Practice area

EB-2 NIW: a green card without depending on an employer

The name is technical. The idea is simple. Usually, to petition for an employment-based green card, you need a U.S. company willing to sponsor you. Under the National Interest Waiver, no: you present your own petition, without an employer and without a job offer. It is the most sought-after category among qualified Brazilians — and the most misunderstood.

What the case must demonstrate

Three things, always translated: that your work has real value and substance; that it matters to the United States on a national scale; and that waiving the employer requirement makes sense in your case. None of that is a single document — it is a construction: which pieces of evidence go in, in what order, with which narrative.

Why so many NIWs get denied

Most denials come from wrong assembly: a generic petition, proof of value replaced by a list of diplomas, a rehearsed argument with no connection to your trajectory, or filing before the case can carry the petition. Strong résumé, weak assembly, denied result.

How Status builds the strategy for this case

Free evaluation with our team, in-depth legal analysis with the attorney, strategy in writing — with the recommended paths, the discarded ones and the reason — and handling with visibility through to the decision. If the honest answer is that it is not yet time to file, you hear that along with the plan to get there.

What this category is not: the NIW waives the employer. It does not waive the strategy — and it is not the fastest path by definition.