Australians working in the United States on an E3 visa can move from the E3 visa to a green card, but the route runs through the employment-based immigrant categories (usually EB-2 or EB-3) and has to be walked carefully because the E3 is not a dual-intent visa. Most cases follow a three-step sequence: a PERM labor certification filed by the employer, an I-140 immigrant petition, and either an I-485 adjustment of status inside the country or consular processing abroad. Start to finish, expect roughly two and a half to three years when nothing goes wrong.
Which Green Card Category Fits You
The first decision is which employment-based preference category to file under. That choice drives whether you need a labor certification, whether an employer must sponsor you, and how long you wait.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 U.S.C. 1153 – Allocation of Immigrant Visas
EB-2 for Advanced Degrees or Exceptional Ability
EB-2 covers professionals with a master’s degree or higher, a bachelor’s plus five years of progressive experience, or individuals with exceptional ability in the sciences, arts, or business. It’s the most common route for E3 holders because many are already working in roles that meet the requirement. The standard EB-2 path is employer-sponsored and requires a labor certification.
EB-3 for Skilled Workers and Professionals
EB-3 covers skilled workers with at least two years of training or experience and professionals with bachelor’s degrees. The process mirrors EB-2 (employer sponsorship, labor certification, I-140), but EB-3 typically has longer waits because it draws from a larger applicant pool.
National Interest Waiver
The National Interest Waiver sits inside EB-2 but works very differently. You self-petition without an employer and without labor certification. Under Matter of Dhanasar, you must show that your proposed work has substantial merit and national importance, that you’re well positioned to advance it, and that it would benefit the United States to waive the normal job-offer requirement.2U.S. Department of Justice. Matter of Dhanasar, 26 I&N Dec. 884 (AAO 2016) This suits researchers, entrepreneurs, and professionals whose work has impact beyond a single employer.
EB-1 for Extraordinary Ability
EB-1 covers individuals with extraordinary ability, outstanding professors and researchers, and certain multinational executives or managers. None of the subcategories require labor certification, and the extraordinary ability subcategory doesn’t require an employer sponsor.3U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Employment-Based Immigration: First Preference EB-1 The evidentiary bar is high: sustained national or international acclaim documented through awards, publications, high salary, and comparable evidence. Those who qualify skip the longest part of the process.
Family-Based Sponsorship
If you marry a U.S. citizen or have another qualifying family relationship, you can pursue a green card through the family-based system entirely separate from the employment categories. Spouses and unmarried children under 21 of U.S. citizens count as immediate relatives with no numerical limits or waiting periods. Other relationships fall into preference categories with varying backlogs.
The Dual Intent Problem Every E3 Holder Faces
This is the piece that trips people up. The H-1B and L-1 visas have explicit dual intent protections that let holders pursue permanent residency without threatening their temporary status. The E3 has no such protection. Federal regulations require an E visa holder to maintain an intention to depart the United States when status ends.4eCFR. 8 CFR 214.2 – Special Requirements for Admission, Extension, and Maintenance of Status
It’s not an outright bar. The State Department’s Foreign Affairs Manual instructs consular officers that an E applicant who is the beneficiary of an immigrant petition must satisfy the officer that their intent is to depart at the end of authorized stay, not to remain and adjust status.5U.S. Department of State Foreign Affairs Manual. 9 FAM 402.9 Treaty Traders, Investors, and Specialty Occupation Professionals from Australia In practice, filing an I-140 will not automatically doom your E3, but it creates a tension. A consular officer renewing your E3 abroad can question whether your intent is truly temporary when a green card application is pending.
The safest strategy: once the green card process is well underway, stay in the country. File adjustment of status from inside the United States rather than leaving for a consular interview, and hold off on international trips until you have the combo work-and-travel card or the green card itself. Leaving to renew an E3 at a consulate after filing an I-140 carries real risk with officers who take a strict view of nonimmigrant intent.
Stage One: PERM Labor Certification
For employer-sponsored EB-2 and EB-3 cases, everything starts with a PERM labor certification from the Department of Labor. The point of PERM is to confirm that hiring a foreign worker won’t displace qualified American workers.
The employer first requests a prevailing wage determination to set the minimum salary for the position in your geographic area.6eCFR. 20 CFR Part 656 – Labor Certification Process for Permanent Employment of Aliens in the United States Then the employer runs a recruitment campaign through prescribed channels, documenting whether any qualified U.S. workers apply. Only after recruitment does the electronic PERM application go to the Department of Labor.
This stage swallows most of the timeline. Average PERM processing runs around 503 calendar days from filing to decision as of early 2026, roughly 16 to 17 months just for the certification.7U.S. Department of Labor. Processing Times That figure doesn’t include the weeks of prevailing wage and recruitment work beforehand. An audit adds more months.
Stage Two: The I-140 Immigrant Petition
Once PERM is approved, the employer has 180 calendar days to file Form I-140. Miss that window and the labor certification expires, forcing the whole PERM process to restart.8U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. USCIS Policy Manual, Volume 6, Part E, Chapter 6 – Permanent Labor Certification The deadline is absolute.
The I-140 asks USCIS to classify you under the appropriate employment-based category.9U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers The employer files as petitioner and must show ability to pay the offered wage. You provide educational credentials, and foreign degrees generally need a formal equivalency evaluation. For a National Interest Waiver, you file the I-140 yourself and focus on documenting the national significance of your work.
Standard I-140 processing can take many months. Premium processing costs $2,965 as of March 2026 and guarantees a response within 15 business days for EB-2 and EB-3, or 45 business days for NIW petitions.10U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. How Do I Request Premium Processing? A “response” isn’t necessarily an approval — it may be a request for evidence — but it beats waiting in silence.
Stage Three: Adjustment of Status
The final stage is either adjustment of status (Form I-485, filed inside the United States) or consular processing (Form DS-260, at a U.S. consulate abroad). For E3 holders, adjustment of status is almost always the better choice because of the dual intent complications. Leaving the country for a consular interview means re-entering on a nonimmigrant visa or advance parole, which introduces avoidable risk.
If your priority date is current when the I-140 is filed, you can file the I-485 at the same time.11U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Concurrent Filing of Form I-485 Concurrent filing doesn’t mean concurrent adjudication (USCIS still processes the I-140 first), but it puts the I-485 in the queue sooner and unlocks work authorization and travel documents.
Every I-485 applicant must also complete an immigration medical examination with a USCIS-designated civil surgeon and submit the results on Form I-693. Since December 2024, the I-693 must be filed at the same time as the I-485; USCIS will reject an I-485 that arrives without it.12U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. I-693, Report of Immigration Medical Examination and Vaccination Record The exam covers a physical, mental health screening, and required vaccinations.13Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Vaccination Technical Instructions for Civil Surgeons The surgeon returns the form in a sealed envelope that you submit unopened.
Filing fees for the I-485 vary by age and circumstance; check the USCIS fee schedule (Form G-1055) for current amounts.14U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. G-1055, Fee Schedule After filing, expect a biometrics appointment and eventually an interview with an immigration officer. Median processing time for employment-based I-485 applications has been running around six months in fiscal year 2026.15U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Historic Processing Times
Priority Dates and Where Australians Sit in Line
Every employment-based application gets a priority date, which is your place in line. For cases requiring labor certification, it’s the date the Department of Labor receives the PERM application. For categories without labor certification (EB-1, NIW), it’s the date USCIS receives the I-140.
Australians fall under “all chargeability areas except those listed” in the monthly Visa Bulletin, not the severely backlogged India or China queues. As of mid-2026, EB-2 is current for this category, meaning no wait once the petition is approved. EB-3 has a final action date of June 2024, roughly a two-year backlog, though the filing date is current.16U.S. Department of State. Visa Bulletin for June 2026 These dates move each month and can retrogress. Compared with Indian applicants, who may wait a decade or more, the Australian wait is short — but the difference between EB-2 and EB-3 still matters.
Working and Traveling While the Case Is Pending
The gap between filing the I-485 and receiving the green card is where E3 holders are most exposed.
Work Authorization
You can file Form I-765 for an Employment Authorization Document while the I-485 is pending.17U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. I-765, Application for Employment Authorization The EAD lets you work for any employer. Many E3 holders keep working on their E3 and treat the EAD as backup. A caution: some practitioners consider your E3 status effectively abandoned once you actually use the EAD to work. Keep that in mind if you might need to renew the E3 later.
Travel
Leaving the United States with a pending I-485 and no advance parole document will cause your adjustment application to be denied.18U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Travel Documents You need advance parole before any international travel, filed on Form I-131. When you file Forms I-765 and I-131 alongside the I-485, USCIS issues a combo card that serves as both EAD and advance parole document.19U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. USCIS to Issue Employment Authorization and Advance Parole Card for Adjustment of Status Applicants Even with advance parole, re-entry isn’t guaranteed; a CBP officer at the port of entry makes the call.
Changing Employers Midstream
You’re not locked to your sponsoring employer for the whole process. Under the American Competitiveness in the Twenty-First Century Act, once your I-485 has been pending for 180 days or more and your I-140 is approved, you can port to a new job in the same or a similar occupational classification without restarting.20U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. USCIS Policy Manual, Volume 7, Part E, Chapter 5 – Job Portability After Adjustment Filing You notify USCIS with Supplement J to Form I-485. The new role has to be in a similar field, so software engineering to software engineering is fine; software engineering to restaurant management isn’t.
How Long the Whole Thing Takes
For a typical employer-sponsored EB-2 case in 2026:
- Prevailing wage determination: roughly 2 to 6 months
- Recruitment and PERM preparation: 2 to 3 months
- PERM processing: roughly 16 to 17 months at current speeds
- I-140: 15 business days with premium processing, many months without
- I-485: median around 6 months for employment-based cases
Add it up and you’re looking at roughly two and a half to three years for EB-2, assuming no audits or requests for evidence. EB-3 can run longer when the priority date isn’t current. National Interest Waiver and EB-1 cases skip PERM entirely, which can cut a year or more off the timeline, though both carry higher evidentiary standards that require more preparation upfront. The E3’s unlimited two-year renewals at least give you a stable platform to wait on while the case moves.