Green Card Processing

On what visa basis are you working now?

You cannot adjust status at the moment due to retrogression of the visa categories (unless your position required a master degree, in which case you could possibly apply in the EB2 category).

Currently the backlog for people NOT from India/Phillipines/China is back to those that applied in 2005.

If fiance fits criteria for H1B, he may be eligible for EB2 processing. If he is, and you're not, you'd be better off getting married and using his application since it would be faster.

I'm afraid you are mistaken. Immigrant visas do not take any longer for IT professionals than for nurses - it is the same process.

Are you applying in EB2 category? How, if your position is as an RN (and a masters degree is not required for an RN position)?

Of course when you apply if you are married, you can add your husband to the application.

H2? She has a H1B. If she was a derivative of her husband's H1B, she'd be a H4.

The husband would only qualify for the EB-2 if he obtained the Master's in the US in most cases. Then it also depends on the country of birth for the one applying. For those from China and India, things are still retrogressed back even for those with the Master's as there are so many that have applied. So the country of birth is a major issue as well.

To answer the specific question, as long as you do not have approval of the I-140, then the spouse can be added to the petition. If one has approval, then there is most definitely a delay that is added in to the equation. He can be added on as your dependent to receive the green card the same time as you.

Best of luck to you on your upcoming marriage.

(p.s. You will be the safer bet for the applicant and not the boyfriend since we are seeing many lay-offs happening in the IT sector.)

But you also need to be aware that the job must require the MSN for initial entry in order for it to qualify for the EB-2 visa and not the EB-3. Nurses working at the bedside usually do not need the MSN to start, so it will depend on the employer as well.

The husband would only qualify for the EB-2 if he obtained the Master's in the US in most cases.

There is no such requirement. USCIS requires that you must have a "US masters degree OR foreign equivalent". I personally know at least 10 people with foreign masters degrees who used EB2.

Much of the literature out there states that those that have obtained the Master's in the US actually have an easier time of getting the EB-2 visa. Or foreign equivalent. A generic Master's obtained out of the US will not meet the requirements in most cases for the EB-2 visa and this is the point that I was making as most are not considered the same as the US MSN.

This is even more so with the MSN as most jobs that require the MSN actually require the Advanced Practice or CNS certification as well as a job that requires the MSN for direct entry.

That is the only point that I was trying to make. And then we can add in the fact that most of the employers in the IT sector will not start the green card processing right away for the employee as the nursing employers will in most cases as well.