There are many options for individuals that would like to work in the United States temporarily or permanently. The first step is to choose the right visa category for your education, skills and employment. Next, you must make sure that the petition is properly executed with all the correct supporting documents and filed in a timely manner. That’s why individuals from abroad seeking employment in the United States and employers seeking to hire talented individuals from abroad benefit from hiring an experienced Massachusetts and Rhode Island employment visa attorney that can guide them through the process.

Examples Of Temporary Non-Immigrant Employment Visas

These are the most popular types of non-immigrant employment visas that allow you to work in the United States for a fixed period of time:

  • H-1B Visas are intended for professional or academic employees with specialized expertise. You must have at least a bachelor’s degree to qualify and there is a residency cap of three years. Your employer must show that there is a lack of qualified applicants for the position.
  • H-2A and H-2B Visas are issued for a maximum period of one year for seasonal agricultural workers (H-2A) and non-agricultural (H-2B) work.
  • H3 Visas are for individuals that are seeking training in the field of special education that is not available in their home country.
  • I Visas are for members of the press, editors, film crews for all types of foreign media such as radio, print and film. The visa can extend indefinitely as long as the holder continues to be employed by the same media company.
  • L Visas are visas of varying duration intended for executive and managerial employees temporarily transferring within a foreign company that operates in the United States.
  • P Visas are for outstanding artists, athletes and performers for specific events.
  • R Visas are for religious workers that are members of a religion with non-profit status in the United States to work directly for such an organization.
  • NAFTA Visas are for Mexican and Canadian citizens seeking temporary entry for professional business activities under a provision of the North American Free Trade Act (NAFTA.)

Permanent Immigrant Employment Visas

In some cases it’s possible for individuals with certain skills to obtain permanent residency in the United States. There are about 140,000 spots available each year for this program and some types of visas require proof that there are not enough Americans with a similar skill set. This is to show you are not taking a job away from a United States citizen or permanent resident.

  • EB-1 Visas are for business, academic, science, art or athletic professionals with “extraordinary ability.” This visa does not require labor certification of insufficient workers.
  • EB-2 Visas are an option for professionals with an advanced degree and at least ten years of experience in their field. Labor certification is required.
  • EB-3 Visas are for workers with a bachelor’s degree and skilled/unskilled workers with a permanent offer of employment. Labor certification is required.
  • EB-4 Visas are for workers that don’t neatly fall into the other categories such as religious workers, retired international organization employees and non-citizen wards of the court. Labor certification is waived.
  • EB-5 Visas are for the Immigrant Investor Program and are available for people that invest at least 1.8 million dollars in a commercial undertaking with at least ten full-time employees or at least 900,000 dollars in targeted areas.

How To Choose The Right Employment Visa

Most immigrant and non-immigrant visas require an offer of employment, so that’s a good place to start. In addition to offering employment, the business that seeks to hire you must be willing to file for a visa on your behalf. If you have the specialized expertise that’s required in a field where talent is hard to find, an H-1B visa would seem to be a good fit, but it’s hard to know for sure unless you consult with an experienced Massachusetts and Rhode Island employment visa attorney that knows precisely what the government is looking for to meet the stated requirements. The Bothehlo Group offers individuals seeking employment visas and businesses that would like to employ talent from overseas a free consultation to determine which type of visa would be the best choice.