Home  William's Answers for Immigration and Visa Questions  |  Google+  Facebook  Twitter
How to Get a Reference Letter from Officer of a U.S. Government Agency

Hi William,

I am currently working for an NIH Agency under J1 visa, and would like to apply for Green Card under the EB1 Extraordinary Ability (EB-1A) and NIW (National Interest Waiver) categories at the same time. I want to ask my advisor at the agency to write a reference letter for me. Is it true that a NIH employee cannot write reference letter for Green Card application purpose?

Answer,

An officer of a U.S. government agency may not write letters of reference or recommendation letter for submission to another U.S. federal agency in support of immigration visa or Green Card applications, on behalf of the 
U.S. government agency or on the agency's letterhead. But an employee of a U.S. government agency should be able to write his/her own personal letter on plain stationery for an alien applicant's performance and achievement.

Also, 
An employee of a U.S. government agency may send the requestor copies of any performance evaluations ("form of evaluation") which was previously prepared describing the person's relative skills, performance, development, etc., or copies of any letters of reference that previously wrote to evaluate his/her suitability for a job at another institution. Furthermore, an official letter may be written by a high level official of the agency (Director or above) as part of the official agency sponsorship for a candidate's employment.







Questions & Answers for Green Card Application
EB1 Extraordinary Ability (EB-1A)
EB1 Outstanding Professor / Researcher (EB-1B)
EB1 Multinational Executive or Manager (EB-1C)
EB2 National Interest Waiver (NIW)
Form I-485 Adjustment of Status
PERM Labor Certification
Form I-140 Application after Labor Certification
Request For Evidence (RFE) for EB1, NIW, L1 Visa
Questions & Answers for Working Visa Application
J-1 Waiver of 2-Year Home Residence
H-1B Visa Application or Extension
O-1 Visa Application or Extension
L-1 Visa Application or Extension
P-1, P-2, P-3 Visa Application or Extension
William's Answers for Immigration Questions
Home Page








For All Your Immigration and Green Card Application Needs
                                                                 
EB-1A sample of reference letter graphic © Green Card Application Service, www.greencardapply.com