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The H-1B category is
available to workers in occupations that require highly
specialized knowledge. The offered position must require,
and the foreign national must possess, at least a Bachelor's degree, or its
equivalent, in order to qualify for an H-1B visa.
Many US businesses use the H-1B category to employ foreign workers in
specialty occupations that require theoretical or technical
expertise, such as scientists, engineers, or computer programmers.
Examples of employees that may need an H-1B visa include:
- International students working
on an EAD card under the CPT or OPT
program
- International employees working
on a TN visa who are planning to pursue a permanent residency
case
- Prospective international
employees in an other visa status e.g. H-4, L-2, J-1, F-1, H-1B
workers with a cap exempt organization
- Prospective international
employees who are currently living abroad.
The H-1B category is subject to an annual
numeric cap; a total of 65,000 H-1B petitions (Regular Cap) are permitted per
fiscal year. Up to 6,800 visas may be set aside from the
Regular Cap for H-1B applicants from Chile and Singapore. An
additional 20,000 H-1B petitions are reserved for persons who hold US
advanced degrees (Master's Exemption Cap) - applicants in this
category may
continue to file new petitions against the Regular Cap until
the 65,000 limit has been reached.
Some H-1B
petitions are exempt from the annual cap. Exempt petitions
include those requesting an extension or
amendment of previously approved H-1B status, or a petition filed by
an institution of
higher education or related/affiliated nonprofit entity, nonprofit
research organization, or governmental research organization.
H-1B employees are limited to
a maximum stay in the US of six years, issued in three year
increments. In instances where the
H-1B employee will be required to
remain outside the US for extended periods of time (exclusive of
vacations), the employee should track periods of stay in the US in order
to benefit from the entire six years of the permitted stay. |
PLEASE NOTE: Immigration law and regulations change
frequently. In order to protect yourself you should make sure that
you understand the laws and how they apply to you. If you
have questions about your status, you should consult an expert. If you would like to be notified about recent
changes to this website, or if you would like to receive Immigration
Tips by email, please provide us with
your email address. If
you would like help from Ms. Chappell-Daly,
please contact her.
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