Professionals

Non-Immigrant Visa Categories  

H-1-B, Specialty Occupation Workers
An alien coming to the U.S. temporarily to perform services in a "specialty occupation" may qualify for an H-1B visa. "Speciality occupations" include all professional occupations whereby theoretical and practical application of knowledge is necessary to perform the job duties. The alien must be coming to the United States on a temporary basis to perform services. However, the position itself may be permanent. H-1B aliens are admitted pursuant to the conditions of the employer's petition which may initially reflect a period of employment up to three years. Thereafter, extensions are permitted and the alien may hold H-1B status for a total of six consecutive years. The processing times to secure an H1-B visa status will depend on several factors such as the location of the job offer and the backlog of the respective government agencies. By example, an H-1B visa petition filed for an employer in the Eastern part of the U.S. will typically take 4-8 weeks to adjudicate. The same application filed by an employer in the West may take 90-120 days to process. The H-1B visa category does have a limit of 65,000 new visa numbers each fiscal year. The new fiscal year begins on October 1, 2000. In 1999, the visa quota was filled by the first week of May. Therefore, no "new" H-1B workers may be hired for the remainder of fiscal year 1999. However, a new petition can be filed for an H-1B worker under the 2000 fiscal year quota (so long as the starting date for employment is October 1, 1999 or thereafter). There is legislation presently pending in Congress which will raise the H-1B visa quota limits. However, this legislatioin is still being debated at the time of this printig. Consequently, it may be prudent for employers to begin the H-1B process for "new" H1-B workers as soon as possible, as the 1999 H-1B is expected to be filled quickly unless Congress passes legislation. It is important to note that the H-1B quota only applies to "new" H-1B workers. It does not apply to a worker who is already working in the U.S. in H-1B status and wishes to change employers or to extend his/her H-1B status with an existing employer.
 

Immigrant Visa Categories
There are a number of immigrant visa categories that may be considered in attempting to process a foreign professional for permanent residence status.
 

Professional or Skilled Worker Category


This category will require the worker to be offered a skilled or professional position that is permanent in nature. A skilled position must require at least two years of experience to perform the job duties, as determined by the U.S. Department of Labor. A professional position must require at least a minimum of a Bachelor's degree in a related field. This category requires the employer to file an Application for alien Labor Certification with the Department of Labor. the "Labor Certification" procedure will require the employer to advertise the position on an effort to demonstrate to the Labor Department that there are no qualified U.S. workers available to fill the position. If the employer can demonstrate the unavailability of U.S. workers, the application will be certified and the case may proceed on for further processing with the Immigration & Naturalization Service (INS).

The processing time of a case filed under this category will vary greatly depending on such factors as the location of the job offer and the employer's history of prior recruitment for the position. By example, a case filed in New York State may take from 2-4 years (or more) while a case filed in Pennsylvania may take from 1-2 years.
 

Executives or Managers of Multinational Organizations


A person who is or has been employed in an Executive or Managerial position by a multinational organization in one out of the past 3 years, may qualify for this category. The individual must be offered a Managerial or Executive position in the U.S. entity which must be a parent, branch subsiduary or affiliate of the foreign company.

This category does not require a Labor Certification and is highly recommende for those who qualify.
 


 
 


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