How Many Citations Needed for EB1?

How Many Citations Needed for EB1?

Criteria for Demonstrating Extraordinary Ability

You must meet 3 out of the 10 listed criteria below to prove extraordinary ability in your field:

• Evidence of receipt of lesser nationally or internationally recognized prizes or awards for excellence
• Evidence of your membership in associations in the field which demand outstanding achievement of their members
• Evidence of published material about you in professional or major trade publications or other major media
• Evidence that you have been asked to judge the work of others, either individually or on a panel
• Evidence of your original scientific, scholarly, artistic, athletic, or business-related contributions of major significance to the field
• Evidence of your authorship of scholarly articles in professional or major trade publications or other major media
• Evidence that your work has been displayed at artistic exhibitions or showcases
• Evidence of your performance of a leading or critical role in distinguished organizations
• Evidence that you command a high salary or other significantly high remuneration in relation to others in the field
• Evidence of your commercial successes in the performing arts

Many applicants are concerned about their low citation counts.  In reality, citations are only helpful in regards to one of the ten listed criteria – original scientific, scholarly, artistic, athletic, or business-related contributions of major significance to the field.  In many fields where publications are not the norm such as in IT or management professions, citations are completely irrelevant and in other scientific or academic fields like Economics, Business, Computer Science, or Mathematics, they are very hard to come by.  It is very normal for Economics papers to have no citations or be in the low single digits.  This is ok and is not fatal to an EB1 case.  It simply means that we need to identify other criteria on the list to get your case approved.  We have handled hundreds of self petitioned green card such as EB1 and know what USCIS wants to see in order to approve a case.  Over the past 15+ years we have successfully helped clients obtain EB1 green cards in software, engineering, speaking, business, consulting, acting and other fields where the applicants had none to very few citations.  There are many ways to make a strong case without a strong citation record.  For your reference, here are some samples of our approved petitions.  If you’d like our help, please feel free to call us at 305 515 0613 or email us at info@messersmithlaw.com.