From H-1B to a green card
The H-1B is a temporary work visa — but it's dual intent, so you can pursue permanent residence while you hold it. There are three main routes, and a set of 2025–2026 rule changes that make your wage level matter more than it used to. Here's the map.
The three routes to a green card
1. Employer-sponsored: PERM → EB-2 / EB-3
The most common path. Your employer runs a PERM labor certification (a documented test of the U.S. labor market), then files an I-140 immigrant petition under EB-2 (advanced degree or exceptional ability) or EB-3 (skilled workers and professionals). It ties your green card to that employer and job until late in the process, and its timeline depends heavily on your priority date.
2. Self-petition: EB-1A or EB-2 NIW
You don't have to wait on an employer. If you have strong recognition, EB-1A (extraordinary ability) is self-petitionable and usually sits in a faster queue. If your work serves the national interest, the EB-2 National Interest Waiver lets you self-petition and skips PERM. Many H-1B holders in research, engineering, and startups qualify for one of these sooner than they expect — and can run them in parallel with an employer case.
3. EB-1C: multinational managers & executives
If you've worked abroad for a related company and moved into a managerial or executive role, EB-1C is an employer-sponsored first-preference option that doesn't require PERM. It's narrower, but fast when it fits.
Why your wage level matters more now
A series of 2025–2026 changes reshaped how the annual H-1B lottery works — and pushed compensation to the center of the conversation:
- Beneficiary-centric selection. Each person now enters the lottery once, no matter how many employers register them — which cut the flood of duplicate registrations and changed the odds.
- Weighted, wage-based selection. Under a rule finalized in late 2025 and applying to the FY2027 cap season (registration in early 2026), selection is weighted toward higher wage levels — a Wage Level IV offer carries a materially higher chance of selection than a Level I offer. Compensation is no longer just a prevailing-wage floor; it can decide whether you're selected at all.
- Higher fees. The registration fee rose to $215 per beneficiary, and a September 2025 proclamation introduced a $100,000 supplemental fee on certain new H-1B petitions for beneficiaries outside the U.S. — with carve-outs (it generally does not apply to most extensions for existing workers or to many change-of-status cases filed inside the U.S.).
These rules are recent and have drawn legal challenges; specifics and effective dates can change. Confirm the current process on the USCIS H-1B pages and the Federal Register before relying on any of it.
Priority dates and the backlog
Your priority date is your place in line, and the wait depends on your category and country of birth. EB-1 is typically less backlogged than EB-2/EB-3, and applicants born in high-demand countries can face multi-year waits in the employment categories. There's no way to game it, but choosing the strongest category you qualify for — and self-petitioning where you can — is how people shorten the path. Always check the State Department's monthly Visa Bulletin for where your category stands.
Where to start
If you're on H-1B and thinking about permanent residence, two quick reads tell you a lot: whether you could self-petition (EB-1A or NIW), and where your compensation lands. Both are free here — no signup, nothing stored.
Check your green-card readiness
See whether you could self-petition under EB-1A or the EB-2 NIW — scored against the real criteria — and benchmark your salary against certified filings for your occupation and metro.
Check my readiness — free →