BREAKING: USCIS Eases EB1A Requirements - Major Policy Update on Extraordinary Ability Criteria
About USCIS on October 2, 2024 being updatedEB1A Policy Manual, as well as the initiative to further clarify the types of evidence used to evaluate the EB-1A for purposes of determining eligibility for the Exceptional Talent EB-1A immigrant visa, are summarized in the following clarifications and affirmations:
Team Award Recognition
The policy guidance is clearly articulated:
Applicants may rely on individual team awards to claim that they meet the criteria of a "nationally or internationally recognized lesser award or award of excellence in the field".In the past, USCIS did not recognize team awards and required the applicant to demonstrate a decisive and leading role in the team that led to the award. Now, as long as the applicant was part of a team that won the award, the award can be used as the basis for the application.
Specific explanations:
Eligible team awards include:
1. Each member receives a trophy, certificate or plaque
2. Appear on the podium or stage
3. Prizes specially nominated in the award announcement of the awarding body
4. Band members who received awards and relay team members who stood on the podium together
Clarification of membership
The policy guidance is clearly articulated::
An applicant's past memberships may also be considered as a basis for meeting the membership eligibility criteria.The USCIS will determine whether the association to which the applicant claims to be a current or past member requires that the member have outstanding achievements in the field as judged by recognized experts in the field.
For example, an applicant who was once a member of a Best Investors Association and has now withdrawn, a situation that would have been disqualifying under the original regulations, may now be recognized.
a concrete explanation::
If it is a past membership and the applicant has not submitted evidence of recent continued practice in the field, then the USCIS will consider the length of the past membership in the two-step analysis method.
Changes in standards for published material
The statement that "published material must demonstrate the value of the individual's work and contributions" in order to meet the criteria for published material has been deleted.
In the academic field, a scholarly article is defined as a document reporting original research, experimentation or philosophical discussion. This criterion is met by the mere fact of having published a professional article, without the need to prove that "the published material must demonstrate the value of the individual's work and contribution".
Explanation of exhibition or display
Although the dictionary defines "exhibition" as a public display not limited to art, the statute expressly amends the term to "artistic".Therefore, non-art exhibitions will only be considered as part of comparable evidence if there is sufficient support.
The INS will only consider exhibitions or displays that are not artistic in nature in properly supported comparable evidence claims. This means that if an applicant provides evidence of an exhibit or display that is not artistic in nature, other sufficient evidence is required to support its value as comparable evidence.
The new policy provides EB-1A applicants with aMore evidence options, greater clarity and transparency, which helps to reduce uncertainties and disputes in the application process and improve the efficiency of the approval process.
The new policy provides applicants with more paths of proof and relaxed conditions in some areas, but it does not mean that USCIS will lower its overall assessment standards for applicants. On the contrary, the changes allow USCIS to more fully and accurately assess a petitioner's exceptional ability. In future EB-1A petitions, the materialAttention to detailrespond in singingPersonalization Requirementsbe sure tomore and more important. Applicants need to prepare moreadequatelyrespond in singingpurposefulmaterials to demonstrate their accomplishments.
