NON-IMMIGRANT (TEMPORARY) VISAS

Ben D. Huynh, our firm’s managing partner, has over ten years experience exclusively in U.S. immigration law and was formerly in-house immigration counsel for Motorola, Inc., a Fortune 200 company. Ben has prepared, reviewed and supervised the non-immigrant work visa processing for thousands of foreign national employees and their family members. Please contact us at (972) 992-8181 or at info@bdhimmigration.com for additional information.

Temporary or non-immigrant visas (NIVs) allow foreign nationals to enter the United States for a temporary period of time and for a specific purpose. The foreign national’s spouse and minor children may accompany or follow the foreign national to the U.S. Some of the more common non-immigrant visa categories include:

B-1 Visitor for Business: allows engagement in commercial transactions not involving gainful employment. Examples of permissible B-1 activities include negotiating contracts, consulting with clients or business associates and attending scientific or educational conferences. The B-1 period of stay is typically for up to 6 months with one 6-month extension.

B-2 Visitor for Pleasure: includes tourism, social visits with friends and family members, participation in amateur sporting or musical events without remuneration and temporary stays for health-related reasons. The B-2 period of stay is typically for up to 6 months with one 6-month extension.

E-1 Treaty Trader: authorizes a citizen of a treaty country to conduct and oversee a U.S. commercial enterprise’s substantial international trade of goods and services between the U.S. and the treaty country. An enterprise’s substantial trade must be more than 50% of its total volume. The E-1 period of stay is for two years and may be extended every two years without limitation.

E-2 Treaty Investor: authorizes a citizen of a treaty country to oversee his or her investment in the U.S. or to work with a U.S. business entity which is at least 50% owned by citizens of the treaty country. The E-2 period of stay is for two years and may be extended every two years without limitation.

F-1 Student: allows a bona fide student to pursue a full course of study at an established U.S. institution of higher learning. A qualified student will typically be admitted for the duration of status for a period needed to complete the educational program.

H-1B Specialty Occupation Professional: authorizes employment of a foreign national with a U.S. employer in a professional capacity. Qualifications for an H-1B visa include: (1) the offered position requires at least a U.S. bachelor’s degree; (2) the foreign national has the requisite U.S. bachelor’s degree, its foreign equivalency or a combination of education and/or experience equivalent to a U.S. bachelor’s degree; (3) the employer will pay salary meeting prevailing wage standards; and (4) the employer has obtained a Labor Condition Application statement annotated by the U.S. Department of Labor. The maximum H-1B period of stay is six years, but may be extended in one-year increments beyond the six-year limit if the foreign national has either a Labor Certification or Immigrant Petition pending for at least one year at the time the foreign national reaches the six-year maximum.

H-3 Trainee: allows for U.S. training which is not available in the foreign national’s home country. The detailed training program must show how the training will benefit the trainee in pursuing a career outside the U.S. The maximum period of admission is two years.

J-1 Exchange Visitor: is used for U.S. entry to participate in an exchange program officially recognized by the U.S. Department of State. Participation may include conducting research, receiving training, studying, observing and teaching.

L-1 Intra-Company Transfer: allows business executives/managers and employees with "specialized knowledge" to transfer from a foreign company to a related parent, subsidiary, branch or affiliated office in the U.S. The visa may be used to allow the transfer of key personnel to open a new office in the U.S. Typically, the requirements for the L-1 category include: (1) the foreign entity must be a foreign business operation that remains an active business during the entire time that the L-1 employee is working in the United States; (2) the foreign entity is related to the U.S. entity as a parent, subsidiary, branch or affiliated office; (3) the transferring employee must be an executive or manager or have “specialized knowledge" and is entering the U.S. to fill one of these capacities with the U.S. entity; and (4) the transferring employee must have worked abroad for the foreign entity for a continuous period of at least one year in the last three years. L-1 status can be granted to executives and managers for a total period of seven years or to “specialized knowledge” employees for a total period of five years.

Trade NAFTA (TN) Professional: allows citizens of Canada or Mexico to be temporarily employed in renewable, one-year periods in “professional” occupations as specifically defined by the North American Free Trade Agreement.
O-1 Alien of Extraordinary Ability in the Sciences, Arts, Education, Business or Athletics: allows a foreign national with international renown in the relevant field to temporarily fill a position in the U.S. which requires his or her extraordinary ability. The petition must include evidence confirming the foreign national’s international acclaim. O-1 status is initially granted for up to three years or for the duration of need for the foreign national's services, whichever is less, and may be extended in one-year increments as needed.
P-1 Internationally Recognized Athlete or Entertainer: allows a foreign national to enter the U.S. temporarily to perform at a specific athletic competition as an athlete, individually or as part of a group or team, at an internationally recognized level of performance.

P-3 Culturally Unique Program: authorizes an artist or entertainer, whether as an individual or as a part of a group, to enter the U.S. temporarily to perform, teach or coach a program which is culturally unique.

R-1 Religious Worker: is available to a qualified foreign national who engages in a religious occupation to enter the U.S. to perform services related to his or her religious calling and receive compensation for his or her work. . The R-1 visa is valid for an initial period of three years and allows for a two-year extension.