H-1B Visa Applications
H-1B Visa Applications
H-1B Visas
The H-1B visa is one of the most common work visas for organizations that need to hire professional, qualified non-U.S. citizen talent. The employer must also demonstrate that it is providing the prevailing wage for the occupation in the proposed labor market. Companies can employ graduate-level workers in specialty occupations that require a baccalaureate degree or expertise in a specialized field. Any professional-level job that usually requires you to have a bachelor’s degree or higher can come under the H-1B visa for specialty occupations. If you do not have a bachelor’s degree or higher you may be able to show degree equivalence through work experience and/or other qualifications.
- Application Process/Timing: One challenge for employers looking to apply for H-1B visas for their employees is timing since a limited number of visas are available each year. More H-1B petitions are filed than are available therefore an application must be filed online on behalf of the employee in the first three weeks of March. At the end of March or early April, registrations are randomly selected in a lottery, and employers can proceed in preparing and filing H-1B petitions on behalf of individuals whose registrations were selected. The cap is a limit of 65,000 new H-1B visas per fiscal year and an additional 20,000 new H-1B visas per fiscal year for individuals who have graduated with a Master’s Degree or above from U.S university. There a few exemptions to the cap that include:
- Employees offered positions in higher educational institutions such as colleges and universities
- Employees offered positions at nonprofit entities related to or affiliated with institutions of higher learning.
- Employees offered positions at nonprofit research organizations
- Employees offered positions with government research organizations such as state, local, and federal government research entities
H-1B Specific Resources: H-1B