The H1-B visa allows a foreign worker to temporarily be employed in specialty occupations in the U.S. To qualify for H-1B, a foreign national must have at least a bachelor’s degree or the equivalent experience of a bachelor’s degree in the field related to the occupation. To qualify for the H-1B visa, the prospective employee must work in specialty occupations. A specialty occupation requires at least a bachelor’s degree or higher to practice in the field. The prospective employee without a 4 year bachelor’s degree but instead, 12 years of work experience, can still apply for H-1B since each 3 year work experience in the field is considered as one year of college education. Please note that the USCIS verifies that the specialty occupation he or she applies for is in the related field of his or her education or work experience. Every year, the H1-B visa petition is accepted starting from April 1 and, if it is approved, the applicant can start work October 1 of the same year.

The H-2 visas consist of two categories: the H-2A for temporary agricultural workers and the H-2B for temporary non-agricultural workers. H-2A is available to agricultural services or labor on a temporal, seasonal or peak-load basis when a shortage of domestic workers is expected. H-2B is allowed on a temporal basis and the maximum period of stay is three years. To qualify for H-2 visas, a labor certification for H visas is required prior to requesting the H visa from the USCIS.

In general, the H-3 visa allows a U.S. company to invite foreign nationals to the U.S. to receive training in a U.S. company in order to provide opportunities for the foreign employee to increase his or her knowledge and skills. To qualify for an H-3 visa, the applicant must demonstrate that there is no opportunity to receive similar training in his or her home country and the training received in the U.S. will advance his or her career in the home country. An H-3 visa holder may stay in the U.S. for the time period required to complete the training, but not to exceed two years.