IF YOU HAVE A BACHELOR’S DEGREE AND AN EMPLOYER IN THE US. WILLING TO SPONSOR YOU FOR H1B
CALL OUR OFFICE AT (213)534-1827 FOR A FIRST FREE CONSULTATION REGARDING H1B VISA!
H-1B visas for professionals and H2B work visas
The H-1B non-immigrant visa is for workers who are employed in a “specialty occupation” by a U.S. employer. Eligible applicants need to have a Bachelor’s Degree or professional experience, which is equivalent to a degree. Examples of “specialty occupations“ are accountants, engineers, doctors, scientists, architects, teachers, professors, management consultants, market research analysts, physical therapists, and fashion models with “distinguished merit and ability.” The visa is issued initially for up to three years and may be extended for up to six years.
H-2 category is divided between temporary workers performing “agricultural labor or services of temporary or seasonal nature, and temporary workers performing “other temporary service or labor. To qualify for H-2: applicant must be coming temporarily to U.S.; applicant must be performing temporary services/labor; and employer must demonstrate that no U.S. workers capable of performing such services/labor are available in U.S.
R 1 visa for religious workers
L-1 work visas :
The L-1 intra company transferee non-immigrant visa is for managers, executives (L1-A) and persons with “specialized knowledge” (L1-B), who are being transferred by a foreign company to a U.S. branch, subsidiary, or affiliate office.
L-1 Classification, permits employment in the United States for a period of three (3) years (only one year for new U.S. company) and can be extended for up to seven years (L-1A) or five years (L1-B). L-1 classification is a quick way to obtain permanent residency as a priority worker, without the labor certification process
H3 visas for trainees
The H-3 trainee non-immigrant visa is for individuals who participate in an established training program offered in the U.S. The visa is suitable for people who do not have a Bachelor’s Degree.
WHAT IS H1B WORK VISA?
The H-1B non-immigrant work visa may be issued to H1B applicants seeking temporary work in a “specialty occupation” which requires the skills of a professional with the Bachelor’s Degree and sufficient combination of skills, education and experience to meet the H-1B requirements for a professional”specialty” occupation.
This office prepares H1B petitions for H1B applicants who are currently in the U.S. on a valid non-immigrant visa and for H1B applicants abroad.
WHO CAN FILE FOR H1B VISA?
To get H1B visa the combination of your education, skills and experience must meet the “specialty occupation” standard. H1B petitions filed by accountants, marketing managers, financial managers, lab technologists, computer analysts, programmers, database administrators, web designers, social workers, medical technologists, dietitians, economists, mechanical engineers, librarians, financial analysts, scientists, pharmacists , architects, lawyers, physicians, teachers in elementary or secondary schools, colleges or seminaries and other similarly situated H1B applicants usually get approved. The petitions are submitted by employers based on their need for the foreign employee. The H1-B applicant should possess a bachelor’s degree in arts or sciences or requisite experience to make up for the lack of requisite education.
The H-1B visas must be filed by U.S. employers and not foreign companies. The employer must show that the position requires a professional in a specialty occupation and that the potential employee has the required Qualifications.
Definition of a specialty occupation is an occupation that requires a theoretical and practical application of a body of highly specialized knowledge, and the attainment of a bachelor’s or higher degree in the specific specialty or its equivalent as a minimum for entry into the occupation. Very often the U.S. state where the job is offered will require a license to practice your particular occupation and if you don’t have such a license, your H1B petition may be denied.
Only foreign workers with higher education/bachelor degree or its equivalent may apply H1B visas, thus housekeepers, babysitters, bodyshop workers, cashiers, sales clerks and other low skilled workers can not successfully file for H1B visa. The proper visa for low skill workers without bachelor degrees is H2B visa or labor certification to get permanent residency in the U.S.
WHAT EDUCATION DO I NEED TO FILE FOR H1B visa?
After establishing that a particular position qualifies as a specialty occupation, the employer must show that the foreign worker meets the requirements for a specialty professional occupation.
The person must hold a U.S. bachelor’s or higher degree from an accredited college or university and the degree must be required to qualify in the specialty occupation.
