EB-1C process: I-140 first, then the green card in the USA or at the consulate

The EB-1C isn't a single application but a sequence. First your US employer files a petition, then you apply for the green card itself, either in the USA with USCIS or abroad at a consulate. Between the two sits the Visa Bulletin, which decides whether a visa is available for you.

This guide walks through the stages in order: what goes into the petition, how the priority date is set, how the application works in the USA and how the consular route works, and which of the two fits your situation. Whether you meet the requirements in the first place is covered in the guide EB-1C requirements.

1The process: two stages, three agencies

Up to three agencies are involved in an EB-1C. USCIS decides on the petition and, if you are in the USA, on your green card application. The State Department runs the Visa Bulletin, allocates visa numbers and handles cases from abroad through the National Visa Center and the consulates. Finally, when you arrive on an immigrant visa, the border agency CBP checks whether you may enter as a permanent resident.

The first stage is always the same: Form I-140, the Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker. The petitioner is the US employer, not you. There is no labor market test with the Department of Labor for the EB-1C, unlike the EB-2 and EB-3 categories. The second stage depends on where you live. If you are in the USA, for example on an L-1A, you apply to adjust your status with Form I-485. If you still live in Europe, you apply for an immigrant visa at the consulate.

The real work comes before the first stage: at filing, the US company must have been doing business for at least one year, your year in a managerial role abroad must fall within the right period, and your role must be described and documented as managerial. What that means is explained in the guide Manager, executive or function manager.

Treat this preparation as a project of its own within the company. Org charts for both companies, job descriptions with time allocations, annual financial statements, contracts and invoices from the US subsidiary, payroll records from abroad: these rarely sit ready in a drawer. Gather the documents early and you'll also spot the gaps early, such as a missing shareholder resolution or a role that sounds managerial on paper but is operational day to day.

2The petition: what goes into the I-140

The regulations list only a few required documents for the EB-1C, but each one carries weight. The centerpiece is a statement from an authorized official of the US company. It must show that you worked abroad for the group in a managerial role for at least one year in the three years before the petition, or in the three years before your last entry if you are already working for the group in the USA. It must show that the US company is the same company as, or a subsidiary or affiliate of, your employer abroad, and that it has been doing business for at least one year.

Then there is the job offer. No labor certification is needed, but the employer must offer in writing to employ you in a managerial role in the USA and clearly describe the duties. It must also prove it can pay your salary, from the day the petition is received until you have your green card. As evidence, the regulations name annual reports, federal tax returns or audited financial statements. With 100 or more employees, a statement from the chief financial officer may be enough.

In practice, the statement alone isn't enough. USCIS expects evidence for every claim: corporate records for ownership and control, invoices and contracts for business operations, org charts and job descriptions for the roles, payroll records for employment abroad. Anything not in English needs a complete English translation, with the translator certifying its accuracy in writing.

The I-140 can be filed online or on paper. If you request premium processing with Form I-907 right away, both must be mailed together; for an I-140 already filed online, premium processing can be requested online later. What it costs and what it gets you is covered in the guide EB-1C processing times and premium processing.

3The priority date and the Visa Bulletin

The petition sets your priority date. For categories without labor certification, that's the day USCIS receives the complete, signed petition with all required documents and the correct fee. If something essential is missing, the date moves. A denied petition does not establish a priority date.

Your priority date is your place in the queue. Whether there is a queue is shown in the State Department's monthly Visa Bulletin, based on your country of birth, not your passport. For people born in Europe, EB-1 is "current" in November 2026: there is no cutoff date and a visa is available immediately. USCIS has set that for November 2026, adjustment of status applications are filed using the "Dates for Filing" chart. For people born in India or China, the EB-1 cutoff date is July 1, 2024.

4Route A: adjustment of status in the USA

If you live in the USA with valid status, you apply for the green card with Form I-485 without leaving the country. Because EB-1 is current for Europeans, the I-485 may be filed together with the I-140, in the same envelope or shortly after. The documents for the two forms are kept separate. Each family member files their own application.

With the I-485 you submit Form I-693, the result of a medical exam by a USCIS-designated doctor, the civil surgeon. The doctor gives you the form in a sealed envelope; you may only open it if you file online. Once your application is received, USCIS invites you to an Application Support Center for fingerprints and a photo. There is an interview if USCIS considers it necessary; if so, bring the originals of all documents you submitted.

While the I-485 is pending, you can apply for a work permit with Form I-765 and a travel permit (advance parole) with Form I-131. The travel rule matters: if you leave the country with a pending I-485 and no advance parole, you generally abandon your application. There is an exception for L-1 and H-1B holders. They may travel if they return to the same employer on a valid visa and continue to meet the requirements of their status; the same applies to spouses and children in L-2 status. If you re-enter on advance parole, under the USCIS fee schedule you should expect CBP to also charge the statutory Immigration Parole Fee at the border unless an exemption applies; from October 16, 2026 it is $1,050.

The law offers a safeguard if your job changes. If your I-485 has been pending for at least 180 days, the petition stays valid for a new job in the same or a similar occupation. For the EB-1C, that means another managerial position.

5Route B: immigrant visa at the consulate

If you live in Europe, USCIS sends the approved petition to the State Department's National Visa Center. The NVC contacts you and your employer, requests the fees and collects the documents listed in its request. The fee for an employment-based immigrant visa is $345 per person.

Once the case is complete and a visa is available, the consulate invites you to an interview and decides whether you qualify for the immigrant visa. Swiss citizens and residents go to the US Embassy in Bern, which handles all their immigrant visas. For other nationalities, the responsible post is named in the interview letter.

If the visa is issued, you receive a sealed envelope, the visa packet, which you do not open and hand to the border agency when you arrive. Once the officer admits you, you are a permanent resident. After receiving the visa packet and before you travel, it's best to pay the USCIS Immigrant Fee of $235 online; your green card then arrives by mail at your US address. If it hasn't arrived after 90 days, contact USCIS.

6Which route is right for you?

The choice usually follows from your situation. If you already work in the US on an L-1A, you will almost always take the I-485 route: you stay in the country, keep working on your status, and your family can stay too on L-2. Because the L-1 is a dual intent visa, the pending green card application does not hurt your L-1. If you still live in Europe and only want to move once you have the green card, you go through the consulate and enter the US directly as a permanent resident.

If you plan to take the I-485 route, you first need a status that lets you live and work in the US. How the L-1A works for this is covered in the guide From L-1A to EB-1C green card.

7Your family in the process

Your spouse and your unmarried children under 21 receive the same status as you, as E-14 and E-15. They do not need their own petition, but each of them files their own green card application: in the US, one I-485 each at the full fee, or at the reduced fee for children under 14 filing with a parent; at the consulate, one visa application each with its own fee. The medical exam is also required for each person.

A spouse already living in the US on an L-2 may work on that status and needs no additional permit. For other family members with a pending I-485, the work permit comes through Form I-765. All family fees and the other costs of the category are in the guide EB-1C costs; what to do if USCIS asks for more is in the guide EB-1C denied or RFE.

In short

• The EB-1C comes in two stages: the US employer files the I-140 petition with USCIS, then you apply for the green card yourself.
• Receipt of the complete petition with the fee sets your priority date. For people born in Europe, EB-1 is current as of November 2026.
• In the US, you file the I-485 together with the I-140; from Europe, once approved, your case goes through the National Visa Center to the consulate.
• L-1 holders may travel on their visa while an I-485 is pending; everyone else needs advance parole first.

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