What is I-140 and how long does it take?

I-140 (Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker) is the second step in employment-based Green Card process:

• Filed after PERM approval (for EB-2/EB-3) or directly (for EB-1)
• Establishes your eligibility for Green Card category
• Establishes your priority date (your place in line)
• Processing time: 4-8 months (regular) or 15 days (premium)

After I-140 approval, you wait for priority date to become current before filing I-485.