If you self-petition an I-140 EB-1A petition, you may designate your planned state of residence in the United States as your principal workplace
A reader asks:
Apply for EB-1A in mainland China, DIY the materials myself, and submit I-140 and I-907 at the same time. Two questions to ask: (1) There are 2 shipping addresses listed on the USCIS website. Based on the choice of work address, it is currently unclear which State I will eventually go to work in when applying in China. Can I choose the most likely one? Or do you have any special requirements? (2) I need my friend in the US to help me write the check to pay the fee. I send the materials to my friend, and then after my friend adds a check, is it okay to send them to the above address? I also have my domestic addresses in my domestic materials.
Arthur Lee Esq answers:
If you self-petition an I-140 EB-1A petition, you may designate your planned state of residence in the United States as your principal workplace. If you are not sure, then you may designate your most likely state of residence in the US. Then check the 2 shipping addresses and pick the one corresponding to your proposed state of residence (which you will also list as your workplace). At the time of your consular interview, it would of course be ideal if your address/worksite is the same as the one proposed on your I-140 petition. But even if it is not, it should not affect your application since EB-1A does not have a worksite location restriction. The consular officer may ensure that you are still planning to do the work that you stated in your I-140, and if need be, amend your worksite in the system.
On your second question, you can have your friend pay your filing fee and send the package with check to the appropriate service center for your worksite. Their domestic address is irrelevant in this case. The determining factor of where the check or payment should be sent is your proposed worksite address.