1. Introduction to Consular Processing
What is a visa?
You need a valid visa to enter the U.S. You will be applying for an employment-based, EB-3 unskilled immigrant visa.
What is the difference between non-immigrant and immigrant visas?
A non-immigrant visa (such as an F-1 student visa or B-2 tourist visa) is issued by a U.S. Consulate to a foreign national who only intends to stay in the U.S. temporarily, and who will leave the U.S. at the end of their temporary trip (such as study or tourism).
An immigrant visa is issued by a U.S. Consulate to a foreign national who intends to live permanently in the U.S. and receive a green card. An EB-3 Unskilled visa is an employment-based, immigrant visa.
How do I apply for the EB-3 Unskilled immigrant visa?
Once your Labor Certification (LC) is approved, the next steps for the immigrant visa process are outlined below.
Step 1: I-140 immigrant petition filing with USCIS. We will prepare the I-140 petition for EB-3 Unskilled, which is signed by your sponsor.
Step 2: After the I-140 immigrant petition is approved, USCIS will forward your case to the National Visa Center (NVC). Your case will remain at the NVC until your priority date is current for immigrant visa processing.
Step 3: The NVC will notify you once your priority date is current for immigrant visa processing. The DS-260 Immigrant Visa Application for you and each eligible dependents (spouse and unmarried children under 21) can then be submitted, fees paid, and documents uploaded.
Step 4: Once the NVC marks your case as “documentarily qualified”, the NVC will send the case to the U.S. Consulate for final processing and visa interview. You will receive an appointment letter, listing the date and time of the interview appointment and instructions for the medical exam.
Step 5: Complete your medical exam.
Step 6: Attend your interview at the Consulate. You will have an opportunity to sign up for interview prep through Argo, an interview prep service conducted by former Consular officers.
Step 7: If you are granted an immigrant visa, the consular office will send you a Visa Packet. Please DO NOT open this packet. Once you arrive in the U.S., you will give the Visa Packet to the CBP officer at the port of entry.
Step 8: Obtain green card after arrival in the U.S. USCIS will mail your green card within three months of your arrival in the U.S.
Can I get my EB-3 Unskilled visa as soon as USCIS approves the I-140?
It depends. If your priority date is current in the U.S. Visa Bulletin, NVC will notify you to complete the DS-260 and your EB-3 visa interview can be scheduled. If your priority date is not current, your visa interview cannot be scheduled yet and you must wait before you can receive your visa.
Is premium processing available for the immigrant visa process?
No. The I-140 petition can be filed with premium processing with USCIS, but there is no premium processing for the NVC and Consular immigrant visa process.
2. Visa Bulletin and impact to immigrant visa processing
What is the U.S. Visa Bulletin?
The Visa Bulletin is issued every month by the Department of State. It shows which green card applications can be filed, and which filed applications can move forward to green card issuance, based on when the LC was filed. The Visa Bulletin also lets you estimate how long it will take before you get your green card.
What is a priority date, and why does it matter?
The priority date is the date your LC was filed. Think of the priority date as your place in line, because it determines when your green card application can be filed and when your green card can be issued. If your priority date is not current for green card filing on the Visa Bulletin (meaning that your priority date is after the cutoff date), the employer can file the I-140 petition, but you will not yet be able to file your actual green card application.
What is retrogression?
When the number of green card applications exceeds the expected number of filings, the Visa Bulletin may go into retrogression, or reflect cut-off dates for your priority date (your place in the green card line) that move backward. This happens as the government tries to balance the demand to stay within the visa cap for each category of visa.
What is cross-chargeability?
Generally, your place in line for when you can apply for and obtain an employment-based green card is based on your employment-based category - in this case, EB-3 unskilled, plus your country of birth. A few countries of birth have long visa backlogs (such as India and China).
“Cross-chargeability” is a useful exception. Under cross-chargeability, if you and your spouse were born in different countries and you both want to apply for green cards, you may elect to be “charged” to your spouse’s country if the green card line for your spouse’s country is faster. For example, if you were born in India but your spouse was born in France, cross-chargeability would allow you to use your spouse’s country of birth (France) to apply for the green cards for you and your spouse sooner.
3. Immigrant visa process for your spouse and children
Can my children obtain a green card?
Applicants for green cards may include their unmarried children under the age of 21 on their green card applications. To decrease the risk of children “aging out” (i.e., turning 21 before approval of the green card), the U.S. government created the Child Status Protection Act (CSPA) which locks in the child’s age in what is known as the “CSPA age”.
To qualify for CSPA:
Your child must be unmarried; and
The I-140 must be filed before your child turns 21.
If the above qualifications are met, then the CSPA age is calculated by applying this formula:
Age at time of visa availability - Pending time of I-140 = CSPA Age
Let’s apply this formula to an example.
Let’s say you have a child who is 20 years and 2 months old when your I-140 was filed.
