绿卡申请人什么时候可以换工作

By: Beth Robertie, Esq. 不少客人常问到作为 employment-based的绿卡申请人什么时候才可以转换工作。以下我们就普通劳工卡申请人(Labor Certification Beneficiaries) 以及国家利益豁免的申请人(National Interest Waiver Beneficiaries) 两种情况作出有关 讨论： We often receive questions from our employment-based visa clients regarding how and when they can change jobs. Obviously, this is a complicated topic, and every situation is different. Here are some general guidelines related to immigrant visa applications, however: * Labor Certification Beneficiaries When you are the beneficiary of a labor certification, generally you must remain with your employer until your Application to Adjust Status (I-485) has been pending for at least 180 days. Leaving your employer before the I-485 has been pending for 180 days will result in a loss of the labor certification and approved Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker (I-140). Although you may be able to retain your priority date if you go to a new employer, you will have to go through the labor certification process again. Once your I-485 has been pending for 180 days, you are entitled to switch employers. However, it is important to remember that your new job must be the “same or similar” occupation in order to preserve your pending I-485. The same rule applies to Outstanding Professor or Researcher (EB-1B) beneficiaries, who must have an employer in order to apply under this category. Like labor certification beneficiaries, outstanding researchers may change employers once the I-485 has been pending for 180 days, but they must remain in the same or a similar occupation. * National Interest Waiver Beneficiaries Although National Interest Waiver (NIW) beneficiaries are not required to submit to the labor certification process and therefore are not tied to a specific employer, they are required continue to contribute to the national interest through their work once they have received the NIW and approved I-140. As such, they must continue to work in the same field while their I-485 is pending, even after the I-485 has been pending for 180 days. Switching to a new field of work will jeopardize their pending I-485. This rule also applies in the case of Extraordinary Ability (EB-1A) beneficiaries, who are likewise not tied to a specific employer but must continue to work in their field until their I-485 is approved and they receive their “green card.” 本文由范毅禹律师事务所提供 本律师事务所精办各类劳工应聘及专业移民申请 (包括H-1，L-1，EB-1，EB-2，NIW，劳工卡，绿卡等申请)。所有申请由多位美籍律师及拥有15年经验的范毅禹律师亲自处理，我所并特设中英移民网站。内有最新移民新闻资讯及由律师主持的移民问答集，欢迎读者流览查询。 www.fan-law.com (Chinese) www.fanuslaw.com (English) CALIFORNIA : Fan, Fitzpatrick & Thompson, LLP. 370 E. Glenarm St., Pasadena , CA 91106 Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone] MARYLAND : Fan, Fitzpatrick & Thompson, LLP. 230 North Washington Street, Suite 400 , Rockville , MD 20850 Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone]