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Frequently
Asked Questions Regarding Immigration Law Of United States
What if I remain
in the U.S. illegally?
If you remain illegally for more than six months, you will
be barred from the U.S. for three years. If you stay
illegally for more than a year, you will be barred for 10
years. What's the
easiest way to get a work visa?
If you have a college degree or higher and have been
offered a job with a U.S. company that will sponsor you,
you can obtain an H-1B visa. It usually takes around 30
days to get an H-1B visa, which is valid for one 1-3 years
and renewable. Because it's valid only for work with your
sponsor, you'll have to obtain a new H-1B visa to change
jobs.
What is the
difference between a nonimmigrant visa and an immigrant
visa?
A. Nonimmigrant visas: Foreign nationals can enter the US
temporarily as tourists (B-2), business visitors (B-1),
students (F-1, M-1), workers (H-1B, L-1, etc.) or for a
variety of other reasons. These temporary visas are known
as nonimmigrant visas and are issued at US embassies and
consulates abroad. Officers at the US embassy or consulate
abroad must be convinced that the visa applicant will not
remain in the US after expiration of the authorized stay.
The visa applicant must demonstrate that he/she intends to
depart the US within the prescribed period of time. While
some nonimmigrant visa categories are subject to annual
quotas (i.e. H-1B), most are unrestricted in number.
Nonimmigrant visas can usually be obtained rather quickly.
Visas may be valid for one or more entries into the US.
However, a visa does not guarantee entry into the US. The
immigration officer at the US port of entry makes the
final determination.
B. Immigrant visas
(aka Green cards) grant the holder the right to reside and
work in the US permanently. Holders of these visas are
referred to as lawful permanent residents. They are
obtained either in the US or abroad at a US Embassy or
Consulate. Green cards are available mostly to those
individuals who have immediate family members in the US or
job skills needed by a US employer. Additionally, a number
of green cards each year are granted to investors,
refugees, highly educated individuals and DV Lottery
winners. The number of green cards issued each year is
subject to an annual quota on each category. The speed
with which one obtains a green card depends upon the
category in which one qualifies.
What is a labor
certification?
The first step in obtaining permanent resident status
through employment is to show the U.S. Department of Labor
that there are no qualified American workers available to
take the specific job that has been offered. Applicants
apply for green cards under preference categories and are
subject to country-by-country quotas. The date on which
the employer files the labor certification papers is
called the priority date. The priority date marks the
legally recognized moment when the waiting period for a
green card starts to elapse. The employer files the forms,
and the local Department of Labor office sends back
instructions on how to advertise for the job. If no
qualified applicants arise, the labor certification will
be approved and the second step can begin. In some states,
the labor certification process can take several years. The following are
the preference categories for employment-based
immigration:
First Preference: Priority workers. They require no
labor certification.
Second Preference: Members of the professions holding
an advanced degree or exceptional ability; if their work
falls under the "national interest" requirement,
then the labor certification and job offer requirement can
be waived;
Third Preference: Skilled workers or those capable of
performing work requiring at least two years experience or
training for which qualified workers are not available in
the United States, professionals with baccalaureate
degrees but not advanced degrees and other workers such as
unskilled laborers not of a temporary or seasonal nature.
What are the
different categories for temporary work visas?
H-1B Specialty Occupations H-1B visas are the most
common route to work in the United States for most
professional foreign workers. To obtain an H-1B visa you
need a job offer from a U.S. employer, where the position
requires a minimum four-year baccalaureate degree, and the
applicant has the relevant education and/or work
experience to fulfill the requirement. Additionally, the
employer must pay the prevailing wage in that specific
area for that specific position. Specialty occupations in
this category are: information technology professionals,
physicians who graduated from U.S. medical schools and
passed parts 1 and 2 of the USMLE, physicians who
graduated from foreign medical schools and passed all
three parts of the USMLE, registered nurses with state RN
licenses, journalists, accountants, researchers and
scientists.
Exchange
visitors (J-1): The Department of State (formerly USIA)
grants numerous educational institutions and organizations
the right to sponsor persons as exchange visitors on the
J-1 visa program. J-1 visa holders are restricted to
working, studying or participating in the specific
exchange programs for which the visa has been approved.
Persons with skills listed on the USIA's exchange visitors
skills list, or graduate medical training requires that
the J-1 visa holder comply with a two year foreign
residency requirement (INA sec. 212(e)) after the
expiration of his/her stay.
Treaty Traders
(E-1) and Treaty Investors (E-2): Owners and key
employees of businesses that conduct a substantial volume
of trade between the United States and the home country
are treaty traders (E-1) and a treaty investor (E-2) has
invested in the United States and jobs created for U.S.
workers. To qualify for an E-2, the home country must have
a treaty with the United States.
Intracompany
Transferees (L-1): One qualifies for an L-1 visa if
you have been employed outside the United States as a
manager, executive (L-1A) or person with specialized
knowledge (L-1B) for at least one of the last three years,
and you are transferred to the United States to be
employed in a similar position. The U.S. company to which
you are transferring must be a branch, subsidiary,
affiliate or joint venture partner of the non-U.S.
company. The non-U.S. company must remain in operation
while you have the L-1 visa. Said company may be either a
foreign division of an American-based company or it may
have originated outside the United States. Any form of
business is adequate, including but not limited to
corporations, LLCs, LLPs, partnerships, joint ventures and
sole proprietorships. There are no quota limits on L-1
visas.
Religious
Workers (R-1): To qualify for an R-1 visa, you must be
a member of a religious denomination for at least 2 years
and have a job offer in the United States to work for an
affiliate of that same religious denomination. R-1 visas
are for either clergy or lay religious workers. Successful
applicants need not have worked for the religious
organization but must have been members of it for at least
two years.
Other temporary
work visa categories include: temporary trainees (H-3),
persons of extraordinary ability in the arts, sciences,
education, business or sports (O-1/2) and athletes and
entertainers (P).
How can you
obtain a green card without going through the labor
certification process?
If you qualify for (EB-1) status, you may not need to go
through the labor certification process.
EB-1
subcategories are:
a. persons of extraordinary ability in the
sciences, arts, education, business or athletics as
demonstrated by national or international acclaim. The
individual should continue the work in the field and the
entry should substantially benefit the United States.
b. outstanding professors and researchers. This
requires that the individual be internationally recognized
in an academic area and possess at least three years of
academic research or teaching experience and have a tenure
or tenure track position at a university or an institute
of higher education.
c. multinational executive or manager. This requires
that the individual be employed abroad in that capacity
during at least one of the three years preceding the
application for admission to the United States as a
priority worker. He/she must enter the United States to be
employed as an executive or manager for the same firm,
corporation or legal entity or a subsidiary or affiliate
of the entity that employed him/her abroad. Most L-1A visa
holders qualify for this category after one year of work
in the United States.
What is the
green card lottery?
The diversity visa lottery (DV) is more commonly known as
the green card lottery. The Immigration Act of 1990
created a new green card category to benefit people from
countries that have low immigration to the United States.
The goal of the program is to diversify the pool of
immigrants entering the United States. The DV program
grants 55,000 immigrant visas each year by random drawing.
The visas are divided among geographic regions. A greater
number of visas will go to those regions that have lower
immigration rates and no visas may be issued to countries
that have sent more than 50,000 immigrants to the United
States during the previous five years. DV applicants must
have a high school education or its equivalent, or within
five years have two years of work experience in an
occupation that requires at least two years of training or
experience. The DV registration period is usually between
early October and early November of each year and
successful registrants are usually notified between April
and July of each year. Registrations submitted one year
are not held over until the next year. |
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