How to Show Qualifying Work Experience in I-140 Petition

In filing employment-based immigrant petitions by form I-140, one of the key elements is to prove that the beneficiary owns the required work experience as designated in approved labor certifications. It is important to submit the right forms of evidence in proving the work experiences that owned by the beneficiary.

The most relevant part is in 8 CFR 204.5(g), which states "Evidence relating to qualifying experience or training shall be in the form of letter(s) from current or former employer(s) or trainer(s) an shall include the name, address, and title of the writer, and a specific description of the duties performed by the alien or of the training received. If such evidence is unavailable, other documentation relating to the alien's experience or training will be considered."

From the above regulation, a letter from current or former employer is considered primary evidence to prove work experience. However, sometimes such a letter is not available. For instance, a job 10 years ago with a company that has been closed can be a problem because the employer company no longer exists. What to do in that situation?

The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) says that secondary evidence can be considered in that case. But before that, the I-140 petitioner needs to demonstrate that the primary evidence is not available. Regulation 8 CFR 103.2(b)(2) states:

"The non-existence or other unavailability of required evidence creates a presumption of ineligibility. If a required document, such as a birth or marriage certificate, does not exist or cannot be obtained, an applicant or petitioner must demonstrate this and submit secondary evidence, such as church or school records, pertinent to the facts at issue. If secondary evidence also does not exist or cannot be obtained, the applicant or petitioner must demonstrate the unavailability of both the required document and relevant secondary evidence, and submit two or more affidavits, sworn to or affirmed by persons who are not parties to the petition who have direct personal knowledge of the event and circumstances. Secondary evidence must overcome the unavailability of primary evidence, and affidavits must overcome the unavailability of both primary and secondary evidence."

Upon showing primary evidence can not be obtained, the beneficiary can look to prepare secondary evidence, such as letters from former co-workers, immediate supervisors, etc. to prove qualifying work experience for the I-140 petition.

This entry was posted in Immigration and tagged , , . Bookmark the permalink. Both comments and trackbacks are currently closed.
x
// Skimlinks.com code login: seanyuan@ymail.com