Long Island Work Permit renewals Lawyers

Most popular temporary work permits for those entering a "specialty occupation." Valid for an initial period of three years, renewable up to a 6 year maximum (under certain circumstances, the six-year limit may be extended until an H-1B worker obtains his/her green card). The H-1B allows changes of employer as well as simultaneous work for two (or more) employers, provided that each employer petitions for a separate H-1B visa. Processing time varies from region to region (approximately 2-3 months East Coast; 3-4 months West Coast; 2-3 months South; 2-3 months North/Midwest).

To qualify for an H-1B, a foreign national must have the following:

• A U.S. employer-sponsor;
• At least a U.S. Bachelor's Degree or its equivalent, or a combination of formal studies and substantial professional work experience (three years of progressive experience are considered the equivalent of one year of formal training at the university level);
• An offer for a job that requires at least the equivalent of a U.S. Bachelor's Degree in a particular field.
  Recognized occupational groups for this visa category might include: architecture; commercial arts; education; engineering; fashion models of outstanding merit; finance; marketing; computer/information technology; law; mathematics and sciences; medicine and health; editing; research; etc.
• Foreigners with a Bachelor’s Degree, or its equivalent in work experience and specialized skills, are eligible for an H-1B visa (their dependents are eligible for an H-4 visa). To apply for this visa you must have the following requirements:
• A job offer in the U.S. with a company willing to sponsor you
• A salary and working conditions that matches what others are making in the same field in the area where you will be working
• A Bachelor’s Degree or experience in the field of employment equivalent to a Bachelor’s Degree; or
• Relevant work experience to the position offered

Visa Duration

H-1B visas last for 3 years.

Renewability

Can be renewed or transferred repeatedly, for a total of 6 years of validity. The visa holder may also apply for permanent residency soon after applying for the H-1 (as a dual intent applicant).

What are the Employer’s Obligations?

• If the H-1B employee is terminated for any reason before his/her authorization to work in the U.S. expires, the employer is liable for the reasonable transportation costs to return to the immigrant's last place of residence.
• Employer is prohibited from charging a terminated H-1B employee a penalty for leaving his/her employment prior to any agreed date.
• Employer must pay the H-1B employee the required wage no later than 30 days from the H-1B employee's entry into the U.S., or 60 days from the approval date of the visa petition if the H-1B employee is already in the U.S.
• Employer must provide the same working conditions and pay the same benefits to H-1B employees as they do for U.S. employees.
• The employer shall keep a copy of the LCA application and appropriate employment and wage records supporting the validity of the statements made in its LCA application and shall make this information available in the event that the U.S. Department of Labor or the U.S. Immigration Service requests it.
  There are additional job posting requirements or "attestations" imposed on employers that are H-1B dependents. The guideline established by the Immigration and Nationalization Act (INA) below determines that an employer is H-1B dependent if:
• The employer has a total of 1 to 25 FTE's (Full Time Equivalent Employees), and employs 7 or more H-1B employees.
• The employer has a total of 25 to 50 FTE's (Full Time Equivalent Employees), and employs 12 or more H-1B employees.
• The employer has a total of 51 or more FTE's (Full Time Equivalent Employees), and 15% or more of those employed are H-1B employees.

Note: H-1B employees that have a minimum of a Master's Degree or earn U.S. $60,000 or more exempt their employers from these additional job posting requirements or "attestations”.

EMPLOYMENT BASED RESIDENCY PETITION

Permanent residency petition for an employee, provided that it can be demonstrated through a labor certification process (except for first preference aliens and national interest waivers) that:

• The alien employee will not be taking any jobs from U.S. citizens, and
• The salary and conditions of the job offered are the prevailing in the industry and location and therefore will not negatively impact the wages and labor conditions for U.S. citizens.

There are several preference categories for this visa which get processed in order of preference:
EB-1 - The First Preference includes:

• Aliens of Extraordinary Ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics; such as outstanding researchers, professors, artists, executives, athletes, etc.
• Candidates in the first preference can petition for permanent residency without a sponsor and without going through the lengthy labor certification process.
  
  

EB-2- The Second Preference includes:


• Aliens holding advanced degrees or with exceptional training and ability.
• Qualified alien physicians who will practice medicine in underserved areas of the U.S.
If the alien can demonstrate that his/her residency is in the national interest of the U.S., a national interest waiver may be obtained, waiving the job offer and LCA requirements.

EB-3- The Third Preference includes:

• Professionals (with a minimum of a Bachelor’s Degree or its foreign equivalent)
• Skilled workers (workers with at least two years of training or experience performing skilled labor), and
• "Other workers" (all other workers that are not professional or skilled). These workers usually experience longer waiting periods in the residency quota lines.

EB-4- The Fourth Preference-Special immigrants and religious workers includes:

• Religious workers
• Border commuters
• Retired employees of international organizations
• Returning residents
• Employees and former employees of the U.S. government abroad
EB-5- The Fifth Preference-Employment creation investors includes:
• Investors in new companies employing 10 or more workers, investing at least $500,000 in "targeted employment areas" (areas with unemployment of at least 150% of the national average).
• Investors in new companies employing 10 or more workers, investing at least $1,000,000 in any location.
There are only 10,000 visas per year for this preference category, 3,000 of which at least have to be assigned for investors in targeted employment areas.

Who is Eligible?

To be eligible for an Employment Based Residency, the foreign alien beneficiary must meet all of the criteria in one of the three following categories:

Category I:

• Must be living in the U.S. on or before December 18, 2000. (According to the former INA §245(i) law. Currently there is more than one proposed amendment to this statute which imposes different statutory date limitations for filing. Therefore, it is advisable to initiate this procedure as soon as possible if the requirements are fulfilled).
• Must have never left the U.S. without permission of the U.S. Immigration Service.
• Must have an offer of employment from a U.S. employer, who has agreed to sponsor the beneficiary for the residency.
• Must receive a salary equal to or above the prevailing wage offered for such a position in the State in which the job will be performed.
• Must have the sponsorship of a U.S. employer.
Category II:
• Must be lawfully present in the U.S. on a current non-immigrant visa
• Must not have violated conditions of non-immigrant visa
Category III:
• Must be residing outside the U.S.
• Must not have been previously deported or removed from the U.S.
• Must not be subject to an order of removal, exclusion, or deportation.

Visa Duration

Once permanent residency is approved it will remain valid as long as the person continues to reside the majority of the time in the U.S. and complies with the legal conditions for permanent residency.

Renewability

Your residency status never expires as long as you continue to meet the residency eligibility conditions as stated in your residency application. However, the green card (or evidence of permanent residency) expires every 10 years and it is recommended that it be renewed six months before expiration.

Treaty Trader Visa E-1

Aliens who are citizens of a nation that has signed a trade and investment treaty with the U.S. who are coming to the United States:

• Solely to carry on or engage in substantial trade between his/her country and the U.S., including trade in services or trade in technology.
• Principally between the United States and the foreign state of which the alien is a national.
"Substantial" with reference to trade means a continuous exchange of goods and services between the U.S. and the treaty nation of the alien applicant, involving numerous transactions that began prior to the filing of the E-1 application. Trade principally between the U.S. and the foreign state means that at least 50% of the total amount of trade conducted by the alien or his/her enterprise or employer must be between the U.S. and the treaty nation.

Treaty Investor Visa E-2

Aliens who are citizens of a nation that has signed a trade and investment with the U.S., who are coming to the United States:

• solely to develop and direct the operations of an enterprise in which he/she has invested; or
• solely to develop and direct the operations of an enterprise in which he/she is actively in the process of investing a substantial amount of capital; or
• as an employee who will perform services that require special qualifications essential to the operations of the treaty investor's enterprise, who has the same nationality as the treaty investor employer or the nationals owning at lest 50% of the enterprise, who must be under treaty investor status if residing in the U.S.; and
• showing an intention to depart from the United States upon the termination of his or her status.
The definition of "Substantial" with reference to investment is at the discretion of the Secretary of State. However, in exercising this discretion, the Secretary of State conducts a "Relative Proportionality Test" as a guideline.

Through this test, they assess whether:

1) the value of the investment is substantial as a percentage of the fair market value of the enterprise, or
2) whether the value of the investment is substantial as a percentage of the capital usually required to establish the specified type of business in the specified industry, as per the visa application.
In addition, the investment enterprise must not be "marginal", meaning it must have the capacity in the present or future to provide income more than a living wage to the investor and his/her family.

Visa Duration

The initial statutory limitation on the period of stay for an alien with an E-1 or E-2 can be no longer than two years. (Note: It is not uncommon for the U.S. Consulate to issue an E-1 or E-2 visa for five years).
The initial visa period can be extended indefinitely as long as the alien affirms that he/she will not remain in the U.S. after this period, including extensions, ends.

INTRACOMPANY VISA L-1

There are two kinds of L visas:

• L-1A - for employees in an executive or managerial position, and
• L-1B - for employees in a specialized knowledge capacity
The L-1 visa is a non-immigrant work visa for employees in a specialized knowledge capacity or an executive or managerial position who are being transferred from a foreign company to a U.S. subsidiary, branch, affiliate or parent of the original foreign company. There are no limits to the number of L-1 visas that the U.S. Immigration Service can issue per year and the petitioning company does not have to obtain a prevailing wage approval or file any documents with the Department of Labor. L-1 visa aliens may possess dual intent, allowing them to apply for a permanent residency concurrently with the L application. L-1A aliens do not need to go through the labor certification process when applying for permanent residency, however, L-1B aliens do.
There is currently a premium processing option, which for an additional $1,000 in filing fees, the U.S. Immigration Service will commit to process the application within 15 calendar days from receipt of the application. Processing the application does not mean that there will necessarily be a final decision after 15 days, but that there will be a response after this time. This response may be a visa approval, a denial, or it may also include a request for additional documentation from the petitioner or the employer.

Employees who are being transferred from a foreign subsidiary, branch, affiliate or parent of a U.S. company:

• Who are in a specialized knowledge capacity or an executive or managerial position and have been employed for at least one continuous year during the past three years, with the foreign subsidiary, branch, affiliate or parent of the U.S. company applying for them.

Visa Duration

L-1 visas may be granted for an initial period of up to 3 years and may be renewed for a maximum of 7 years for an L-1A and a maximum of 5 years for an L-1B. Any time spent under an H-1 visa status will count towards this maximum.
However, for L-1As, if after the 7 year period the employee resides at least one complete year abroad, the clock starts counting again and the alien may be granted another 7 years in L-1A status. There is no time limit for aliens who reside intermittently in the U.S., or an aggregate of six months or less per year.
This visa may be extended from the initial 3 year period in terms of 2 year periods up to the 7 year maximum for L-1A, or 5 year maximum for L-1B.