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Employment Immigration

NIW With a Bachelor’s Degree: The 5-Years-of-Experience Rule

By Growth FLPC

By Kyle Farmer, Farmer Law PC, Austin, Texas.

Last reviewed: November 9, 2026.

Short answer: Yes, you can qualify for the EB-2 national interest waiver with a bachelor’s degree. The regulation treats a U.S. bachelor’s degree, or a foreign equivalent, followed by at least 5 years of progressive experience in the specialty as the equivalent of a master’s degree (8 CFR 204.5(k)(2)). USCIS also checks that the experience came after the degree (8 CFR 204.5(k)(3)(i)(B)). Its January 2025 NIW guidance explains how it decides whether the experience is in the specialty and whether the occupation behind your proposed endeavor is a profession.

If you have a bachelor’s degree and years of experience and you’re weighing the NIW, book a free 15-minute intro call.

Why the degree question comes first

The NIW is not its own visa category. It waives the job offer and labor certification for people who already qualify for EB-2, as either a member of the professions holding an advanced degree or a person of exceptional ability (INA 203(b)(2)). The January 15, 2025 Policy Manual update (USCIS Policy Alert PA-2025-03) made the order explicit: USCIS first decides whether you qualify for EB-2. If you do not, the petition is statutorily ineligible for the waiver, and USCIS may issue a request for evidence, a notice of intent to deny or a denial without reaching the Matter of Dhanasar prongs (USCIS Policy Manual Vol. 6, Part F, Ch. 5, Section D.1).

The rule in the regulation

An advanced degree is any U.S. academic or professional degree, or foreign equivalent, above a bachelor’s. A U.S. bachelor’s degree or foreign equivalent followed by at least 5 years of progressive experience in the specialty counts as the equivalent of a master’s degree. If a doctorate is customarily required by the specialty, you need a U.S. doctorate or foreign equivalent (8 CFR 204.5(k)(2)).

To prove the bachelor’s-plus-5 route, the petition includes (8 CFR 204.5(k)(3)(i)(B)):

  • An official academic record showing the U.S. bachelor’s degree or foreign equivalent degree, and
  • Letters from current or former employers showing at least 5 years of progressive post-baccalaureate experience in the specialty.

A person without at least a U.S. bachelor’s degree or a foreign equivalent degree cannot use the advanced degree route (USCIS Policy Manual Vol. 6, Part F, Ch. 5, Section A).

Three checks USCIS applies in NIW cases

An employer-sponsored EB-2 case has a DOL-certified labor certification that sets the job requirements. An NIW case does not, so USCIS reviews the occupation and the endeavor itself. The Policy Manual describes three checks.

1. The experience must come after the degree

The 5 years must occur after you completed the bachelor’s degree or foreign equivalent (USCIS Policy Manual Vol. 6, Part F, Ch. 5, Section D.1). Work before graduation does not count toward the 5 years. Whether you completed the degree requirements by the date on a provisional certificate is decided case by case. If you show that you did, USCIS uses the provisional certificate date to count post-degree experience (Section A, footnote 8, citing Matter of O-A-, Inc., Adopted Decision 2017-03 (AAO 2017)).

2. The experience must be in the specialty

Where you have 5 years of progressive post-degree experience in the same specialty as the degree and you propose a related endeavor, USCIS generally treats the experience as qualifying. Experience unrelated to the degree, unrelated to the endeavor, or both, may not qualify. The Policy Manual’s example: a bachelor’s in chemistry followed by 5 years as a restaurant manager generally does not equal a master’s in chemistry for a chemistry-related endeavor.

For professions that do not require a degree in a specific field, USCIS generally reads your specialty as related to the proposed endeavor. You carry the burden of showing, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the experience relates to the specialty (USCIS Policy Manual Vol. 6, Part F, Ch. 5, Section D.1).

3. The occupation behind your endeavor must be a profession

A profession is an occupation listed in INA 101(a)(32), or any occupation that requires at least a U.S. bachelor’s degree or foreign equivalent for entry (8 CFR 204.5(k)(2)). USCIS looks at the general entry requirements of the occupation through which you will advance the endeavor, not at your own credentials. The Policy Manual’s example: an engineer with a master’s or Ph.D. proposing an engineering endeavor may qualify, but a similarly educated person who plans to start a bakery may have difficulty, because a baker does not typically need a bachelor’s degree. “The occupation underlying the endeavor is determinative.”

What this means in practice

  • Describe your occupation and endeavor clearly. The Policy Manual asks for a straightforward description of both. The endeavor is more specific than the occupation.
  • Line up degree, experience and endeavor. The cleanest cases show a degree, 5 or more years of later experience in the same field, and an endeavor in that field.
  • Document progression. Employer letters should give dates, titles and duties so an officer can see 5 years of progressive work after the degree.
  • Get foreign degrees evaluated. A foreign degree must be shown to be the equivalent of a U.S. bachelor’s degree. The Policy Manual covers credential evaluations in Vol. 6, Part E, Ch. 9.
  • Check the other route. If the bachelor’s-plus-5 route does not fit, the exceptional ability route may. See our page on the NIW through exceptional ability.

Meeting EB-2 is only the first step. The petition must still meet all three Dhanasar prongs, covered on our EB-2 NIW page.

How Farmer Law PC helps

Our attorneys prepare EB-2 NIW petitions for professionals, researchers and founders. We review your degree, the timing and field of your experience, and how your occupation and endeavor fit together before we build the waiver case. For how EB-2 works overall, see our EB-2 visa overview.

FAQ

Can I get an NIW with only a bachelor’s degree?
Yes, if you have a U.S. bachelor’s degree or foreign equivalent followed by at least 5 years of progressive experience in the specialty, or if you qualify through exceptional ability. You must also meet the three Dhanasar prongs.

Does experience before my bachelor’s degree count toward the 5 years?
No. For the advanced degree equivalent, the 5 years of progressive experience must come after you completed the bachelor’s degree or its foreign equivalent.

Does my experience have to be in the same field as my degree?
USCIS generally treats post-degree experience in the same specialty as the degree, for a related endeavor, as qualifying. Experience unrelated to the degree or the endeavor may not count.

How do I prove 5 years of progressive experience for an NIW?
The regulation calls for letters from current or former employers showing at least 5 years of progressive post-baccalaureate experience in the specialty, along with an official academic record of the degree.

What if my proposed endeavor is in an occupation that doesn’t require a degree?
The occupation behind the endeavor must be a profession, meaning it requires at least a bachelor’s degree for entry. If it does not, the advanced degree route may not work, though exceptional ability may be an option.

Talk with us

If you’re weighing an NIW with a bachelor’s degree and work experience, book a free 15-minute intro call with one of our attorneys, or call (512) 588-5909.