Search
Contact
Login
Share this article
As an HR or global mobility professional, your plate is already full. Adding visa requirements to the mix can feel overwhelming. But by familiarizing yourself with the different visa types, you can smoothly navigate the evolving immigration landscape and enhance your recruitment and mobility strategies.
To support your global hiring and relocation efforts, this article explores some of the most common nonimmigrant visa types and their specific requirements.
The H-1B visa is designed for foreign workers in specialty occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise in specialized fields such as technology, engineering and healthcare.
Key requirements:
BAL insight: Previously, the H-1B lottery allowed multiple registrations for the same beneficiary by different employers, increasing the chances for certain individuals. In 2024, USCIS updated its rules and now limits registrations to one per beneficiary, the so-called beneficiary-centric process, regardless of how many employers submit registrations on the foreign national’s behalf. This change aims to level the playing field and give every applicant an equal chance of selection. Even if your H-1B registrations were not selected, BAL can work with you to identify alternative options.
The L-1 visa is for employees transferring within their multinational company to a U.S. office. There are two categories: L-1A for executives and managers and L-1B for employees with specialized knowledge.
BAL insight: L-1 applicants can apply under a company’s approved Blanket L petition, which allows applications for the visa directly at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate abroad or a Canadian port of entry (Canadians only). A company may qualify for a Blanket L petition by meeting certain regulatory criteria, including engaging in commercial trade or services, doing business for one year or more with an office in the U.S. and having three or more domestic and foreign branches, subsidiaries and affiliates. L-1B applicants are not eligible to apply under the Blanket if they do not have at least a bachelor’s degree in a related field.
The O-1 visa is for individuals with extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business or athletics, or extraordinary achievements in the motion picture and television industry.
BAL insight: The team at BAL has experience helping foreign nationals obtain an O-1 visa and can assess on a case-by-case basis for eligibility and evidentiary requirements. Check out our case study to see BAL’s visa expertise in action with a biotech company.
The TN visa allows qualified Canadian and Mexican citizens to seek temporary entry into the United States to engage in business activities at a professional level.
The H-1B1 visa allows specialty occupation workers from Chile and Singapore to temporarily work in the U.S. An annual maximum of 1,400 Chilean national professionals and 5,400 Singaporean national professionals in specialty occupations may work in the U.S. in H-1B1 status.
The E-3 visa allows Australian professionals in certain specialty occupations to temporarily work in the U.S. A maximum of 10,500 Australian citizens per fiscal year are allowed to work in the U.S. in E-3 status.
BAL is committed to helping HR and mobility professionals reduce immigration complexity by guiding you through recent shifts in immigration policy. To help you stay informed, here are a few emerging trends that may impact your approach to hiring.
Immigration is a complex industry that requires specialized partners to help you navigate the ever-changing landscape in real time. To assist you in managing these challenges, we invite you to join BAL Community — an interactive forum developed exclusively for HR and in-house mobility professionals. By connecting with peers and experts, you can ensure your organization remains compliant and competitive in the global talent market.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced it will begin accepting requests for Keeping Families Together on Aug. 19, 2024, using a new electronic form, Form I-131F, Application for Parole in Place for Certain Noncitizen Spouses and Stepchildren of U.S. Citizens.
Key Points:
Additional Information: USCIS updated the Key Questions and Answers about the process on the Keeping Families Together webpage. More information about Keeping Families Together will be made available in a Federal Register notice in the coming days. Each requestor, including minors, must file a separate Form I-131F and have their own USCIS online account.
This alert has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice Group.
Copyright © 2024 Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. All rights reserved. Reprinting or digital redistribution to the public is permitted only with the express written permission of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. For inquiries, please contact copyright@bal.com.
In a record-setting year for the firm, 63 BAL attorneys have been recognized by the 2025 edition of Best Lawyers®, with 30 attorneys named as the 2025 “Best Lawyers in America” for immigration law and 33 named as “Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch.” In addition, BAL Partner Sharon Cook was honored as the immigration law “Lawyer of the Year” in Atlanta, GA.
“We are thrilled and proud to see so many of our attorneys recognized with this incredible honor,” said Managing Partner Frieda Garcia. “BAL is always looking to raise the standards of how we support our clients, and it can’t be done without the dedication and persistence of our attorneys. Having 63 attorneys recognized this year is proof of their hard work and expertise.”
