I’ve been reading about the criterion “absence of ties to the home country” as applied to US visas and didn’t fully understand — is it relevant only for nonimmigrant visas like O-1? Or do officers consider it for immigrant visas as well, for example EB-1 or EB-2 NIW? How does this work for those applying specifically for an immigrant visa?
For EB immigration visas this criterion does not apply at all — the logic is reversed there.
6 Likes
Thanks, that makes it clearer. And by “reverse logic” do you mean that for the green card you should, conversely, show an intention to stay?
6 Likes
EB-1A is the immigrant petition — you’re literally filing an I-485 or DS-260 with the purpose of staying. It doesn’t make sense to apply 214(b) there; that provision is for nonimmigrant cases where you have to prove you’ll return.
6 Likes
Well, there’s a fundamental difference — H-1B is protected by law; 214(b) is effectively not applied to it. O-1 is different: dual intent exists, but an officer can still refuse under 214(b) if they don’t see sufficient ties to the home country. As for EB-1A, that’s a separate matter — there you yourself state immigrant intent; that’s the purpose of the petition, not a bug)
6 Likes