USA Work Visa Types - All You Need To Know About Working In USA

From last few days I am getting lot of queries from readers on working in USA or job opportunities in USA. While most of the readers come from varied educational backgrounds, most of them have some common questions like:

How do I get to work in the USA/ United States Of America?

What do I need to do to get a job in USA?

What kind of visas are required to work in USA? and how can I get it?

Answers to all of these questions are actually available on the Department of Homeland Security USCIS website https://www.uscis.gov/  However, looking at the number of queries & curiosity I thought to publish all the relevant information I could gather in this blog post. Here it goes:

Working in the USA can be better understood if divided into three high level categories:
1. Temporary workers
2. Students who apply for employment when they are eligible
3. Permanent Workers

Now let us understand each of these categories in detail.

Temporary workers:

This is a category for Nonimmigrant workers to work temporarily in the USA. In order to apply you need a employer who can file a nonimmigrant petition on your behalf with USCIS.

The most popular/ widely used Nonimmigrant Classification for a Temporary Worker or in simple language the most popular/ widely used type of visas as mentioned on the USCIS website are:

H-1B Workers in a specialty occupation and the following sub-classifications:
H-1B1 - Free Trade Agreement workers in a specialty occupation from Chile and Singapore.
H-1B2 - Specialty occupations related to Department of Defense Cooperative Research and Development projects or Co-production projects.
H-1B3 - Fashion models of distinguished merit and ability.

L-1A Intracompany transferees in managerial or executive positions.
L-1BIntracompany transferees in positions utilizing specialized knowledge.

Source of this information is the USCIS website, please refer Temporary Nonimmigrant Workers for latest information/ updates.

Students who apply for employment when they are eligible

For full time students, there are two visa categories F and M. There are certain eligibility criterias for applying student visa in either F1 or M1 category. In their first academic year students with F1 visa may accept on campus employment subject to certain conditions and restrictions, however off campus employment is not allowed. After the first academic year, students on F-1 visa may engage in three types of off-campus employment. These are as given below:

• Curricular Practical Training (CPT)

• Optional Practical Training (OPT) (pre-completion or post-completion)

• Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Optional Practical Training Extension (OPT)

Students on  M-1 visa may engage in practical training only after they have completed their studies.

Source of this information is USCIS website, please refer Students and Employment Page on USCIS Website for more details/ latest updates.

Permanent Workers

There are five different visa categories for immigrants. Some of these categories require your employer to obtain an approved labor certification from the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). Details are mentioned on the USCIS website are given below:

Source of this information is USCIS website, please refer Permanent Workers Page on USCIS Website for more details/ latest updates.

I hope you find this information helpful. If you are more than 18 years old you would also like to read this post How Much Money Would One Save In USA? and How To Get A Green Card?

Other blog posts of interest:

USA Visa Basics L1A L1B and H1B
How To Go Onsite?
Most Valuable Skill For Your Life
21 Important Things To Know If You are Traveling To USA For The First Time
How To Hunt For Job After Career Break
5 Secrets of Salary Negotiations

H-1B Cap Reached For 2017 - Lottery To Decide Fate

The H-1B petition/ application period was open from April 1 2016 to April 7 2016. USCIS, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services mentioned in a official press release that they have received more that the limited quota of applications to reach the H-1B Cap(65000 visas) for the year 2017. This means that a computer generated process will be used to randomly select the visa/ petition applications, this is commonly known as H-1B lottery. General category has cap of 65000 visas and  advanced degree exemption has a cap of 20,000. Since the number of applications is huge the USCIS has not yet announced the date of the lottery.

You can read the complete press release here:  News Releases USCIS Reaches FY2017 H-1B Cap 

You can check your case status online here: Check Your Case Status Online, you need the receipt number which is a 13 character unique identifier that USCIS provides for each application. The receipt number consists of three letters-for example, EAC, WAC, LIN, SRC, NBC, MSC or IOE-and 10 numbers. You can also sign up for receiving automatic updates on your case.

If you are one of the applicants you need to wait for the results to unfold, it may take a while so be patient.

L1B Visa Interview Experience

L1 Visa Experience/ L1B Visa Interview Experience/ Guidance

Thank You Nitesh Vanwari for sharing.

Before appearing for L1b visa interview it is extremely important for the L1b visa aspirants to get some real feedback on the L1b visa experience of candidates who have appeared in the L1b visa interviews in the recent past. Especially understanding the L1b visa interview questions will help them a lot for interview preparation.

Session 1: Biometrics Appointment.
• Fingerprint scan, retina scan and photo session.
• Less than 30 mins session.
• The authorities just verify the below mentioned documents under do’s.
• They ask general questions like name, place of residing, type of visa applied for, etc. while taking the fingerprints and photo.

Do’s: 
1. Carry your DS-160 confirmation along with Appointment confirmation and valid passport.
2. Reach the venue 30 mins prior to your appointment.
3. Be in a proper attire as the same photo will be on the passport once visa is approved.
4. For Males: Be clean shaved, a good formal attire. Attire goes similar for females and avoid heavy make ups.

Don’ts:
1. Do not carry any metal objects, phones, laptops as they don’t allow them inside the embassy and time goes in depositing them at lockers.
2. Do not wear finger rings or have any bruises/cuts on fingers as it creates problem in finger prints.

Session 2: Interview Appointment.
• Main session of the L1B visa.
• Many security checks and heavy queue.
• Includes all the verifications of the required documents and the things not to be carried inside the Consulate office.

Do’s/ Don’ts:
1. Reach the venue 45 mins prior to your appointment.
2. Keep all the documents in a white transparent folder and drop in the tray before proceeding for metal detection.
3. Do not wear any leather belts, wallets as they again leads to more manual checkup after the metal detections.
4. Good facility of lockers just outside the Consulate office for mobile, wallets, etc.
5. After going through first check keep the below documents handy for pre-consulate verification :
I. 3 copies of I-129S.
II. Appointment letter confirmation.
III. Demand Drafts handed by the company.
6. After entering the main building of the consulate the queue starts.
7. Our DD’s are taken and receipt for the payment is handed over to us.
8. Second queue is for more general questions like type of visa and right hand finger prints.
9. Third queue is for marking the passport after checking the fees receipt.
10. Final Queue for the main interview.
11. Do not get depressed or confused for whatever you have prepared for.
12. The Interviewer is very cool and calm person asking the questions.
13. Be totally confident and firm on the answers you give in first instance.
14. Do not change answers too quickly.
15. Think for a moment calmly and then give a final answer.

Questions asked during Interview

1.) What is your name?
Answer: My name is "Name Provided"
2.) Which company do you work for?
Answer:I work for Company Name
3.) What does your company do?
Answer: It is a MNC IT company which supports many technologies and have a good development of their proprietary tools.
4.) What is the employee count of your company?
Answer: Approx. 10000.
4.) What is your specialization?
Answer: We have a proprietary tool known as XYZ which is suite of multiple tools that we have implemented to develop the most enhanced and efficient ordering engine where customer can do configurations for the products and order them.
5.) What is your experience on this tool?
Answer: More than 3 yrs.
6.) What is your highest qualification?
Answer: Bachelor in Engineering.
7.) What is the purpose of visit?
Answer: For transition and implementation of the development of this tool at onsite and at clients place.
8.) Where will you work in US?
Answer:Provided Name of the company
9.) Will it be your own company office or client office?
Answer:  Client Office.
10.) Can the client purchase this tool?
Answer: No, it is not available for purchase, but can be modified and changed as per client’s requirement.
11.) Out of 10000 employees are you the only one who is having expertise on this tool?
Answer: yes.
12.) What will be the benefit of this tool?
Answer: A much enhanced ordering engine which will allow customers to do the real time configurations for the products and order them as per their requirement.

------------------------Interview Ends-------------------------
Out of the three I-129 copies, one copy and passport will be kept by the Consulate when the visa is approved. Remaining two copies are stamped and handed over to us for HR and company use.

I hope you find this information helpful. If you are more than 18 years old you would also like to read this post How Much Money Would One Save In USA?  and How To Get A Green Card?

