Employment-Based Immigration: Third Preference EB-3

You may be eligible for this immigrant visa preference classification if you are a skilled employee, expert, or other employee.

- Skilled workers are persons who are capable of carrying out experienced labor and whose job needs a minimum of 2 years training or experience, not of a short-lived or seasonal nature. Skilled workers should also meet any academic, training, or experience requirements of the job chance. Relevant post-secondary education might be thought about as training.
- Professionals are persons who hold at least a U.S. bachelor's or foreign equivalent degree and belong to the occupations. Their jobs require a minimum of a bachelor's degree. Professionals should likewise fulfill any instructional, training, or experience requirements of the job opportunity.
- Other employees (also called unskilled workers) are persons efficient in performing inexperienced labor whose task requires less than 2 years training or experience, not of a momentary or seasonal nature. Other employees need to likewise meet any educational, training, or experience requirements of the job opportunity.
Labor Certification

Third preference petitions are normally accompanied by an a signed Form ETA-9089, Application for Permanent Employment Certification, approved by DOL, or, for labor certification applications filed on or after June 1, employment 2023, utilizing DOL's Foreign Labor Application Gateway (FLAG) system, an authorized and signed Form ETA-9089, Final Determination - Permanent Employment Certification Approval (Final Certification). For additional information, see the Department of Labor's Foreign Labor Certification webpage.

Petitions for Schedule A professions are not needed to have a DOL-approved labor accreditation. This is because DOL has already determined there are not sufficient U.S. workers for those professions. Currently, DOL has actually designated 2 groups of occupations under Schedule A. Group I includes expert nurses and physical therapists. Group II includes recipients with exceptional capability in the sciences or arts (consisting of college and university teachers) and immigrants of in the performing arts. A petition for Schedule A classification must be accompanied by a finished, uncertified Form ETA-9089, consisting of all suitable appendices, a signed Final Determination, and a legitimate prevailing wage determination tracking number in Section E, Item 1 of the uncertified Form ETA-9089. For more details on Schedule A requirements, see Volume 6, Part E, Chapter 7, of the USCIS Policy Manual.

- The labor certification (or application for Schedule A classification) should require a minimum of 2 years of experience or training.
- You must demonstrate that you have fulfilled any task requirements defined on the labor certification (or application for Schedule A classification). This evidence might include official academic records and letters from current or previous companies.
- Relevant post-secondary education might be considered as training.
- The labor accreditation (or application for Schedule A classification) must require a minimum of a U.S. bachelor's or foreign comparable degree, and a bachelor's degree is the normal requirement for entry into the occupation.
- You need to demonstrate that you have actually satisfied any job requirements defined on the labor accreditation (or application for Schedule A designation). This evidence may include official scholastic records and letters from existing or former employers.
- Education and experience may not be alternatived to a bachelor's degree.
- The labor accreditation must require less than 2 years training or experience.
- You need to demonstrate that you have actually met any requirements specified on the labor accreditation.
Immigrant Petition Process

Third choice petitions are submitted using Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers. For details on needed supporting documentation and filing charges, see the Form I-140 webpage (which includes the Form I-140 directions and details about filing costs) and the Petition Filing and Processing Procedures for Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers web page.