NONIMMIGRANT (TEMPORARY) VISAS
Visitors, Academics, IT Consultants, Programmers, Scientists, Engineers, Architects, Nurses, Athletes, Performers....
Depending on the kind of work you are seeking or have experience in already, a broad array of options for temporary employment exist, including for skilled workers, investors , business, & others.
Nonimmigrant Visa Categories
Nonimmigrant Visa Categories
Nonimmigrant Visa Categories
- Visa Waiver Program
- B1 - Visitor for Business
- B2 - Visitor for Pleasure
- E1 - Treaty Trader
- E2 - Treaty Investor
- F1 - Academic Students
- G - Representatives of International Organizations
- H1B - Specialty Occupations: To work in a specialty occupation. Requires a higher education degree or its equivalent. Fields include computer science, architecture engineering, health, education, business management, science, math, f inanciance, and more. Includes fashion models of distinguished merit and ability and government-to-government research and development, or co-production projects administered by the Department of Defense.
- H1B1 - Free Trade Agreement Chili or Singapore: No petition required. Requires a post-secondary degree involving at least four years of study in the field of specialization.
- H-1C Professional Nurses: working in a Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA)
- H2A Agricultural Labor: For temporary or seasonal agricultural work. Limited to citizens or nationals of designated countries, with limited exceptions, if determined to be in the United States interest.
Nonimmigrant Visa Categories
Nonimmigrant Visa Categories
- H2B - Other Temporary Labor: For temporary or seasonal non- agricultural work. Limited to citizens or nationals of designated countries, with limited exceptions, if determined to be in the United States interest.
- H3 - Temporary Training Program: To receive training, other than graduate medical or academic, that is not available in the trainee’s home country or practical training programs in the education of children with mental, physical, or emotional disabilities.
- J -Exchange Visitors, Professor or research scholars, Short-term scholars, Bona fide trainees, Interns, College or university students, Secondary school students, Nonacademic specialists; Foreign physicians, International visitors, Government visitors, Au Pairs, Camp counselors, Summer travel/work program.
Nonimmigrant Visa Categories
- L - Intra Company Transferees: L-1 Visas & Blanket L-1 Petitions: To work at a branch, parent, affiliate, or subsidiary of the current employer in a managerial or executive capacity, or in a position requiring specialized knowledge. Individual must have been employed by the same employer abroad continuously for 1 year within the 3 preceding years.
- M - Vocational Student
- O1, O2, O3 - Athletes, Performing Artists; Business, Science, Education
- P1, P2, P3 - Athletes, Artists, Group Entertainers
- Q - International Cultural Exchange Program
- R - Religious Vocation or Profession
- TN - NAFTA Professionals (Architects, Registered Nurses, Occupational Therapists, Accountants, Physicians, Engineers, Economists, Computer Systems Analysts, Scientific Technology, Pharmacists, Management Consultants)
General Requirements, vISA AVAILABILITY, & eMPLOYER'S rOLE
General Requirements
Stay for a Defined Time Period & for a Specific Purpose
Stay for a Defined Time Period & for a Specific Purpose
- The foreign national must be in possession of a valid passport.
- In most instances, a foreign residence must be maintained by the foreign national.
- The foreign national may be required to show proof of financial support.
- The foreign national must be admissible or have obtained a waiver for any ground of inadmissibility.
- The foreign national must abide by the terms and conditions of admission.
Stay for a Defined Time Period & for a Specific Purpose
Stay for a Defined Time Period & for a Specific Purpose
Stay for a Defined Time Period & for a Specific Purpose
A nonimmigrant visa allows a foreign national to enter the United States temporarily for a specific purpose. The purpose must be temporary. The foreign national must show nonimmigrant intent and agree to depart at the end of his/her authorized stay or extension.
A person can only be admitted to one status. Once in the U.S., the nonimmigrant visa holder is restricted to the activity or reason for which his or her visa was issued, unless and until granted either a change of status to a different nonimmigrant visa or an adjustment of status to legal permanent residency.
Limited Visa Availability & Visa Retrogression
When Must an Employer File a Work-Based Petition?
When Must an Employer File a Work-Based Petition?
