The PHDs First Act creates an exemption from numerical limitations for U.S. doctoral degree holders seeking permanent residency based on high-paying, degree-related employment, and allows current doctoral students to pursue green cards without jeopardizing their student visas.
Shri Thanedar
Representative
MI-13
The PHDs First Act of 2025 creates a new pathway for individuals who have earned a doctoral degree in the U.S. to obtain permanent residency by exempting them from annual numerical green card limitations. To qualify, recipients must have a job offer in their field that pays above the local median wage. Furthermore, the bill ensures that current doctoral students are not barred from obtaining or extending their student visas based on their intent to seek permanent residency later.
PHDs First Act Creates Green Card Fast-Track for U.S.-Educated Doctoral Grads
The aptly named Putting Highest Degrees First Act of 2025 (PHDs First Act) is designed to make it much easier for highly educated international students to stay and work in the U.S. after graduation. Essentially, this bill carves out a special, cap-exempt pathway to permanent residency (a green card) for anyone who earns a doctoral degree while physically studying at an accredited U.S. institution. This means these highly skilled individuals would no longer have to wait in the massive, years-long queues currently facing other employment-based green card applicants.
The Golden Ticket Requirements
This isn't a free pass; the bill sets some specific, high-bar requirements to qualify for this fast track. First, you must have earned that U.S. doctoral degree. Second, you must have a job offer from a U.S. employer in a field directly related to your degree. The biggest catch is the pay requirement: the job must pay higher than the median wage for that specific type of job in your local area, as determined by the Secretary of Labor. This provision (Sec. 2) ensures that the talent being retained is both specialized and highly compensated, theoretically reducing concerns about wage depression for U.S. workers while attracting top talent.
Removing the Student Visa Catch-22
One of the most significant, practical changes in this bill addresses a long-standing headache for international Ph.D. students: the “immigrant intent” problem. Under current law, if you’re on a student visa (F-1 status), you can be denied an extension or a visa if it’s determined you intend to stay permanently in the U.S. The PHDs First Act specifically removes this barrier for doctoral students (Sec. 2). Now, a student can openly plan to seek permanent residency after graduation without jeopardizing their student status, allowing them to focus on their studies without hiding their long-term career goals. For a student juggling research, teaching, and immigration paperwork, this is a massive relief.
Who Benefits, and Who Stays in Line?
This bill is a clear win for U.S. employers, particularly those in high-tech, research, and specialized industries who struggle to retain top international graduates. It’s also a huge benefit for the doctoral students themselves, providing a clear path from graduation to permanent employment without the typical immigration uncertainty. However, it’s important to note the ripple effect: while the bill creates a new, separate track for Ph.D. holders, all other employment-based green card applicants—those with master’s degrees, specialized skills, or those sponsored through other categories—will remain subject to the existing numerical caps. In effect, this creates a privileged class of applicants, which could increase the perception of unfairness for those who remain stuck in the backlog.