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Thomas J. Arkell
Dunn Law Firm, LLP 1001 N. Main Street, Suite A
Bloomington, IL 61701 (309) 828-6241
tja@dunnlaw.com
Nonimmigrant (temporary) visa
Maximum stay of 6 years (with certain exceptions)
Professional or “specialty” occupation requiring a bachelor’s degree or equivalent
Employer specific
Location specific
Job specific
Allows for “dual intent”
Thomas J. Arkell- Dunn Law Firm, LLP
tja@dunnlaw.com
A specialty occupation requires theoretical and practical application of a body of specialized knowledge along with at least a bachelor’s degree or its equivalent.
Examples of specialty occupations include: Professor, Accountant, Engineer, Systems Analyst, Computer Scientist, Software Engineer, Architect, Physicist, Chemist.
Job titles and job descriptions are very important.
Thomas J. Arkell- Dunn Law Firm, LLP tja@dunnlaw.com
The employer must pay 100% of the prevailing wage or the actual wage, whichever is higher.
Prevailing wage is based on minimum requirements of the job and the area of intended employment.
Actual wage is the amount being paid to other employees in the same position with similar qualifications and experience.
Thomas J. Arkell- Dunn Law Firm, LLP
tja@dunnlaw.com
Filing fees: $325.00 for I-129 filing fee
$500.00 for Fraud Prevention and Detection fee
$1,500.00 (more than 25 employees) or $750.00 (25 or fewer employees) for ACWIA fee
Employer must pay for Fraud fee and ACWIA fee and should pay all filing fees
Current processing times for the H-1B petition once filed with the USCIS is 3-5 months.
Premium processing for an additional $1,225.00 and USCIS will issue a decision or request for evidence within 15 calendar days
Thomas J. Arkell- Dunn Law Firm, LLP
tja@dunnlaw.com
65,000 visas allowed for beneficiaries with a bachelor’s degree
Additional 20,000 for beneficiaries who have obtained a master’s degree or higher from a U.S. institution
Lottery
Thomas J. Arkell- Dunn Law Firm, LLP tja@dunnlaw.com
Visas become available October 1st of each year.
Employer can begin filing H-1B petitions subject to the cap April 1st of each year with a start date of October 1st
Petitions from institutions of higher education are not subject to the annual cap
Extensions, amendments and change of employer petitions are not subject to the cap
Thomas J. Arkell- Dunn Law Firm, LLP
tja@dunnlaw.com
Provides an automatic extension of stay and work authorization for F-1 students with Optional Practical Training (OPT)
Cap gap requirements:
H-1B petition must be timely filed;
Requested change of status from F-1;
Requested October 1st start date; and
Student has no violations of F-1 status
Cap gap terminates upon the rejection, denial or revocation of the H-1B petition
Thomas J. Arkell- Dunn Law Firm, LLP
tja@dunnlaw.com
STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math)
Student must have a bachelor’s, master’s or doctorate degree in a STEM field
Employer must be enrolled in E-Verify.
Student must apply on time (at least 90 days before the current post-completion OPT expires)
Must report to Designated School Official upon STEM approval and every 6 months
Thomas J. Arkell- Dunn Law Firm, LLP tja@dunnlaw.com
Students on post graduation OPT may not accumulate more than 90 days of unemployment during the first 12 months using OPT.
Students may not accumulate more than 120 days of unemployment during the entire 29 month STEM extended OPT period.
Thomas J. Arkell- Dunn Law Firm, LLP tja@dunnlaw.com
Exchange visitor programs designated by the Department of State for individuals to participate in work and study based exchange visitor programs.
Some individuals are subject to the two-year home-country physical presence (foreign residence) requirement
Thomas J. Arkell- Dunn Law Firm, LLP tja@dunnlaw.com
Visa Stamp
Issued at U.S. Embassy or Consulate
Allows for admission into the United States
Thomas J. Arkell- Dunn Law Firm, LLP tja@dunnlaw.com
I-94 Arrival/Departure Record
Issued by Customs and Border Protection upon entry into the U.S.
The expiration date on I-94 is the date you are authorized to stay in U.S.
Only have one valid I-94 at a time
Last I-94 issued lists status expiration
Thomas J. Arkell- Dunn Law Firm, LLP tja@dunnlaw.com
TN (Trade NAFTA) Canadian/Mexican citizens
L-1 Intracompany Transferee
H-3 Trainee
O-1 Extraordinary Ability
Thomas J. Arkell- Dunn Law Firm, LLP tja@dunnlaw.com
I. Family Based II. Employment Based A. Labor Certification (PERM)-test of the U.S. job market B. I-140 Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker C. I-485 Adjustment of Status or Consular Processing III. Diversity Visa Lottery
Thomas J. Arkell- Dunn Law Firm, LLP tja@dunnlaw.com
IV. Self Petition ( no labor certification)
A. National Interest Waiver (EB-2)
B. Extraordinary Ability (EB-1A)
C. Investment (EB-5)
Thomas J. Arkell- Dunn Law Firm, LLP tja@dunnlaw.com
Shortcut to permanent residence
Skip the labor certification (PERM) process
Does not require employer sponsorship
http://www.nationalinterestwaivers.com
Thomas J. Arkell- Dunn Law Firm, LLP tja@dunnlaw.com
Criteria
1. Individual must be seeking employment in an area of substantial intrinsic merit
2. Proposed benefit of the employment should be national in scope
3. Applicant must show that the national interest would be adversely affected if a labor certification were required
* Citations are important to show influence in the field.
Thomas J. Arkell- Dunn Law Firm, LLP tja@dunnlaw.com
Must meet three of the following criteria: Evidence of receipt of lesser nationally or internationally recognized prizes or awards for
excellence Evidence of your membership in associations in the field which demand outstanding
achievement of their members Evidence of published material about you in professional or major trade publications or
other major media Evidence that you have been asked to judge the work of others, either individually or on
a panel Evidence of your original scientific, scholarly, artistic, athletic, or business-related
contributions of major significance to the field Evidence of your authorship of scholarly articles in professional or major trade
publications or other major media Evidence that your work has been displayed at artistic exhibitions or showcases Evidence of your performance of a leading or critical role in distinguished organizations Evidence that you command a high salary or other significantly high remuneration in
relation to others in the field Evidence of your commercial successes in the performing arts
Thomas J. Arkell- Dunn Law Firm, LLP tja@dunnlaw.com
Must meet at least three of the required criteria and USCIS must then make a final merits determination of whether or not the petitioner has demonstrated that the alien has a level of expertise indicating that the individual is “one of that small percentage who have risen to the very top of the field of endeavor”
No offer of employment is required
Employer must employ at least three (3) other full time researchers
Thomas J. Arkell- Dunn Law Firm, LLP tja@dunnlaw.com
Must meet two of the following criteria: Evidence of receipt of major prizes or awards for
outstanding achievement Evidence of membership in associations that require their
members to demonstrate outstanding achievement Evidence of published material in professional publications
written by others about the alien's work in the academic field
Evidence of participation, either on a panel or individually, as a judge of the work of others in the same or allied academic field
Evidence of original scientific or scholarly research contributions in the field
Evidence of authorship of scholarly books or articles (in scholarly journals with international circulation) in the field
Thomas J. Arkell- Dunn Law Firm, LLP tja@dunnlaw.com
Must meet at least two of the required criteria and USCIS must then make a final merits determination of whether or not the petitioner has, by a preponderance of the evidence, demonstrated that the alien is recognized internationally as outstanding in a specific academic area
Must have at least 3 years experience in teaching or research in that academic area
Offer of employment is required
Thomas J. Arkell- Dunn Law Firm, LLP tja@dunnlaw.com
Thomas J. Arkell- Dunn Law Firm, LLP tja@dunnlaw.com
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