Non-Immigrant Visa Options for the United States of America

Foreign nationals coming to the U.S. need a non-immigrant visa, unless they are eligible for the Visa Waiver program which allows for business or tourist visits of up to 90 days. If non-U.S. citizens wish to live in the U.S. permanently, a "green card" or permanent resident status is required.

The "green card" offers the ability to live, work or conduct business anywhere in the U.S. An application for permanent residence often involves complex procedures which can take years to complete. Most applicants obtain permanent resident or "green card" status through either family or job sponsorship. Since there are long waiting lines for most categories, temporary, non-immigrant visas are often required to visit, study, work or invest in the U.S. Many of these visas provide relatively quick immigration status and can allow employment authorization.

H-1B Specialty Occupation Visa for Professional Workers

The basic requirement for a H-1B visa is a Bachelor's degree or its equivalent, and a job offer which requires the degree. The visa petition is filed by the U.S. employer and the work authorization is specific to the job.

It is necessary to obtain an approved labor condition attestation from the Department of Labor prior to filing the petition with the Immigration Service. This is required to ensure that the wages and working conditions do not undermine those for U.S. workers. The H-1B visa can usually be processed in a period of approximately two months. Approval may be granted for up to three years and the visa can be extended for a total of up to six years. Spouses and minor children are eligible for H-4 dependent status which does not allow employment authorization.

L-1 Intracompany Transferee Visa

The L-1 intracompany transferee visa is particularly useful for managers, executives and persons holding specialized knowledge who own or are employed by a business abroad. If the company has a U.S. branch office or affiliate, it is possible to obtain an L-1 intracompany transferee visa. The maximum period of admission for managers and executives is seven years, with a five-year limit for the specialized knowledge category.

If the U.S. branch office is new, the L-1 is only approved for one year. Extensions are not routine and usually require proof of employees and substantial business activity. Large sales revenue as well as several layers of employees are key to the extension. If the extension is obtained, and the overseas company continues to operate, it is usually possible to apply for permanent resident status as a first preference multinational manager. This can usually be accomplished relatively quickly.

E-1 Treaty Trader / E-2 Treaty Investor Visa

Nationals of many countries are eligible to obtain Treaty Trader or Treaty Investor visas. The E-1 Treaty Trader visa requires that at least 51% of the company's trade be between the treaty country and the U.S. The E-2 Treaty Investor visa requires a substantial investment in a U.S. business which must be controlled by treaty nationals. No fixed amount is required and "substantial" varies depending on the nature of the business. E visas may also be issued to managers, executives and essential employees of the same nationality who work for the U.S. branch office. The visas may, depending on each treaty, be granted for an initial period of up to five years. However, the person's stay is authorized by the Immigration Service in one-year increments granted upon each entry to the United States. The easiest way to extend E status while the visa is valid, is to travel abroad and re-enter. This can only be done during the validity of the visa. The E visa can be extended indefinitely as long as there is a need for the investor to direct and control the U.S. enterprise. Essential employee E's are expected to be replaced by U.S. trained personnel.

TN Treaty NAFTA Visas

Many Canadian and Mexican citizens are eligible to obtain quick one-year professional work visas which can be renewed annually. NAFTA provides for work visas for qualified Canadian and Mexican professionals, as well as an expeditious basis to process intracompany transferee visas. Spouses and minor children may not work with the treaty dependent (T.D.) visas.

J-1 Trainee Visa

The J-1 Exchange Visitor Program is aimed at promoting cultural exchange. This visa may be an option for students, researchers, specialists, visiting faculty, medical and industrial trainees. The J visa may also permit employment. The industrial trainee sub-category is suitable to many individuals who do not have university degrees and receive an offer for training. This visa may be granted for an 18-month period and has exemptions from certain taxes. Another advantage is that spouses may also obtain discretionary employment authorization.

B-1 Visitor for Business / B-2 Visitor for Pleasure

The most common visa categories are the B-1 Visitor for Business and the B-2 Visitor for Pleasure. Depending on each country's reciprocity schedule, these visas may be granted for up to ten years. While the visa may be valid for up to ten years, periods of admission to the U.S. are normally authorized for only six months. Extensions may be granted for an additional six month period. Persons holding visitor visas must be careful not to confuse the validity of the visa with the authorized period of stay. Recent legislation will now automatically invalidate the visa if the visitor overstays for even one day. B-1 business visitors are usually admitted only for the period required to conduct their business. Visitors are generally prohibited from working in the United States.

Visa Waiver Program

The visa waiver program permits business or pleasure visits to the U.S. for three months without having to apply for a visa. This option is now available to many countries.

The program's restrictions often create difficulty as persons who enter on the visa waiver may not apply for an extension of stay, nor can they have their status converted to other work categories. Persons wishing to have to their status changed must leave the U.S. and obtain a new visa abroad.

F-1 Student (or M-1 Vocational Student) Visa

The F-1 Student or M-1 Vocational Student visa is useful to become acquainted with American culture and take advantage of the many fine educational institutions in the U.S. Students may be eligible to apply for up to one year of employment authorization for the purpose of gaining practical training. Many graduating students may apply to convert to H-1B specialty occupation visas if they receive an offer of employment. F-2 spouses are not eligible for employment authorization.

Recent changes in the law prohibit F-1 nonimmigrant student status for persons who seek to attend public school unless the period of stay does not exceed one year and the student reimburses the school. Severe restrictions apply to persons who violate F-1 status by attending a private school and then transferring to a public school. They can be barred from the U.S. for five years.

H-1A Nurses

Nurses were last able to extend their visas until September 30, 1997, but cannot change jobs; because of the inability to finalize the professional visa examination, visas for nurses are limited.

H-3 Trainee Visa

The H-3 trainee visa is available for up to two years. An established training program is required. There are requirements to qualify for the trainee visa such as a limitation on productive employment which must be incidental to the training. Trainees are also restricted from later changing to H-1B specialty occupation status without returning home for six months.

O Visas for Persons of Extraordinary Ability in Arts, Business, Education, Science or Athletics and P Visas for Group Entertainers and Athletes

The O and P visas are primarily for individuals in the entertainment industry and athletics. The O visa category is very broad and includes persons of extraordinary ability in the arts, business, education, science or athletics, certain accompanying employees, and their family members. The law requires consultations with the relevant U.S. labor unions, peer and management organizations. These groups must provide advisory opinions as to whether the applicant shows "extraordinary ability" or "extraordinary achievement" in the field, and whether the position requires such high qualifications. The O visa may be granted to up to three years, depending on the period of the event, but may be extended indefinitely. The eligibility criteria for businessmen, educators, scientists and athletes are high, but they are less rigorous for persons in the arts, as well as in the motion picture or television industries.

The P Visa is for entertainers who perform as a group and athletes. It also requires consultation with unions regarding the nature of the work and the artists' qualifications. The eligibility standards for P-1 classification give preference to established groups. Admission of P applicants is limited to the period of the event.

P-3 Culturally Unique Performances

The P-3 visa is useful for performing artists who have not achieved international acclaim, but are culturally unique. They also require union and peer group advisories and may be approved for up to one year. The visa can be extended annually.

Q Cultural Exchange Visa

Individuals coming to participate in a cultural exchange who are over the age of eighteen may obtain a fifteen-month cultural exchange visa. This is non-extendable. No dependent visas are available under this category.

R-1 Religious Worker Visa

The R-1 religious worker category has lenient standards for persons affiliated with Internal Revenue Service-recognized tax-exempt religious organizations and allows them to obtain work visas. The initial period of admission on an R visa is three years, but this visa may be extended.

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