EB-4 Visa for Special Immigrants: Who Qualifies?

You certainly can’t tell who a “special immigrant” visa is meant to cover by its name. In fact, this visa category (technically, the employment fourth preference category ) is an odd one, created by Congress for various visas that don’t seem to fit anywhere else. It comprises numerous subcategories, as described below.

There is a limit on visas in this category: Only 10,000 green cards in total become available annually for all the special immigrant categories combined. No more than 5,000 of these can be allocated toward religious workers who are not ministers or members of the clergy. No more than 1,500 can be allocated to Afghan nationals who worked for the U.S. government while in their country. No more than 5,000 per year can be allocated to nationals of Iraq who worked for or with the U.S. government there.

Who Qualifies as a Special Immigrant

Special immigrant visas (which lead to lawful permanent resident status and green cards upon arrival in the U.S.) are available to the following, under Section 101(a)(27) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (I.N.A.):

• clergy and other professional, vocational workers with bona fide, nonprofit religious organizations (as discussed in the article, “EB-4 Visa for Religious Workers: Who Qualifies?”)
• foreign medical graduates who entered the United States as nonimmigrants before January 10, 1978 and remained continuously present in the United States in the practice or study of medicine since their entry (almost no one fits this category anymore)
• foreign workers who provided faithful service to the U.S. government or the American Institute in Taiwan for at least 15 years
• Panama Canal Treaty employees who provided faithful service for at least one year or whose safety was endangered by treaty ratification after at least five years’ faithful service, as well as Panamanian nationals who honorably retired from U.S. government employment after at least 15 years (now seldom-used categories)
• Afghan nationals who worked for or on behalf of the U.S. government in Afghanistan and are under threat as a result (ending in fiscal year 2013)
• Iraqi nationals who provided faithful service working for or on behalf of the U.S. government in Iraq and who experienced or are experiencing an ongoing serious threat as a result (ending in fiscal year 2013)
• retired officers or employees of certain international organizations who have lived in the U.S. for a certain time
• foreign nationals who have been declared dependent on U.S. juvenile courts in because they were neglected, abused, or abandoned by their immigrant parent(s), as discussed in the article, “Special Immigrant Juvenile Status: Who Is Eligible”
• persons who served honorably for 12 years on active U.S. military duty after October 15, 1978
• NATO civilian employees (another seldom-used category), and
• persons coming to work as broadcasters for the International Broadcasting Bureau of the Broadcasting Board of Governors, or for its grantee (a rarely used category).

Each of these categories comes with a separate set of requirements as to how the applicant must prove eligibility and ultimately apply.

How to Apply for Special Immigrant Status

Applications are typically made on Form I-360, issued by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Details are often found in the Adjudicator’s Field Manual.

For more information, consult an experienced immigration attorney.