The following BAL attorneys were recognized as “Best Lawyers”:
The following BAL attorneys were recognized as “Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch”:
The attorneys will be featured in the 2025 edition of The Best Lawyers in America®, the only purely peer-review guide to the legal profession.
As of August 12, there are 9,120 pending or approved H-2B petitions filed with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services of the 33,000 available for the first half of the 2025 fiscal year.
The U.S. State Department released the September Visa Bulletin, showing a retrogression by one year for all countries, except for India and China, under EB-3 including Mexico and the Philippines.
Final Action Dates Movement:
EB-1
EB-2
EB-3
SEPTEMBER
Final Action Dates for Employment-Based Preference Cases:
Additional Information: The State Department reported that there has been a steady increase in both USCIS and Department of State demand patterns for employment-based visas during the fiscal year. As a result, most employment-based preference category limits for FY 2024 are expected to be reached during September, if not sooner.
The rapid approach of issuance totals in the employment-based preference categories toward the FY 2024 annual limit resulted in a slowdown of issuance rates and a retrogress of the EB-3 final action dates for the Rest of World, Mexico and the Philippines. It is anticipated that the final action dates will advance in October 2024. BAL will continue to monitor the State Department’s actions and report on updates accordingly.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will announce which chart it will use to determine filing eligibility here.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services updated the fiscal year 2025 H-1B registration process data this week, showing a 3.9% year-over-year increase in selection rates.
Additional Information: BAL created an infographic visualizing selection rates from the chart below that can be referenced here. For expert insights, infographics, industry benchmarking, program management tips and more related to corporate immigration, join the BAL Community for free here.
The chart below shows registration and selection numbers for fiscal years 2021-2025 (as of Aug. 5, 2024):
Today, USCIS announced it has reached a sufficient number of registrations for the second H-1B lottery for fiscal year 2025 and has notified all prospective H-1B petitioners with selected registrations that they are eligible to file.
Additional Information: An H-1B cap-subject petition must be properly filed at the correct filing location or online at my.uscis.gov and within the filing period indicated on the relevant selection notice. The period for filing the H-1B cap-subject petition will be at least 90 days. Petitioners must include a copy of the applicable selection notice with the FY 2025 H-1B cap-subject petition.
USCIS published a final rule that increased fees required for most immigration applications and petitions on Jan. 31, 2024. The new fees are effective as of April 1, 2024, and petitions with incorrect fees will be rejected. Also, as of April 1, 2024, only the new edition of Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker, will be accepted.
The increased filing fee for Form I-907, Request for Premium Processing Service, is effective as of Feb. 26, 2024. I-907 forms postmarked on or after Feb. 26, 2024, with the incorrect fee will be rejected and fees returned.
Under a certified class relief, certain visa applicants who were previously refused visas will receive a fee credit to submit a new visa application and may be eligible for a prioritized visa appointment.
Additional Information: Nationals of Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Syria, Venezuela or Yemen who were denied a visa under Presidential Proclamation 9645 between Dec. 8, 2017, and Jan. 20, 2021, and did not receive a waiver may be eligible to benefit from the class relief. More information about eligibility and how to obtain relief benefits is available here.
Today, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia upheld the lower court ruling in favor of the government in a legal challenge to a rule allowing certain H-4 spouses to apply for employment authorization documents.
Additional Information: Save Jobs USA first filed a lawsuit challenging the H-4 employment authorization rule in 2015. The litigation was put on hold while the Trump administration considered whether to rescind the regulation. After the Biden administration took office, the parties filed motions for summary judgment, ultimately resulting in the March 2023 decision favoring the government.
Leading companies and business organizations filed an amicus brief in the lower court case supporting the H-4 rule, saying eliminating H-4 work authorization “would not only siphon off U.S. gross domestic product, but gift that productivity — and the innovation that comes with it — to other nations.”
BAL Analysis: Today’s ruling upholds eligible H-4 spouses’ ability to work in the United States. BAL will continue following the issue and provide updates as they become available.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has extended the Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, expiration date to May 31, 2027.
Additional Information: For more information about completing Form I-9, employers can visit USCIS’ I-9 Central website or attend a free I-9 webinar.