What an approved I-140 gives you
Approval of an NIW, EB-1A, EB-1B, EB-1C or PERM-based I-140 establishes three things: your immigrant category, your priority date, and USCIS's acceptance that you qualified for the category as of filing. The priority date is the date the I-140 was filed for self-petitions and EB-1 cases, and the date the PERM was filed for labor-certification cases. It also has practical consequences before the green card: some H-1B holders with an approved I-140 may qualify for extensions beyond the usual six-year limit, subject to the relevant requirements, and an H-4 spouse may become eligible for work authorization under current rules. For employer-filed petitions, an I-140 that has been approved for 180 days generally keeps its priority date even if the employer later withdraws it.
Reading the Visa Bulletin
The State Department publishes a Visa Bulletin each month with two charts for employment-based categories: Final Action Dates, which govern when a green card can actually be approved, and Dates for Filing, which sometimes allow an I-485 to be filed earlier. USCIS announces each month which chart applicants may use for adjustment of status. Your place in line is determined by your category, your country of chargeability—normally your country of birth, not your citizenship—and your priority date. A date is "current" when the bulletin shows "C" for your category and country, or a cutoff date later than your priority date. For applicants born in mainland China, EB-2 and EB-3 have carried backlogs for years, and EB-1 has at times also had a cutoff date. The bulletin moves forward and occasionally backward; retrogression after an I-485 is filed does not undo the filing, but it pauses approval.
Filing the I-485
When the applicable chart permits filing, you may be able to file the I-485 if you are in the United States and otherwise eligible to adjust status—or, in some employment-based cases, within the protection of section 245(k) for limited status violations. The I-485 is usually filed together with the I-765 work permit and I-131 travel document applications, which are adjudicated separately and may result in separate documents or, in some cases, a combined card. The package needs the I-693 medical examination, civil documents, evidence of lawful status history and, for employer petitions, a confirmation that the job offer still stands; for NIW and EB-1A, evidence that you continue to work in your field. If the priority date is current when the I-140 is filed, both can be filed concurrently.
Travel and job changes while the I-485 is pending
Leaving the United States while an I-485 is pending abandons it for most applicants unless they have an advance parole document or maintain valid H-1B or L-1 status and re-enter on that visa. Plan travel around the advance parole approval, and do not assume a short trip is safe. Changing employers is possible under AC21 once the I-485 has been pending 180 days, provided the new job is in the same or a similar occupation; the change is reported on a supplement form. NIW and EB-1A applicants are not tied to an employer but are tied to the endeavor or field described in the petition, so a move into unrelated work should be discussed before it happens. Keep the record of your continuing work—publications, positions, projects—current, because the officer at the I-485 stage may ask.
Shortening the wait
There are legitimate ways to move earlier in line. A later-approved petition in a category with better dates—most often an EB-1A or EB-1B after an earlier NIW—can use the earlier petition's priority date, because priority dates are retained across approved employment-based petitions. When EB-3 dates run ahead of EB-2, some applicants file an EB-3 petition on the same labor certification. An applicant whose spouse was born in a country with current dates can be charged to the spouse's country, a rule called cross-chargeability that is often overlooked. And consular processing is sometimes scheduled faster than adjustment at a backlogged office. Each option has its own requirements and risks, and the right one depends on the current bulletin.
Children, spouses and life changes
A spouse and unmarried children under 21 can obtain green cards as derivatives of the principal applicant, including a spouse married after the I-140 was approved as long as the marriage occurs before the principal's admission or adjustment. Children who turn 21 during a long wait may be protected by the Child Status Protection Act, which subtracts the time the petition was pending from the child's age in a calculation that depends on the bulletin; it is worth running the calculation early. Divorce, a new marriage, a change of name or a long stay abroad each affect the case in ways that are easier to handle when raised before they happen.
References
How Lumen Law & Co. can help
Approval of an I-140 petition is an important step, but timing and eligibility for permanent residence still need separate analysis.
- Review priority dates, preference categories, visa bulletins, and adjustment filing charts.
- Plan I-485, employment authorization, travel documents, or consular processing as appropriate.
- Discuss job changes, travel, dependents, and other changes that may affect the next stage.