Some temporary worker categories are limited in total number of petitions which can be approved on a yearly basis.
Visa retrogression occurs when more people apply for a visa in a particular category or country than there are visas available for that month. Retrogression typically occurs toward the end of the fiscal year as visa issuance approaches the annual category, or per-country limitations. KLF assists with visa retrogression strategies.
When Must an Employer File a Work-Based Petition?
When Must an Employer File a Work-Based Petition?
When Must an Employer File a Work-Based Petition?
Before you can apply for a temporary worker visa at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate, an employer must file on your behalf and your petition must be approved.
- Only a few nonimmigrant classifications allow you to obtain permission work in this country without an employer having first filed a petition on your behalf. Such classifications include the nonimmigrant E-1, E-2, E-3 and TN classifications, as well as, in certain instances, the F-1 and M-1 student and J-1 exchange visitor classifications.
Procedural Overview: Obtaining & Maintaining Status
Interplay of Government Agencies
Procedure for Initial Approval Using H-1B as an Example
Procedure for Initial Approval Using H-1B as an Example
The complex interplay of government agencies can seem counterproductive and counterintuitive for obtaining & maintaining status of nonimmigrant workers.
We use the term 'visa' to refer to status as well as for its real meaning, which is a travel document allowing entry. Employers and employees must track the expiration of status date and, if applicable, the expiration of visa date. These may not match.
For example, a person can be granted a five-year visa from the Department of State but be given only a two-year period of stay on the I-94 upon entry through Customs and Border Protection. Before the I-94 expires, the employee must either travel and re-enter on the visa, receiving a new two-year I-94, or file a petition with USCIS to extend his or her stay.
In another case, someone who changes status in the United States from one nonimmigrant category to another will acquire a new status but will not be issued a new visa. A visa, which is technically a travel document that allows entry, requires attention (authorization from the State Department) before vacationing outside the U.S. in the new status.
KLF is here to assist you.
Procedure for Initial Approval Using H-1B as an Example
Procedure for Initial Approval Using H-1B as an Example
Procedure for Initial Approval Using H-1B as an Example
Here is the procedure for an H-1B employee as an example:
- The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) guides the wage and terms a sponsoring employer can offer.
- Next, we submit a petition along with a job offer and the employee's qualifications to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), describing the job offered and the prospective employee’s qualifications.
If the employee is inside the U.S.,:
- If your prospective employee is already in the U.S. in another nonimmigrant status , neither an entry visa nor anther government agency are needed. Once the petition is approved, the USCIS will issue Form I-94 that grants the employee a period of stay in H-1B status. The employee loses his or her prior nonimmigrant status and now has a replacement status.
If the employee is outside the U.S.,:
- If your prospective employee is outside the U.S., we need approval from the Department of State and the Customs and Border Protection (CBP_. The DOS will grant the visa allowing travel and entry into the U.S., and the CBP will issue Form I-94 at the place of entry, admitting the employee for a period of stay in H-1B status.
Procedural for Initial Approval Varies by Category
Procedural for Initial Approval Varies by Category
Procedural for Initial Approval Varies by Category
- The L, O, P, Q, and R nonimmigrant worker categories follow the same basic pattern as H, but without the involvement of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) .
- The L and TN categories are unique because the employer’s petition can be presented directly to CBP, without the prior involvement of USCIS.
- The E visa category requires no prior employer petition for a prospective employee outside the U.S., but the visa application your employee presents to the State Department consulate abroad will be far more substantial than an H or L visa application, which are based on approved USCIS petitions.
Newly Separated I-129 Forms
Procedural for Initial Approval Varies by Category
Procedural for Initial Approval Varies by Category
As of October 2, 2020, Form I-129 is separated into the following forms:
- I-129H1: Petition for H-1B or H-1B1 Nonimmigrant Workers
- I-129H2A & I-129H2B Petitions for H-2A and H-2B Workers
- I-129L Petition for L Nonimmigrant Workers
- I-129O Petition for O Nonimmigrant Worker
- I-129E & TN Application for E & TN Nonimmigrant Workers
- I-129MISC Petition for H-3, P, Q, or R Nonimmigrant Workers
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