H-1B PROGRAM

By:  Norka M. Schell, Esq. 


The procedures involved in having a U.S. company sponsors foreign workers for the appropriate work visas that will enable the foreign workers to work for the company are largely bureaucratic and they were designed to help American companies to employ much needed skilled employees from abroad. One of these work visas is "H-1B" nonimmigrant visa. 


The H-1B program is most known for helping high-technology employers deal with the acute shortage of skilled workers in the domestic labor market. However, it is also used by employers in other fields to hire professionals with particular qualifications or skills.


The H-1B nonimmigrant visa category allows qualified foreign workers to engage in temporary professional employment in the United States, sponsored by a U.S. employer. By using the H-1B program, U.S. employers can recruit and hire foreign workers with appropriate professional credentials to perform services in a "specialty occupation." H-1B classification can be obtain for an initial period of three years, with a maximum total of six years. 


The Department of Labor regulations define a specialty occupation as an occupation that requires theoretical and practical application of a body of specialized knowledge, and attainment of a bachelor's degree or higher degree  (or equivalent) in the specific specialty as a minimum for entry into the occupation in the United States. 


The basic premise of the H-1B category is that there is a United States Employer making a bona fide, nonspeculative job offer for employment in a qualifying occupation to a qualified foreign professional. 


It is important to note that there is an annual limit of 65,000 to new issuance of H-1B nonimmigrant visa.


For more information about H-1B visa, contact the Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC