Merit-based · document checklist
EB-1B document checklist
EB-1B requires international recognition as outstanding in a specific academic area, at least three years of teaching or research experience, and a qualifying permanent offer from a US university or a private employer with a documented research department. Because the classification is employer-sponsored, the packet has two independent evidentiary spines: the beneficiary's recognition and the employer's qualification.
Governing standard
International recognition plus three years experience and a qualifying offer
8 CFR 204.5(i)(3)
Top RFE trigger: Expert letters exclusively from the beneficiary's own institution
Criteria and evidence mapping- Documents listed
- 8
- Always required
- 6
- Median exhibit pages
- 380
- Initial RFE rate
- 24.7%
The checklist
Grouped by the purpose each document serves.
Documents marked as always required belong in every filing of this type. The rest apply where the fact pattern calls for them.
Employer qualification
1 required of 3
Permanent job offer letter
Tenure track, tenured, or a research position with no fixed term
Department documentationwhere applicable
For private employers, evidence of a documented research department
Employer achievement evidencewhere applicable
Private employers must show documented accomplishments and three researchers
Recognition evidence
3 required of 3
Evidence for at least two of six criteria
Tabbed per criterion
Independent expert letters
From outside the beneficiary's institution
Citation report
With capture date and self-citation treatment
Experience and forms
2 required of 2
Three years of teaching or research evidence
Employment letters covering the full period
Form I-140 and G-28
Cross-checked against the offer letter
This page prints cleanly — use it as a client-facing document request list.
Failure modes
What draws a request on a EB-1B.
Having every document on the list is necessary and not sufficient. These are the structural problems that produce requests even when the evidence is present.
Full RFE trends hub- Offer letter with a fixed term that undercuts the permanence requirement
- Expert letters exclusively from the beneficiary's own institution
- Private employer with no documented research department evidence
- Experience letters that leave a gap in the three-year period
Also merit-based
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