Millions of people every year choose to study in the USA. The quality of education provided by schools, colleges, and universities in the USA are among the highest in the world. Foreign students are attracted by high academic excellence, demanded programs and employment prospects.
American universities are leading World University rankings and offering a huge selection of courses. Most universities and colleges in the United States have close ties with large employers. This allows students to do internships during their studies and find employment soon after graduation.
For a foreign/international student, the USA has a lot to offer: the most prestigious education in the world, eclectic cities and beautiful parks, artistic, cultural, political, sporting events.
Age
The age requirement divides groups of people depending on their age and assigns points to them as below.
| Age | Points |
| 0 to 17 | Not allowed to apply |
| 18 to 21 | 6 points |
| 22 to 25 | 8 points |
| 26 to 30 | 10 points |
| 31 to 35 | 8 points |
| 36 to 40 | 6 points |
| 41 to 45 | 4 points |
| 46 to 50 | 2 points |
| 51+ | 0 points |
Education
The education points are distributed based on the highest educational degree which the applicant has, whether it is a foreign or a U.S degree.
| Highest Educational Degree | Points |
| U.S high school diploma or equivalent | 1 point |
| Foreign Bachelor’s Degree | 5 point |
| U.S Bachelor’s Degree | 6 point |
| Foreign Master’s Degree in STEM | 7 point |
| U.S Master’s Degree in STEM | 8 point |
| Foreign Professional Degree or Doctorate Degree in STEM | 10 point |
| U.S Professional Degree or Doctorate Degree in STEM | 13 point |
For those with foreign degrees, the Director of U.S Citizenship and Immigration Services and the Secretary of Education will compile a list of institutions that meet accreditation standards of institutions in the U.S. Only those institutions in the list will be recognized as valid degrees for merit-based immigration.
English Language
The applicant must also prove that they are proficient in English and the better they score on the proficiency tests, the higher their decile ranking. The points are then distributed based on the decile ranking with higher deciles getting more points.
| English Language Rank in Deciles | Points |
| 1st through 5th Deciles | 0 points |
| 6th and 7th Deciles | 6 points |
| 8th Decile | 10 points |
| 9th Decile | 11 points |
| 10th Decile | 12 points |
Extraordinary Achievements
The RAISE Act will also give extra points to those who have an extraordinary achievement. The achievements that fall into this category are only a Nobel Laureate or an Olympic Gold Medal winner. The points awarded are very high and those who have one of these achievements will pass the 30 points threshold much easier than those who do not.
| Achievement | Points |
| Nobel Laureate or comparable recognition in a field of scientific or social scientific study | 25 points |
| Olympic medal or 1st place in an international sporting even in which the majority of the best athletes in an Olympic sport were represented in past 8 years before submitting the application | 15 points |
Job Offer
Those who have a valid job offer from a U.S employer will also get more points. If you do not have a job offer, then you will get 0 points, but if you do then the points depend on the compensation that you are getting. The compensation is based on the U.S median household income of the U.S state where you will be working as determined by the U.S Secretary of Labor.
Job Offer
| Compensation | Points |
| At least 150% of the median household income in the State in which the applicant will be employed and less than 200% of such median household income. | 5 points |
| At least 200% of the median household income in the State in which the applicant will be employed and less than 300% of such median household income. | 8 points |
| At least 300% of the median household income in the State in which the applicant will be employed. | 13 points |
Investment and Management of a New Commercial Enterprise
The amount of investment that will be made in the U.S economy by opening a new commercial enterprise and the time in which the investor/applicant will manage it will also give points towards a merit-based visa.
| Investment | Points |
| Investing the equivalent of $1,350,000 in a new commercial enterprise in the U.S and maintain such investment for at least 3 years. Play an active role in the management of that commercial enterprise as the applicant’s primary occupation. | 6 points |
| Investing the equivalent of $1,800,000 in a new commercial enterprise in the U.S and maintain such investment for at least 3 years. Play an active role in the management of that commercial enterprise as the applicant’s primary occupation. |
If you invest in the U.S economy and get the merit-based visa, the U.S immigration officials will check up on you continuously to ensure that you are maintaining the investment. If you do not maintain the investment or your management role based on the conditions above, then you will lose the merit-based visa.
- They were scheduled to receive an immigrant visa
- They did not receive an immigrant visa during the 1 year period beginning on the date of the approval of the RAISE Act
Summing the Points
You must go through all of the criteria and find out how many points you have in each. Then you can continue to sum all the points and see whether you have 30 or more points. If you have less than 30, then you should not apply because your application will not be reviewed. If you have more than 30 points, then you must follow the application procedures below.