Your priority date did not become current under the “Dates for Filing” chart in the Visa Bulletin until 12 months after I-140 filing. This means that your child’s “age at time of visa availability” is 21 years and 2 months old. (20 years and 2 months + 12 months = 21 years and 2 months)
Let’s also say that it took 5 months from I-140 filing to I-140 approval, meaning “pending time of I-140" is 5 months.
Now apply the CSPA formula:
21 years and 2 months – 5 months = CSPA age of 20 years and 9 months.
This means that, in this example, your child has not aged out and would be eligible to apply for a green card.
NOTE: Because the Visa Bulletin is updated every month, if your LC has not been filed or is still pending, BDV cannot yet predict whether your child will age out before your priority date is current. Please let BDV know if you have an unmarried child who is 18 years or older. We will flag it for your assigned attorney to do a CSPA analysis once your LC is approved to see whether your child would be eligible for green card filing under CSPA.
Do my dependents need their own I-140 approval?
No. Your dependents do not need a separate I-140 approval. If your priority date is current, your spouse and unmarried children under 21 years of age can also apply for the immigrant visa using your I-140.
Does each of my dependents need a separate DS-260?
Yes. Each person will need their own DS-260.
Can my dependents attend the same immigrant visa interview as me?
Yes. You and your dependents will attend the same interview appointment. Each applicant must be named on the interview Appointment Letter you receive from the NVC.
4. Documents needed for Consular Processing
How will I know which documents to provide and how will I provide them?
We will provide you with a list of documents needed for you and your dependents. We will ask you to upload scans of those documents into your INSZoom portal. Make sure to provide scans that are:
complete (front and back of the document) with no wording cut off from the scan,
in color (so the wording is fully visible),
clear, not blurry without any tears, holes, etc.
We do not need to have original documents mailed to us.
How will I know which document is accepted by NVC and where to get it?
If you do not have the document required, please go to U.S. Visa: Reciprocity and Civil Documents by Country (state.gov) to check where it can be obtained, Also, please make sure that the civil documents (birth certificates, marriage certificates, divorce decrees, death certificates etc., if applicable) and police certificates that you provide to us for you and your dependents comply with the reciprocity schedule. Otherwise, the NVC/Consulate can reject such documents, which can delay your case.
Do I need to have all documents translated into English?
In general, all documents submitted to NVC or presented at the interview should either be in English or official language of the country in which your consular interview will take place. If there is any specific requirement from the consulate for additional translation (e.g. local language into English language), you will be notified by the consulate.
Does the translation have to be certified?
No, the translation does not have to be done by a certified translator. Translation can be done by any person that includes a written statement that the translation is accurate, and translator is competent (fluent in English and language of the document). We will provide you with a sample of such a translator’s certificate.
Do I need to provide a police certificate for consular processing?
Because police certificates expire, we recommend not to submit the police certificate(s) to the NVC at the same time as initial civil documents. We recommend bringing police certificates to your immigrant visa interview, unless NVC requests police certificate sooner. This way, you do not need to obtain police certificates multiple times.
If you are 16 years of age or older, you must obtain a photocopy of a police certificate from all countries you have lived in using below criteria:
If you ... | AND you... | THEN submit a police certificate from... |
Are 16 years old or older | Lived in your country of nationality for more than 6 months at any time in your life | Your country of nationality |
Are 16 years old or older | Have lived in your country of current residence (if different from nationality) for more than 6 months | Your country of current residence |
Have ever lived in another country for 12 months or more | Were 16 years or older at the time you lived there | The country where you used to live. |
Were arrested for any reason, regardless of how long you lived in that city or country, and no matter what age you were |
| The city and/or country where you were arrested. |
Note: Present and former residents of the United States do NOT need to submit any U.S. police certificates.
Important: Police certificates expire after two years, unless the certificate was issued from your country of previous residence and you have not returned there since the police certificate was issued.
What if I don’t have or can’t get the document required by NVC?
If you do not have the document required nor are you able to obtain it as described above, please contact us. We will assist you accordingly. If you need more information about documents, please go to Civil Documents (state.gov)
5. Immigrant visa interview
What documents do I need to bring to my visa interview at the U.S. consulate?
We will provide you with a list of required documents before your visa interview. The list will include such documents as a valid passport, birth certificates, your I-140 approval notice, your DS-260 confirmation, and your sealed immigration medical exam.
Do I need an immigration medical exam before my visa interview?
Yes. Each consulate provides instructions and referrals to qualified immigration medical doctors in your country. You will need to bring proof of your vaccination history to the exam. Once the exam is complete, the doctor’s office will give you the exam report in a sealed envelope. You will bring that sealed envelope to your visa interview.
6. After immigrant visa interview
How long until I receive my immigrant visa after the interview?
