Employment visa to USA

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Employment visa to USA
Employment visa to USA

Employment visa to USA

There are many foreigners trying to work in the US. H1B visa is a non immigrant visa, but there are five immigrant visas, which allow foreigners to work in the US and also get many immigration benefits through these EB visas. Every fiscal year, 140000 visas are allocated. Those who get higher priority include highly skilled professionals, research professionals, professors and who possesses extraordinary abilities.

A time period, which is used to calculate annual financial statement is called a Fiscal year. For USCIS, it is between October 1 – September 30 which is considered as a Fiscal year. USCIS receives every year huge number of petitions out of which qualified applicants are granted employment based visas, which roughly approximates to 1,40,000. Based on the foreigner’s skills and abilities, the available visas are divided into five preference categories. Depending on these visa categories, immigrant visas and the number of cases filed each year, the time period of processing and approval varies. Once the petition gets approved, the foreigner can bring their spouse and children.

First step in the process of obtaining an Immigrant visa:

Before the petition for the beneficiary is filed, the labor certification is very necessary. The prospective employer must first obtain a labor certification from the United States Department of Labor (DOL). DOL is a department of U.S. federal government, which is responsible for maintaining fair labor standards and assurance of compliance with wage policies. Before filing a work based petition, all employers must comply with DOL regulations and get the labor certification approved.

Below mentioned are the five visas categories, which are employment visas. Therefore, appropriate forms need to be filled out in order to successfully petition for the foreign worker. It is very important indeed that all forms are correctly filled and all supporting documents are properly attached.

  • Employment based first preference visa (EB-1 Visa):

Based on a foreigner job skills and experience, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) categorizes those with extraordinary skills to be filled in the EB-1 visa category. It simply means that a foreigner who has extraordinary abilities in science, arts, business, athletics or research is eligible to apply for this visa. I-140 form is needed to be submitted to petition for EB-1 visa petitioner. Only 40000 visas are reserved per year in this category by the USCIS. Thus, it gets really competitive for those applying under this category. If you want to improve the chances of your petition getting approved, you should submit extensive documentation that may include national and international awards, research or teaching experience and publications. It is always advisable to seek the assistance of an experienced immigration attorney who will compile the required set of documents because sometimes due to lack of documents your petition might get rejected.

  • Employment based second preference visa (EB – 2 Visa):

Experts with experimental abilities and professionals with advanced degree are listed under this category. These beneficiaries must have the DOL labor certification and an I-140 form must be submitted. They must also possess a job offer from a US based company. Minimum requirement to qualify for this category is a Bachelor’s degree or equivalent work experience. A greater work experience along with advanced degree qualification gives a cutting edge to the applicant. Experiential abilities will be considered by the USCIS, especially in the field of science, arts and business. The child and the spouse of the beneficiary of this Visa can accompany the beneficiary, but are not allowed to work in the US. They (the spouse and the children of the beneficiary) are eligible to apply for an Employment authorization document (EAD), which once gets approved allows the spouse and the children of the beneficiary to legally work in the United States. The foreigner can self petition (that is, an employer to sponsor the foreigner is not required), under the national interest waiver program.

Following documents are required for this:

  • Academic Records
  • Minimum 10 years of full time experience
  • Employment Letter
  • License required to practice the present profession
  • The applicant should be a member of recognized professional organizations
  • He should have won International, government or professional related achievement awards.
  • Employment Third Preference Visa (EB-3 Visa):

Persons like skilled worker or holding a bachelor’s degree fall under this category. Minimum 2 years of work experience is required for skilled workers. The nature of the job which is offered is full time only. For this category too, labor certification is required. Like the other categories, the beneficiaries in this category too can bring their spouse and children (under the age of 18) along with them. They are also eligible to apply for EAD like the EB-2 Visa holder. USCIS issue this category visa to 40000 people every financial year.

Out of 140000, 120000 Visas have already been allocated to the above mentioned three categories. Remaining 20000 has been kept reserved for 4th and 5th categories.

  • Employment Fourth Preference Visa (EB-4 Visa):

Persons who belong to special unskilled workers falls under this category. Below is a short list of people who fall under this category:

  • Religious Workers
  • Foreign employees working with US government agency
  • Retired employees belonging to International Organization

Form I-360 is required to with all the supporting documents to apply for this category of Visa.

  • Employment Fifth Preference Visa (EB-5 Visa):

Investors who are willing to invest in the United States falls under this category. USCIS has allocated 10000 visas for this category which will be increased soon. To get an investor visa, an investor must invest a minimum of $500000 if they want to start any business in a rural area or a minimum of $1000000 if they want to start the business in any other area. 10 new full time jobs will also need to be created for U.S. workers to secure the visa under this category.

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