Permanent Residency

Sponsorship for permanent residency at Penn State currently applies to tenure-line teaching positions, as these are the only positions determined to be “permanent” in nature. Any position which has an end date, even if the funding is guaranteed for several years, does not typically qualify as “permanent.”

As standard practice, Penn State utilizes the Employment-Based Second Preference (EB-2) Advanced Degree category for university teachers, known as PERM/Special Handling. The government created this specific category to enable colleges and universities to sponsor foreign nationals as permanent employees in teaching positions. This type of permanent residency pathway is an objective process that is based on a heavily regulated recruitment process.

The Outstanding Professor/Researcher (EB-1B) category is only used with great discretion due to its stringent requirements and highly subjective nature. International Faculty Advising (IFA) will only consider using this category if requested by the college’s leadership. Please contact the assigned adviser to obtain next steps.

The Initiation of the Permanent Residency Process

International Faculty Advising (IFA) must be notified as soon as the offer is made to a tenured or tenure-line faculty member so the green card process can proceed without missing important deadlines. The employee’s departmental representative will initiate this process by completing the “Visa Inquiry or New Hire Notification” eForm in iStart.

Penn State vs. Employee Responsibilities 

EB-2: Penn State will coordinate the first three steps of the green card process to support the employee’s eligibility to apply for a green card – the Prevailing Wage Determination, the Labor Certification, and the I-140 petition.
EB-1B: If the employee’s department approves EB-1B sponsorship, the employee is responsible for attorney fees associated with the preparation of supporting materials/evidence. Penn State will file the I-140 petition once all materials have been turned over to the International Faculty Advising office.
Final Step I-485: Once the employee is eligible to apply to adjust their status (via EB-2 or EB-1B), it is the employee’s responsibility to apply for their green card with Form I-485. Penn State is unable to assist faculty at this stage of the process, as it is a personal application between the employee and the U.S. government. Faculty are responsible for all fees related to the I-485, inclusive of attorney fees if they should hire one, and the fees for dependent family members. 

Self-Sponsorship

Although permanent residency sponsorship is reserved for those in tenure-line positions at Penn State, Non-tenure-line faculty interested in permanent residency may explore pathways that do not require employer sponsorship (i.e., self-sponsored categories). Some self-sponsored categories include EB-1A, EB-2 National Interest Waiver (NIW), or family-based. International faculty can choose to work on their own or to hire an immigration attorney to help them with the process of applying for permanent residency in these categories.