Consular procedures can differ by country. But, in general, the Consulate will issue a visa to be placed in your passport, either at the appointment or to be picked up a few days afterwards. The Consulate will give you a sealed envelope to present to CBP at the airport where you arrive in the U.S.
What is administrative processing?
When you attend your visa appointment at the U.S. Consulate, your visa request can either be approved, denied, or you can be issued administrative processing.
Administrative processing means that the government needs additional time to review your background before issuing the visa. There could be a host of reasons why administrative processing is issued, ranging from your name matching the name of a person of interest, to you working on sensitive technology (ex: drone research). If you are issued administrative processing, please let us know and provide us with any documentation or information you received from the Consulate. The attorney will then advise you on the next steps.
Also, administrative processing is relatively common and, on its own, does not mean that you will not receive the visa. Most administrative processing cases are cleared in several weeks.
My I-140 is approved. Does this mean that my immigrant visa will be approved?
Not necessarily. The immigrant visa process looks at issues that were not reviewed as part of the I-140 petition. For example, if you have a criminal record, worked without authorization, or had extended periods of unlawful presence in the U.S., this could impact your ability to obtain the immigrant visa and enter the U.S., even if your I-140 was approved. At the I-140 stage, the attorney will carefully review your immigration history and background to flag any possible issues you may encounter for green card processing.
I have an approved I-140. Can I travel into the U.S. on a temporary visa while the EB-3 immigrant visa case processes through the NVC and the Consulate?
It depends on the timing. We generally recommend stopping any travel into the U.S. once the NVC has documentarily-qualified your case, and sends it to the consulate for final processing. Your attorney can provide specific guidance regarding your travel plans.
Does having a valid immigrant visa guarantee that I can enter the U.S.?
No, having a visa does not guarantee entry into the U.S. At the port of entry, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Officer may ask you questions about your intent and the purpose for your travel. In rare cases, the CBP officer can deny your entry to the U.S. even though you have a valid visa in your passport. You will need to be able to clearly explain to the CBP Officer, if asked, where you will be working in the U.S., the name of your employer, your job, and where you will live. We have not had any EB-3 Unskilled clients be denied U.S. entry using their valid immigrant visa.
When should I move to the U.S.?
Please DO NOT make any major arrangements until you receive the visa approval. Once you receive your visa approval, BDV’s Client Services team will be in touch to provide a checklist for your transition to working in the U.S. As a Consular client, it is very important that you DO NOT make any concrete plans to move and start work until you have your immigrant visa approval.
We have seen too many clients make major decisions (selling houses and cars, etc.) before they have their visa in hand, and then go on to be disappointed if their visa journey doesn't work out in the timing they expected. We want to spare you this frustration, so we ask you to be patient until you receive the visa. At that point, you can let us know so we can start helping you on the journey to the U.S.!
7. Working for your EB-3 sponsor
When do I need to start working for my EB-3 sponsor?
You will have 2 months to move to the U.S. after your visa approval, and then you will be expected to start work as soon as possible after your move, taking some time, of course, to receive your Social Security card, get settled in, and find transportation and housing. BDV’s Client Services team will assist you with the relocation process to start working for your sponsor. Because your sponsor has a chronic labor shortage, you cannot delay starting work.
How long do I have to work for my sponsor once I am in the U.S.?
When you signed your contract with BDV, you agreed to work for your sponsor for at least 12 months. Remember that many of BDV’s sponsors provide opportunities to grow within their companies, so you may stay longer than 1 year and receive promotions or take a job within your field of expertise inside that company. The possibilities are endless! Don't limit yourself to just one year at your company, and think of it as a place to grow.
What happens if I do not work for my EB-3 sponsor?
The EB-3 is an employment based green card program, where your employer is sponsoring you for a green card based on your willingness to work in the full-time, offered position. BDV’s Client Services team will help you with the relocation process to start work. Below are 5 consequences if you do not work for your EB-3 sponsor.
Jeopardize your U.S. naturalization. You may face issues becoming a U.S. citizen if you did not work for your sponsoring employer for at least one year, because the government could question your intentions for the green card.
Failure to keep your commitment. Your employer sponsored you for a green card because they are suffering from a chronic labor shortage. Keep your commitment by following through with the promise that you’ll work for the employer for at least one year.
Jeopardize the future of the EB-3 unskilled program. If you don't work for your employer, employers are not going to continue sponsoring EB-3 unskilled workers. Your friends or family members may not be able to participate in the program in the future.
Green card revocation. Even after your green card is issued, if you do not work for the sponsoring employer, they can contact USCIS to request that the green card be revoked due to fraud or misrepresentation. Fraud is generally committed if an individual lies to obtain immigrant benefits.
8. U.S. Citizenship
How long do I need to reside in the U.S. until I can apply for U.S. citizenship?
In general, you will need to wait five years from the date you receive your permanent residence/green card until you can naturalize as a U.S. citizen.