Working with EB-2+NIW before I get physical Green Card in the mail?

[MichaelaH 1]

Hello,

I am getting EB-2+NIW immigration visa. As I understand it, on my Interview I will get a stamp in my passport and a sealed packet, which I will hand out on my Point of Entry to the States. I fill a form there to get the physical Green Card, but it will take up to 90 days to obtain the card. In meanwhile, I can work if I obtain EAD. But I got NIW (National Interest Waiver), which is supposed to mean that I do NOT need work permit.

 

Does it mean I can start working as soon as I enter the States?

What do I show to the prospective employer - the passport stamp?

 

I'm really scared of the up to 90 days period I would have to stay without work and therefore without health insurance.

How can I work before I receive my Green Card as a EB-2+NIW holder?

Thank you. 

Edited August 29 by MichaelaH

[appleblossom 2,477]

1 hour ago, MichaelaH said:

Hello,

I am getting EB-2+NIW immigration visa. As I understand it, on my Interview I will get a stamp in my passport and a sealed packet, which I will hand out on my Point of Entry to the States. I fill a form there to get the physical Green Card, but it will take up to 90 days to obtain the card. In meanwhile, I can work if I obtain EAD. But I got NIW (National Interest Waiver), which is supposed to mean that I do NOT need work permit.

 

Does it mean I can start working as soon as I enter the States?

What do I show to the prospective employer - the passport stamp?

 

I'm really scared of the up to 90 days period I would have to stay without work and therefore without health insurance.

How can I work before I receive my Green Card as a EB-2+NIW holder?

Thank you. 

 

You'll be a Legal Permanent Resident (aka green card holder) the moment you arrive in the US and have your visa endorsed. That means you're work authorised immediately (no EAD required - all EB categories are immigrant visa applications, none of them need EAD's). You don't need to wait for the card, it's just proof of your status, not the status itself. https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/temporary-i-551-stamps-and-mrivs 

 

If you don't have a job to go to then do make sure you have temporary health insurance to cover you until you find one. You don't want to need medical care in the US if you don't have insurance! 

 

Also a couple of things to correct - you don't get a stamp in your passport or the package at the interview, it happens after that. And there's no form to fill in for the green card, you just need to pay the fee online. 

Edited August 29 by appleblossom

[MichaelaH 1]

Thank you! 

[randomstairs 303]

You will also need the Social Security Number which you can obtain at the SSA office. The stamp in your passport will serve as a proof of the LPR status, and can be used with your employer or when applying for the SSN. You'll probably wanna have enough savings to live off of for a month, just in case.