EB2 NIW I-140 Approved (Hybrid Profile)
I've been following different subreds here and I'd like to share my update as others have; hopefully someone will benefit from it.
EB2-NIW (ROW)
PD: 6/2/2025
Upgraded to PP: 5/6/2026
Approved (I-140): 7/1/2026 (no RFE) - 39 business days
Background:
\- Structural engineer with 16 years of UK work experience.
\- Charted Engineer, UK
\- Professional Engineer, US
\- PhD in structural engineering, UK University
\- 2 'high profile journal publications (2021, 2022) with 24 citations at the time of filing (now just 30)
\- 1 Conference Paper (2018)
\- Currently on E2 visa to run engineering consultancy which is related to my PE
\- PE: Structural health monitoring and damage identification in structures for economic and safety benefits.....
\- Recommendation letters: 3 (2 from former line managers, 1 from research supervisor)
\- Letter of Intent: 2 (1 from equipment supplier, 1 from web developer/data logger, both drafted by Attorney)
\- A lot of updates done to my profile, business, website plus 2 journal papers under review and 1 conference paper. All done after PP upgrade (not sure if it had an impact but I did it in anticipation of an RFE, luckily I didn't get any)
Attorney: C&H
Center: NSC
I was deeply worried about my relatively low publications and citation count and 2 other Attorneys turned me down as a result of this - one asked me to do some more research and publish more recently. But C&H focussed on my work experience and leveraged on my E2 consultancy to show I'm well positioned. We added a business plan and the legal argument appeared to be very compelling for each prong citing government needs and executive orders and matching my endeavor to each.
Now, I can focus on running the business with residency certainty.
I'm cut between consular processing and AOS for the next stage especially as I got a spouse and son in school here in the US.
Thanks a million to all those who inspired me and others with their timelines and experiences. I hope this adds to someone else's inspiration. Any questions? Please ask, I'm happy to help!