcher	No	84

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Former U.S. Consular officer, Attorney Sechyi Laiu joined Zhang & Associates, P.C. on June 26, 2017

At Zhang & Associates, P.C., Attorney Laiu specializes on Consular Processing cases and business development. Attorney Laiu also focuses on TN visas, E visas, CBP administrative proceedings (monetary confiscation, deferred inspection), and overseas financial compliance.

Prior to joining Zhang & Associates, P.C., Attorney Laiu worked for the U.S. Department of State as a Chinese and Portuguese speaking diplomat. As a consular-coned officer who served in Vancouver (Canada), Shenyang (P.R. China), and Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), Attorney Laiu processed over 30,000 visa cases and worked in every section of Consular Affairs overseas (Fraud Prevention Unit, Immigrant Visas, Non-Immigrant Visas, and American Citizen Services).

He will use his experience and expertise to deliver the highest quality of service to our clients.

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Founded in 1996, Zhang & Associates, P.C. offers legal services to clients worldwide in all aspects of U.S immigration law. We have successfully handled over ten thousand immigration cases.

At Zhang & Associates, P.C., our attorneys and supporting professionals are committed to providing high-quality immigration and non-immigration visa services. We specialize in NIW, EB-1, EB-5, PERM, I-485 I-130, H-1B, O, L and J cases. In the past twenty-one years, we have successfully helped over ten thousand clients get green cards. If you plan to apply for a green card, please send your CV to Attorney Jerry Zhang (info@hooyou.com) for a free evaluation.

Zhang & Associates, P.C.

Silicon Valley • New York • Los Angeles • Chicago • Houston • Austin • Seattle • Palo Alto • Madison • Honolulu

Tel:	1-800-230-7040, 713-771-8433
Email:	info@hooyou.com
website:	http://www.hooyou.com

 

(08/23/2017)