Permanent Residency without Employer Sponsorship
There are many pathways to PR that do not require employer sponsorship. These options can be pursued by the employee, on their own, or with the assistance of an immigration attorney at any time. Departments can offer their support for those personal petitions by writing support letters, if asked, but cannot pay filing fees, attorney fees, or allow the immigration attorney to represent the UW in any way.
This is an accordion element with a series of buttons that open and close related content panels.
PR OPTIONS WITHOUT UW SPONSORSHIP
Some of the most common options you may have heard of are:
- National Interest Waiver (EB-2)
- Individuals of Extraordinary Ability (EB-1A)
- Family based sponsorship by a qualifying family member
- Diversity Lottery
- or as an investor, special immigrants such as religious workers, asylee, refugees, etc.
Visit the USCIS website for a full list of Green Card Eligibility Categories.
OUTSIDE ATTORNEYS
Outside attorneys do not have the ability to represent and act on the behalf of the UW for a particular petition, which is strictly prohibited by Wisconsin State Statute. See UW Legal website regarding Outside Attorneys. Therefore, if you are working with an attorney and they ask you to have the UW sign a Form G-28, you should inform them that no one at the UW is authorized to sign that form. That form gives an attorney the authorization to represent the UW, which, as mentioned above, is prohibited.
If the UW sponsors your PR petition, you may choose to hire a private attorney to assist with the final step of PR (filing Form I-485, aka “Adjustment of Status”). Using a private attorney is permissible at this step in the process since the I-485 is considered a personal petition. The employee must pay all filing fees and attorney fees if they choose to do so. It is not appropriate for the UW to reimburse private attorney fees.
ATTORNEY/LAWYER RESOURCES
Immigration law is federal. You can find an attorney in any U.S. state to represent you on private immigration petitions.
To locate an immigration attorney, here are a few places to start:
Tip: Sometimes the best recommendations come from colleagues or friends. Find an attorney you are comfortable with, whom you feel will represent your best interests.