Permanent Residency Criteria for Outstanding Professors and Researchers

As set forth under the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1990 and its implementing regulations, a foreign national being sponsored by an employer for classification as an outstanding professor or researcher must provide:

Evidence of at least two of the following to show international recognition in the academic field:

a) Receipt of major prizes or awards for outstanding achievement;

b) Membership in associations requiring outstanding achievements of their members;

c) Published material in professional publications written by others about the alien's work;

d) Participation, either individually or on a panel, as the judge of the work of others in the same or an allied academic field;

e) Original scientific or scholarly research contributions to the academic field;

f) Authorship of scholarly books or articles (in scholarly journals with international circulation).

In addition, the following must be provided:

1. Letter(s) from current or former employer(s) (with name, address, and title of writer) specifically describing the alien's duties, establishing at least three years of experience in teaching and/or research in the academic field; and
   
   
2. Letter from prospective employer offering employment for the alien in the academic field either:
   
   a) For a tenured or tenure-track teaching position or a permanent research position in a U.S. university or institution of higher learning; or
   
   b) For a permanent research position in a department, division or institute of a private employer with at least three persons employed in full-time research positions and with documented accomplishments in the field.

Please contact us for additional information on the criteria for U.S. visas for outstanding professors and researchers and how an immigration attorney can help you with the process.