EB-2 NIW: Education as a Threshold Issue

This short post clarifies the education requirement for EB-2 NIW.

This short post seeks to clarify something that appears to be confused in the minds of some people.

EB-2 NIW requires a threshold education requirement, and then you deal with the 3-prong test of Matter of Dhanasar.

To qualify for EB-2 NIW, you need to have EITHER:

1. Master’s degree; OR

2. Bachelor’s degree + 5 years of post-Bachelor’s work experience; OR

3. “Exceptional Ability.”

If you study the regulations or the USCIS policy manual closely, you will see this is how things are structured.

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Often people think the criteria of “Exceptional Ability” has something to do with the 3-prong Matter of Dhanasar test. No!

It is true that some of the evidence a person might use to establish “Exceptional Ability” could also be used to establish that a person is “well-positioned” for their proposed endeavor, but technically the “Exceptional Ability” criteria relates to an alternative way to qualify for an advanced degree.

“Exceptional Ability” is an alternative to a Master’s degree or Bachelor’s + 5.

Feel free to post comments or questions about this. Writing quickly here…