Bonus: If you are interested in getting better at setting goals you may want to read this recommended book for setting high goals...

How To Get A Green Card?

How to get a Green Card?

The best way to get all the details of the green card process is to visit the official website of the department of homeland security at https://www.uscis.gov/

In this short article we will attempt to touch upon few of the basic things which most folks want to know regarding green card processing. You may also want to read a similar article on the various USA work visas here: USA Visa Basics L1A, L1B and H1B.

So what exactly is a green card? In a layman term, it is a kind of a permission or legal status or authorization granted to live and work in the United States of America. A green card holder is also called a permanent resident. There are multiple ways or categories in which a person can apply for permanent residency or green card. Most common categories are:

• Green card through family
• Green card through job
• Green card through Status(Refugee or Asylee)
• Other ways: Green card lottery(Diversity immigrant visa program), LIFE Act, SIJ Status

There are few more ways, you can read those here: Other Ways To Get Green Card

What is the difference between being a Green Card Holder and being a US Citizen? OR Is it one and the same thing to be a Green Card Holder/ Permanent Resident and be a US Citizen?

Having permanent residency, that is, having a green card does NOT mean that you are US citizen. In order to become a US citizen you need to go through the naturalization process. You can apply for naturalization once you meet the requirements for:
1. Continuous residence
2. Physical presence
3. Time in state or a USCIS district
4. Good Moral Character
5. English and Civics
6. Attachment to the constitution

By continuous residence it is meant that you must be permanent resident for continuously five years before you can begin the process(naturalization) to become a US citizen.

Note the use of word "continuous", there are lot of conditions that will come into play if you leave the US for six months or longer. If you leave the US for more than a year and return then the clock may reset and you may need to begin all over again as far as the naturalization process is concerned.

Who gets priority or preference for Green Card processing?

There are eligibility criteria's defined to determine who qualifies for green card processing. You may refer Green Card Eligibility to know exactly what are the eligibility requirements in each category. For those who are going to apply based on the Job or Employment need to know the following employment based preferences(as mentioned on the USCIS website):

First Preference: Priority Workers, including aliens with extraordinary abilities, outstanding professors and researchers, and certain multinational executives and managers
Second Preference: Members of professions holding an advanced degree or persons of exceptional ability (including individuals seeking a National Interest Waiver)
Third Preference: Skilled Workers, professionals and other qualified workers
Fourth Preference: Certain special immigrants including those in religious vocations
Fifth Preference: Employment creation immigrants (investors or entrepreneurs)

if you have offer for permanent employment then your employer may need to get a labor certification and then file Form I-140, Immigration Petition for Alien Work for you.

You will need to go through CP, that is, consular processing if you are living outside the united states. If you are living in the US you will need to go through the adjustment of status process.

The preferences listed above are also called EB-1, EB-2, EB-3, EB-4 and EB-5.

It may also make sense to read and understand How Much Money Would One Save In USA?

H-1B L-1 Visa Fee Increases

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services(USCIS) announced an increase in the visa processing fees for certain categories of work visas. This is applicable for certain H-1B and L-1 petitioners. Additional fee for H-1B petition is $4,000 and $4,500 for certain L-1A and L-1B petitions postmarked on or after December 18, 2015. This is according to the The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2016 (Public Law 114-113).

This is applicable to those petitioners who employ 50 or more employees in US with more than 50 percent of those employees in H-1B or L-1A and L-1B nonimmigrant status.

Note this fee is in addition to the base processing fee, Fraud Prevention and Detection Fee, American Competitiveness and Workforce Improvement Act of 1998 fee (when required), as well as the premium processing fee, if applicable.

Please refer to this article for complete details: H-1B and L-1 Visa Fee Increases 

What is the impact due to this change?

• Significant impact to IT Services companies or companies who are in offshore, dual shore or multi shore business models with US customers. Companies will now need to shell out more money for getting the H-1B and L-1A, L-1B visas done.

• With the visa cost going higher, this move will inspire companies to now focus on hiring more and more local talent in US. It means more job opportunities for US citizens and Green Card holders. However, if the cost of hiring local employees is higher than the cost of H-1B or L-1 workers then the margins and profitability of businesses will get adversely impacted. To break even/ maintain the margins certain companies may even choose to hike their billing rates or charges to their end customers.

• Number of people applying for US visa in H-1B and L-1A, L-1B categories will get reduced. Individuals or companies will now be more careful in their selection or shortlisting process. Not anyone or everyone will get the visa processed as the cost will matter a lot.

• Companies will look for options other than the US, for example, locations like Mexico, Costarica, Canada will become important. These locations may prove to be better options for near shore operations with almost the same time zone as the US.

• Last but not the least this may also impact the individuals who apply through consulting companies or IT service companies because companies may now ask for commitments like extended bond period or additional bond amount etc.

So if you are a H-1B or L-1A, L-1B aspirant then you may want to take this important change and the associated impact into account before planning your career move.

If you read this post, you will love to read the following interesting posts:

How Much Money Do Indians Save In USA?


How To Go Onsite/ USA from IT Services Company?

Amendments For H-1B Employees

The USCIS has recently issued revised guidance on filing of amendments for H-1B employees who are working in a geographical location other than the one stated in their latest H-1B petition.

To be 100% compliant on this important matter in the  light of the new USCIS guidance, here are some of the circumstances which might call for an H-1B amendment.

• If you are working for the same client and at the same location as per the latest H1B filing: no need for amendment.

• If you are working for the  same client but at a different building within the same city or geographical location within the commutable distance there is no need for amendment

• If you are working for the same client but, if your H-1B was filed for say Newyork but  you are now working at  SFO(or vice-versa), then you would need an amendment.

• For associates who are filed for one client, but you are now working for another client whether it is same city or outside of the  originally filed location, then an amendment is a must.

• If you are working at a client location other than the one found in your latest H-1B petition purely based on Transfer memo, and if no amendment H-1B approval was provided to you thereafter for the said client, then an amendment will be required now.

For deciding this,  you can locate the address  for your latest H1B filing in  your h1B  bunch given to you,  in the I-129 form, on part 5  where it states “Basic information about the proposed employment and employer”- In most cases found on page 4 of the said I-129 form.

Tatkal Passport for Minor

This is based on my experience of November 2011 - Minor's TATKAL Passport @ Pune Passport Office.

 If you thought getting a tatkal passport is a BIG deal then you are wrong. You can easily get your tatkal passport on your own, that is, without engaging any travel agent.

Here are my suggestions for getting Tatkal Passport for Minor:

Documents Required :

(a) Birth Certificate of the Minor - Ensure that the name is correctly spelled on the birth certificate.

(b) Residential/ Address proof of the parent(father or mother or both) - You have to prove that you are staying at the current address since a year (or more). If you are not staying at the current address for more than a year then you need to give address proof of the previous residences (where you have stayed during the last one year). You can provide (any two) :
(1) Electricity Bills ( for example : Electricity Bills of Oct 2010 and Nov 2011 )
(2) A letter from your company confirming your residential address
(3) Your bank account statement of last one year (displaying your address)


(c) Passport of Parents (either or both). If you dont have one then first apply for it and then mention the file number of your passport application in your Minor's passport application. Having a passport is not a must but if you have it or apply for it then it will speed up the processing.


(d) Annexure H : This is a declaration from the parents on a plain paper. You can get the format from the passport website. No need to get it notarized.


(e) For TATKAL : You either need Annexure 'F' or you need the following 3 document proofs out of the 14 documents listed on the passport website and Annexure 'I' which should be notarized. In my case, I provided the following :
(1) PAN card
(2) Driving License
(3) Index II (property deal registration proof)
(4) Annexure 'I' - This should be in the format provided at the passport website. It is a declaration by the applicant and should be notarized. It should have photographs of the applicant and parents.


TIPS :


(a) Include your marriage certificate.
(b) If mother's name on the passport is the maiden name (that is, the name before marriage) but the minor's birth certificate has her new name then in the passport application for the minor you will still need to give the same name as on her passport (dont use her new name anywhere in the application for minor's passport).
(c) Register online at least two days ahead of the day when you want to submit the application.
(d) Reach the passport office at 9 AM or 9.30 AM coz there is a queue, even if you have registered online the time of appointment doesnt matter (it is first come first serve).
(e) All xerox copies should be self attested.