If the person holds a foreign degree, then through credentials evaluation done by accredited credential evaluation services, the degree must be determined to be the educational equivalent of a U.S. bachelor’s degree. In some cases, an H1B applicant may obtain an educational equivalence through a combination of education, specialized training or substantial work experience. Three years of specialized experience is normally considered equivalent to one year of college education (and Bachelor’s degree usually requires four years of education in the U.S. system).
WHAT ARE THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND USCIS REQUIREMENTS FOR H1B VISA ?
To get an H-1B visa, there must be a job offer from the U.S. employer who is willing to sponsor an H1B applicant by filing an H1B petition with the United States Citizenship & Immigration Service (USCIS).
An H1B employer seeking the services of an H-1B worker can be a person, firm, corporation, contractor or other association or organization in the United States with an IRS tax identification number. There must be an employer-employee relationship, where the employer may hire, fire, pay, supervise or otherwise control the work of the employee- thus independent contractor arrangement would most likely not qualify to get H1B visa.
Once a prospective H1B employee has done his/her credentials evaluation that shows he/she is a “professional” for H1B purposes and once the H1B employer is ready, willing and able to sponsor the H1B worker the Employer’s lawyer needs to file all the appropriate forms with the Department of Labor and Immigration Service. Each H1B petition may only include one worker.
WHAT H1B PAPERS SHOULD H1B EMPLOYER FILE WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR TO GET H1B VISA APPROVED?
Prior to filing the H-1B petition with the USCIS, an employer must file a labor condition application (“LCA”) with the Department of Labor. H1B Employers must sign the LCA where they certify that wage offered to the H1B applicant is at least as high as that paid by the employer for the same type of job, and the number equals or exceeds the prevailing wage for the job in the same geographical area; that working conditions will not adversely affect those workers similarly employed; that there is no strike or lockout at the employer’s premises; and that the notice of the LCA has been given to current employees. The LCA must be filed where the work will actually be performed.
An H-1B certification is valid for the period of employment indicated on the Labor Condition Application (LCA), for three years.
WHAT H1B PAPERS SHOULD EMPLOYER FILE WITH THE IMMIGRATION SERVICE?
After the LCA is approved, the H1B employer should file H1B application directly with the Immigration Service. Your H1B immigration attorney should prepare all the necessary H1B forms and file them with the Immigration service.
WHEN SHOULD H1B VISA APPLICATION BE FILED?
H1B visa application should be filed between April 1 and October 1 of the current calendar year. The USCIS issues only about 66,000 H1B visas per year and those H1B applicants who file during the month of April and May have the highest chance of getting approved, since the limited quota for H1B visas runs out very quickly. Its important to file H1B visa as soon as possible during April or May. Call our office at (213)534-1827 so we could schedule a first free consultation regarding the processing of your H1B application as soon as possible to file your H1B application before the H1B quota is exhausted.
WHEN CAN I START WORKING FOR MY H1B EMPLOYER?
The employer should may not allow the H1B worker to begin work until USCIS grants the worker permit to work in the U.S. for that employer or, in the case of a H1B applicant who is already in H-1B status and is changing employers, to another H-1B employer until the new employer files a petition supported by a certified LCA. The employer should keep all H1B paperwork to meet its burden of proof to show all the H1B information provided in the H1B application is true and correct. This H1B paperwork should be kept at employer’s principal place of business so that when Immigration service will send H1B employer “request for evidence” , H1B employer would be able to timely and fully submit all the H1B papers to the Immigration Service to avoid denial of the H1B case.
USCIS will approve the H1B petition and send an approval notice if all conditions for an H-1B worker are met.
WHAT HAPPENS IF MY H1B VISA APPLICATION IS DENIED?
If H1B petition is denied the denial of the Petition may be appealed to the Administrative Appeals board. An H1B applicant or H1B employer should consult with an immigration attorney if they receive the denial notice so that the immigration attorney would file an H1B appeal within 30 days of the denial date pursuant to H1B appeal instructions. Feel free to call our office at (213)534-1827 for first free consultation regarding the appeal of your H1B visa denial.