什麽是 “permanent” position?

By Jan Krasny 對於EB-1申請中所要求的 “permanent employment” ，USCIS發布了有關指引以解釋有關不少人對 “permanent employment” 的一些誤解。以下為有關信息，以供大家參考： USCIC issued guidance addressing the often-misunderstood requirements of “permanent employment” under EB-1 petitions filed on behalf of outstanding researchers. The regulations require an offer of employment as initial evidence in support of an EB-1 petition filed on behalf an outstanding professor or researcher. The regulations further specify that the offer of employment be in form of a letter from the petitioning employer stating that: 1. Employment is a tenured or tenure track position, or 2. a “permanent” research position in the alien’s academic field. When referring to a permanent research position, the word “permanent” is defined as: “Either tenured, tenure-track, or for an indefinite or unlimited duration, and in which the employee will ordinarily have an expectation of continued employment unless there is good cause for termination. After a recent review of modern business practices, USCIS found that most employment agreements refer to positions as being terminable “at will,” even though the employer and the employee have the expectation that the employment will continue for a indefinite or unlimited duration. “Good cause for termination” clauses are not frequently used because they expose the employer to several legal and business issues. Because of confusion over the exact meaning of what should be considered “permanent” employment, USCIS released the following guidelines to the adjudicators: “Permanent” for Research Positions § Adjudicators should not deny a petition where the employer is seeking an outstanding researcher solely because the employment contract or offer of employment does not contain a “good cause for termination” clause. § Petitioning employer must establish: o Offer of employment is intended to be of an indefinite or unlimited duration, and § If the position appears to be limited, such as research positions funded by grant money, adjudicators will look to the circumstances and the benefits of the job offer. If the position normally continues, because funding grants are normally renewed, the position can still meet the regulatory test. o nature of employment is such that the employee will ordinarily have expectation of continued employment. Tenure or Tenure-Track Positions § Adjudicators do not need to evaluate whether the employment contract for a tenured or tenure-track position has a “good cause for termination” clause, and should not deny a petition seeking an outstanding professor for a tenured or tenure-track position on that basis alone. § Adjudicators will continue to evaluate whether the overall nature of the position is tenured or tenure-track. They will not equate a tenure or tenure-track position with positions that are temporary, adjunct, limited duration fellowships or similar positions, where the employee has no reasonable expectation of long-term employment with the university.