Also, refer minor passport annexure h on http://passport.gov.in/

Intention is that you don't have to visit a travel agent to get Tatkal Passport for Minor. You can do it on your own.

Parents Visa for USA - Useful Tips

Based on my experience of Jan 2013

Step 1: Submit Online Application (DS-160) at https://ceac.state.gov/genniv/

(before you submit the application ensure that you all the documents ready)

 

Step 2: Collect Documents

(a) Sponser Documents

1. Letter to U.S Consulate General
2. Affidavit of Support, Form I-134
3. Letter to Parents to visit USA
4. Copy of my L1B approval (Form I-797)
5. Copy of Visa along with I-94
6. Letter of employment
7. Offer Letter USA
8. Copies of last three salary / payment slips
9. Bank Account verification letter
10. Bank Statement
11. Copy of Passport
12. W2-Forms or Form 16
13. Birth Certificate or 10^th Mark sheet

(b) Parents Documents

1. Passport
2. Interview Letter (You will get it once you schedule the appointment)
3. Confirmation Letter (You will get it once you submit the application)
4. Photographs for visa
5. Pension Documents
6. Bank Statement or Passbook
7. Property Documents 
8. FD documents (bank and post)
9. Family photographs 
10. PAN Card 
11. Marriage Certificate

Step 3: Pay fees and schedule appointment online at http://www.ustraveldocs.com/

Step 4: Appear for interview and get the visa stamped.

Additional Details/ References: 

http://www.immihelp.com/

http://www.path2usa.com/

USA Visa Basics(L1A, L1B and H1B)

Before you start reading, if you have any basic questions like how many types of USA work visas are available? or Which work visa category is for which purpose? then please read this post USA Work Visa Types - All You Need To Know About USA Work Visas

Once you have clarify on the work visa types, please go ahead and read few basic rules on US work visas (USA Visa L1A, L1B and H1B): 

Normal rules for continuous stay in USA would be: 

A)
On  L1B visa:  5 years maximum
On L1A visa: 7 years maximum
On H1b visa: 6 years maximum

If you were on L1B and you moved into L1A then L1B+L1A put together up to a maximum of 7 years.

If it was on L1B converted into H1B then it is put together L1 +H1B:  maximum 6 years.

If you were on L1A initially and then went into L1B for some reasons, then the total stay would be restricted to L1A+L1B = 5 years.

The above rules are applicable notwithstanding  the fact, even if you get an I-94 which has dates exceeding the above periods. For example, if you receive a fresh 3  years I-94, when you are entering US  at the end of your 4th year stay on L1B, because you entered through a Blanket petition, you would not be able to stay for the entire three years, but will need to leave the US when you complete the fifth year on L1B.


B)   if in between you have spent some time outside of US on a transfer/break/leave/vacation etc. then  such a period is recaptured to make it to five years. However, the total stay cannot exceed the above period in each category.


C) if in between you have spent physically more than one year outside of US,  then the you can start the clock fresh again. Meaning, you would be entitled to a fresh stay as per (A) above.  Please note if you have made any B1 short trips to US during this time, you would need to spend additional time outside, to cover up this period to make to a physical one year to meet the legal requirement.


 D) Please note if you would reach the 5th year of L1B sometime soon,   you should check up  for a change of status to H1b at least a year ahead of time

Note: The above visa information holds good for visa type conversions l1a and l1b, l1b to l1a, l1a to h1b.

Read these blogs of interest:

How much money would an IT Professional Save in USA?

In 2016: H-1B and L-1 Visa Processing Fees Increases by $4000 and $4500 respectively

Other blog posts of interest:

How To Go Onsite?
Most Valuable Skill For Your Life
21 Important Things To Know If You are Traveling To USA For The First Time
How To Hunt For Job After Career Break
5 Secrets of Salary Negotiations

Bonus: If you are interested in getting better at setting goals you may want to read this recommended book for setting high goals...