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Read MoreThe EB-4 visa is the employment-based, fourth-preference immigrant visa category. It leads to a green card (lawful permanent residence) and is an immigrant visa category. Unlike the other employment-based visas, EB-4 covers people who may have no job offer at all, such as juveniles under court protection. However, because EB-4 receives only a small share of the annual green card supply, every EB-4 subcategory faces a wait.
Scott D. Pollock & Associates, P.C. represents immigrants and the organizations that sponsor them in EB-4 cases, from initial petition to green card approval.
What Is the EB-4 Visa?
EB-4 is the employment-based fourth preference visa, but special immigrant is the term that actually defines it. In the case of the EB-4, this refers to certain religious workers, Special Immigrant Juveniles, broadcasters, and members of the U.S. armed forces (current, retired, or stationed abroad), among others. Read more on these categories below.
The category is small. EB-4 receives about 7.1% of the annual employment-based supply (roughly 10,000 green cards a year), and several subgroups carry their own internal caps, such as 5,000 a year for certain non-minister religious workers.
EB-4 Special Immigrant Categories
The most common EB-4 subcategories are religious workers and Special Immigrant Juveniles, but the category also applies to other types of applicants.
Applies to ministers and certain non-minister workers in a religious vocation or occupation coming to work full-time for a nonprofit religious organization. The applicant generally needs at least two years of membership in the religious denomination and two years of qualifying experience.
Ministers are a permanent part of the law, but the non-minister category runs under a sunset provision and is currently authorized only through September 30, 2026, unless Congress reauthorizes it.
Applies to children in the United States whom a state juvenile court has found cannot be reunified with one or both parents because of abuse, abandonment, or neglect, and for whom returning to their home country is not in their best interest.
The applicant must be under 21 and unmarried when the petition is filed. SIJ applicants self-petition; no employer or job offer is involved.
EB-4 also covers a range of other special immigrants, each with its own statutory requirements: certain international broadcasters, current and former members of the U.S. armed forces, retired officers or employees of qualifying international organizations and their family members, Afghan and Iraqi nationals who worked for the U.S. government, and certain long-serving physicians.
Talk to an immigration attorney to determine if you are eligible to apply for an EB-4 visa.
Special Immigrant Juveniles (SIJ)
SIJ status protects children in the United States who have been abused, abandoned, or neglected by a parent. This process begins in a state juvenile court, which must issue an order that the child is dependent on the court or placed with a suitable custodian, that reunification with one or both parents is not viable because of abuse, abandonment, or neglect, and that returning to the child’s country of origin is not in the child’s best interest.
With that order, the child files Form I-360 to seek SIJ classification. The petitioner must be under 21 and unmarried when the petition is filed, and must be in the United States. There is no fee for an SIJ I-360, and USCIS aims to decide these petitions within 180 days. SIJ law and the benefits that may accompany it have changed in recent years, so anyone considering this path should review the current rules with an immigration attorney.
Religious Workers
The religious worker subcategory applies to two main groups. Ministers are authorized EB-4 applicants permanently under the law. Non-minister religious workers, meaning those in a religious vocation or occupation, are authorized only under a temporary “sunset” provision that Congress has to renew periodically. As of now, the non-minister program is authorized through September 30, 2026; if it is not reauthorized before then, that subcategory becomes unavailable and no green cards can be issued under it until Congress acts.
To qualify, an applicant generally must have been a member of a religious denomination that has a bona fide nonprofit organization in the United States for at least two years, and must be coming to work full-time in a compensated religious position for that organization or an affiliate. The sponsoring organization files Form I-360, and USCIS verifies eligibility, sometimes including a site visit to the organization.
The EB-4 Application Process, Step by Step
Every EB-4 applicant starts by filing Form I-360, then waiting for a green card to become available.
1
File Form I-360
This is the petition that establishes special immigrant status. SIJ applicants and many others self-petition, while religious-worker petitions are filed by their sponsoring organization. Premium processing is not available for the I-360, so this stage cannot be expedited.
2
Wait for a Visa Number
An approved I-360 establishes eligibility but does not by itself grant status. Because EB-4 is capped at roughly 10,000 green cards a year, the category is typically backlogged for every country, and a green card becomes available only when the priority date is current under the monthly Visa Bulletin.
3
Adjust Status or Consular Process
Once a visa number is available, the applicant files Form I-485 to adjust status from within the United States, or completes consular processing at a U.S. consulate abroad. When a number is already available at the time of filing, the I-360 and I-485 can sometimes be submitted together.
EB-4 Fees and Timelines
Government fees change periodically, so the current amounts should be confirmed on the USCIS fee schedule before filing. There is no fee for an SIJ I-360, while most other EB-4 petitions carry the standard I-360 filing fee. Applicants who adjust status file Form I-485, which has its own fee.
USCIS adjudication of the I-360 cannot be sped up because premium processing is unavailable for this form.
Frequently Asked Questions
EB-4 is an employment-based immigrant visa category that leads to a green card, meaning lawful permanent residence. Applicants abroad receive an EB-4 immigrant visa through consular processing, while those already in the U.S. adjust status directly. Either way, it is an immigrant (permanent) category, not a temporary nonimmigrant visa.
A special immigrant is someone who fits one of the specific categories Congress created under EB-4, such as a religious worker, a special immigrant juvenile, a qualifying broadcaster, or certain current and former U.S. government or military personnel. Each category has its own separate requirements, so eligibility is judged category by category.
It depends on the subcategory. Special immigrant juveniles and several other special immigrants self-petition with no employer involved, while religious-worker petitions are filed by the sponsoring nonprofit organization. Because the rules differ by category, it is worth confirming who files with an immigration attorney.
Ministers are covered permanently under the law. The non-minister religious worker category runs under a sunset provision and, as of now, is authorized only through September 30, 2026; unless Congress reauthorizes it, it becomes unavailable after that date. Because this deadline can change, confirm the current status before relying on it.
It depends on the category and the backlog. USCIS adjudicates the I-360 first, and that stage cannot be expedited because premium processing is unavailable. After approval, the applicant waits for a visa number under the Visa Bulletin, and because EB-4 is backlogged for every country, that wait is usually the longest part of the process.
Talk With Our Attorneys About the EB-4 Visa
EB-4 is really a set of very different cases under one heading, and each one depends on its own statutory requirements and its own petition. Scott D. Pollock & Associates, P.C. has represented special immigrants and sponsoring organizations for over three decades, including religious workers, special immigrant juveniles, and other special immigrant categories.
To discuss whether the EB-4 category fits your situation, call 312.444.1940 or fill out our online contact form to schedule a consultation.
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