Getting more than 30 points does not guarantee that you will get the Merit-Based Visa for the U.S, but it will only make you eligible for applying.
How to Apply For the Merit-Based Visa?
If the RAISE Act is approved and the U.S starts giving merit-based visas instead of Diversity Visas, then there will be a different application process. The immigration authority will still be the U.S Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), but the procedure will be as follows
Step 1: Submit an online application
If you have gone through the requirements for the merit-based visa and based on the criteria, you have 30 or more points then you are eligible to apply. You will have to submit an online application form to USCIS.
Since the RAISE Act has not been approved yet, the details of what form you will have to submit are still not known. With this online application form, you will also have to attach the documents which prove you qualify for the points. This includes the following:
- Birth certificate or a government-issued document for your age;
- Diplomas and degrees for your education;
- Official test scores for English proficiency;
- Extraordinary achievement proof if applicable;
- Official job offer letter with compensation;
- Documents which prove you will start a commercial enterprise in the U.S and the investment.
In addition, you will also have to pay a $160 application fee for processing. The U.S government maintains the right to change the fees based on inflation. When you submit the application, you will be placed in an applicant pool.
Step 2: USCIS will rank applications
USCIS will then go through the applications to rank them according to the points. Applications that have less than 30 points in the eligibility requirements will not be considered. However, there might be times when there are applicants with equal points and the RAISE Act specifies how to break the ties, as follows:
Educational degrees
If applicants have the same points then the ranking will be made on educational degrees first. The highest rank will be a doctorate degree and after it will be a professional degree, master’s degree, bachelor’s degree, and high school diploma. U.S degrees will also be ranked higher than foreign ones.
So for example, if two applicants have the same points but one has a professional degree and the other a master’s degree, the one with the professional degree will be ranked higher.
English Proficiency
If two applicants have the same points and the same educational degrees, then they will be ranked according to their English proficiency. The person with a higher proficiency will be ranked higher than the one with a lower proficiency.
Age
Two applicants with the same points, same educational degrees and the same English proficiency will then be ranked according to age. The applicant who is closer to their 25th birthday will be ranked higher than a person who might be younger or older.
- An attestation from the prospective employer on the job position, salary, and stating that the position does not displace a U.S worker;
- Proof that the employer will provide health insurance based on the U.S regulations or that you as the applicant will purchase your own health insurance;
- A processing fee of $345.
Step 4: USCIS will process and announce merit-based visa winners
After processing the petitions, USCIS will then announce those who got the merit-based visa and the U.S Embassies in the home countries of the winners will issue them. In the meantime, while USCIS processes the petitions, the applicants will be screened for their criminal background and their medical appointments as per the usual requirements for U.S immigrant visas.
If they pass these checks, then they will get the merit-based visas and can move to the U.S.
Can I Bring my Dependents With a Merit-Based Visa?
As the main applicant, you are allowed to also bring your spouse and minor children to the U.S. The minor child will automatically get the merit-based visa as you, however, your spouse must also be part of the application and is evaluated based on the points system.
If the spouse has the same amount of points as you or more points, then it will not affect the application and if you are approved, the spouse will be allowed to join you too. However, if the spouse has fewer points than you, then you and the spouse will be ranked together with 70% of the points coming from you and 30% from the spouse. So having a spouse in the application with fewer points than you will negatively affect your ranking in the applicant pool.
In addition to the spouse and minor children, an adult child is also allowed to join you. The conditions for the adult child (over 18 years old) are that they must not be able to care for themselves. So if you have an adult child who is dependent on you, then they are allowed to join you with the merit-based visa, but they will not be allowed to work in the U.S.
Can I get a U.S Citizenship With a Merit-Based Visa?
As with all U.S immigrant visas after 5 years of maintaining it, you will be eligible to apply for a U.S citizenship. The same applies to the merit-based visa. You will have to be eligible and fulfill the requirements to become a U.S citizen and if approved, you will get the U.S passport.
If during the time you were on a merit-based visa and received public benefits which your supporter did not reimburse the government for, then you will not be allowed to get a U.S citizenship. Other than that, you must have a clean criminal record and valid documentation.
When Will the Points-Based System be Implemented in the U.S?
The RAISE Act is still a proposed bill which will be analyzed by the U.S government authorities. If approved, it will go into power on the first day of the fiscal year which for the U.S is October 1st of each year. Therefore, the RAISE Act and the points-based visas could start being implemented as soon as October 2018.
If the RAISE Act is approved after October 2018, then it will go into power in October 2019.