“That’s cool, Attorney,” said Mr. Arico “Acoy” Matibay, a fictional client of mine from the Philippines. He was sitting in my office along with his long-time sweetheart, Ms. Dinah Sia Maasim, seeking legal advice about their chances of getting a green card in the US.
“So, if we have special talents or skills that are way above what ordinary people have, we can apply for a green card?” interjected Ms. Maasim, who could not mask the excitement on her face.
“Yes,” I replied. “But there are a number of requirements that need to be met in order to qualify for this type of visa. Number one is that exceptional talent or ability should pertain to the arts, sciences, or business. Number two is there should be an employer willing to sponsor the person.”
I explained further that this type of sponsorship was relatively faster because it belonged to the EB-2 immigrant visa category with only a one-to-two-year waiting period for a green card.
Also, the application could bypass the labor certification process and be filed directly with the US Citizenship and Immigration Services if accompanied with proof that the person had international acclaim or recognition in his/her field of specialty, that he/she performed or possessed the special skills within the past year, and that the exceptional ability would be put to use in the US immediately.
“To prove these things,” I continued, “you can submit evidence of awards or prizes, certificates of membership in international associations, published materials about the work or talent, authorship of scientific or scholarly articles, proof of participation as a judge or panel member, etc.”
“In addition,” I went on, “at least three of the following types of documentary evidence must be submitted: an academic record of diploma, award, or certificate, letters showing at least 10 years’ full-time experience in the specialty field, license or certification to practice the profession or occupation, proof of high salary commensurate with the exceptional skill, proof of membership in professional associations, or evidence of special recognition from industry peers or governmental organizations.”
After I finished talking, the couple exchanged excited glances and smiled at each other, their faces beaming with satisfaction. Mr. Matibay spoke first: “Thank you for the explanation, Attorney. I think we can meet most of the requirements.”
“Our special talents have made us somewhat popular in Asia,” added Ms. Maasim, smiling. “We’ve also received awards from the industry, plus we’ve been very active in performing our special skills this past year. We also intend to use our exceptional talent here in the US. In fact, there’s an employer/producer who’s very much willing to put us to work as soon as possible.”
“Not only that,” continued Mr. Matibay, “we’re also members of a professional film group that sometimes act as panel judges for amateur movie contests. We’ve been doing this gig for 15 years now and we’re among the top five percent of high-earners.”
“That’s quite impressive,” I said. “May I ask what is it that you guys both do?”
“We’re acrobatic porn artists, Attorney,” replied Mr. Matibay proudly. “We do triple-X movies and live shows. Our most popular segments are the Torture Chamber and Banana Split. We also do Jose and the Pussycats. Last year, we did a Covid special called Strep Throat. We actually have a demo tape with us, Attorney. It’s called The Magic of Johnson and Larry’s Bird.”
My head started spinning and it took me a while to find the courage to tell them that the US did not consider porn acrobatic talent as a skill of exceptional caliber for EB-2 sponsorship purposes.
Sexceptional ability maybe, but exceptional ability certainly wasn’t.
I advised them to try their luck in Russia instead.