No employer, no sponsor: Mariana's Green Card came from her own work

The starting point

Mariana was 34, with a master's in computer science and eight years of experience with data for the energy sector. The plan to live in the United States had existed since college, but it always ran into the same sentence: "first you need a company to hire you."

After two failed attempts at sponsorship, she found us through the screening. The result pointed to the EB-2 NIW as the main path — a category in which the person herself is the petitioner, with no job offer required.

The challenge

The NIW is not a petition for a "nice résumé." The USCIS officer needs to be convinced of three things: that the proposed work has substantial merit and national importance, that the person is well positioned to carry it forward, and that waiving the job-offer requirement is warranted.

Mariana's work was solid, but it was scattered: internal reports, one published article, two award-winning projects at the company, and a great deal that existed only in her memory.

“I spent years waiting for someone to choose me. Finding out that I could file the petition myself changed everything.”

— Mariana*

The path

We started with what she wanted to do in the U.S. — demand-forecasting models for power grids with renewable energy — and tied that to public priorities in the field in the United States. From there, each piece of evidence had a place in the argument.

In the portal, the checklist was filled in gradually: diplomas, transcripts, proof of experience, the article, and the project metrics. She obtained five recommendation letters, three of them from professionals who did not work with her, which carries more independent weight.

The I-140 was filed with premium processing. A request for evidence (RFE) came on the second criterion; we answered with impact data from the projects and an additional letter. Approval came a few weeks later.

The result

With the priority date reached in the Visa Bulletin, the case went to the NVC and to the interview at the consulate in Rio de Janeiro. She, her husband, and their son received immigrant visas the same day.

The family now lives in Texas. The Green Card arrived by mail a few weeks after entry — and her husband, as a derivative, can already work normally.

* Name changed. To protect the people involved, we do not use real names and we change details that could identify each person. The path, the challenges, and the solutions are preserved.