If you're looking to hire an immigration expert, Matt is the one.
My story is quite rare, but I want to share it to hopefully benefit the ones with a background similar to mine. I moved to the US to do my PhD, and was on a student visa. When you are on a student visa, you are only allowed to stay in the US until your expected graduation date and, if you are married, your spouse cannot work. This wasn't too bad for us at first, as my husband worked as a journalist correspondent for a newspaper back home.
However, after living in different countries, I thought I liked living in the US for the great work environment and work ethic you can get here, along with the great opportunities for professional development. For these reasons, my husband and I had been considering staying in the US with no restrictions and started interviewing lawyers to apply for residency.
During our search for the perfect lawyer, we heard all kinds of things. With both of us being foreigners with no family members or employers to petition for us, we became discouraged and thought there were no options. Then, we met Matt Thomas, who wanted to learn more about our backgrounds and asked for my CV.
A few days later, on a Sunday morning, we were about to give up when I got a phone call from Matt. He wanted to see us again and suggested that I self-petition in the EB-1 track. I had done my homework and gone through all the possible scenarios, so I knew what Matt was talking about. However, some lawyers had advised me against that route as being too long and complicated, and they had even said I did not qualify for it.
So, when Matt and I discussed such option, I tortured him with tons of questions to make sure his advice was sound enough. Of course, I knew I had a great CV but I had been long discouraged by other lawyers and didn't want to waste my time.
Matt illustrated all the details of an EB-1 track to me, and we went through the timeframe, the chances for success, etc. I decided I wanted to hire Matt when I thought: "OK, this guy knows more than me about this, and his advice sounds impartial." After that point, I gave Matt my time, my money, my hopes and, even most, my trust.
I couldn't make a better decision.
Matt and his team built a strong case for me, advertised my achievements and expertise in a clear an engaging way, and managed to get me an approval without even passing through the Request For Evidence step.
Now both my husband and I received a Welcome notice and our residency cards are on their ways. Up to this point, the whole process took less than a year, and it was smooth.
What I really liked about Matt Thomas is that he believed in me when other lawyers didn't know what to do with my case. Additionally, Matt is very knowledgeable, experienced, personable, and reliable to the point the he even replied my lots of emails on weekends.
So, yes, EB-1 is a real thing and it is doable if your CV is rich with achievements. Don't believe who says that you have to be a Noble Prize laureate to fit in the EB-1 track.
And, most importantly, with Matt Thomas you're in good hands.
Read less