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.
Since 2021, the semiconductor industry has announced nearly $80 billion in new investments in the United States. Congress passed the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 to strengthen semiconductor manufacturing, development and research and design in the United States. Most recently, on July 9, 2024, the Biden-Harris Administration announced an investment of up to $1.6 billion to establish and accelerate domestic capacity for semiconductor advanced packaging.
Importantly, the significant demand for high-end chips is the result of the recent surge of research and applications in artificial intelligence (AI). Advancements in AI research is centered on the use of high-performance chips to construct computing platforms. With the federal funding incentives and an increasing demand for chips, the U.S. semiconductor industry is positioned for high-stakes competition worldwide.
The semiconductor industry relies on a highly specialized combination of education, skills and expertise. Identifying key talent plays a pivotal role in this rapidly evolving industry. A shortage of skilled professionals could lead to delays or hinder the full utilization of invested capital.
Companies in the semiconductor industry are in a race to attract and retain talent to ensure their projects progress as planned to secure their market share and further invest in new research areas. As such, companies must be strategic in global workforce planning. This includes ensuring that their foreign national employee population maintains stable and secure options for U.S. employment authorization.
While there is a broad range of U.S. work permit categories, these are some of the most common visa classifications to hire highly skilled foreign national talent into the semiconductor industry.
H-1B visas are the most sought visa type among semiconductor companies, including but not limited to the following occupations: electrical engineers, electronics engineers, industrial engineers, software developers and logistics engineers.
The H-1B program permits employers to temporarily employ eligible foreign workers for a maximum of six years. One of the significant benefits of the H-1B visa is the possibility of extending the H-1B status beyond the statutory six-year limit if the foreign worker has reached certain milestones in the green card application process.
However, noted limitations to the H-1B visa program are timing and availability. H-1B visas are subject to a registration process and a lottery system. Employers that are interested in registering their employees in the H-1B lottery must plan ahead and implement contingency planning in the event the employee is not selected in the lottery.
The second most common visa type, particularly for global semiconductor companies, is the L-1 visa. The L-1 visa category provides opportunities for U.S. employers with qualifying international offices to transfer employees in either managerial (L-1A) or specialized knowledge (L-1B) positions from a foreign qualifying entity to their U.S. entity. The qualified employee must have at least one year of managerial or specialized knowledge experience with the foreign entity within the three years immediately preceding the filing of the L-1 petition.
For instance, companies may utilize the L-1 visa for an employee to transfer semiconductor device fabrication technology knowledge from a foreign entity to the U.S. entity. Companies also tend to transfer managers in different time zones to the U.S. to better manage their U.S. teams against tight project completion deadlines.
The L-1A visa can be renewed for up to seven years. On the other hand, the L-1B visa has a five-year limit. Engineers in the L-1B category may gain managerial responsibilities during their employment in the U.S. They are permitted to amend their status to L-1A to benefit from the additional two years of employment authorization. Companies who wish to sponsor their L-1 employees for a green card tend to start the process early, as it can take several years depending on the employee’s country of birth and visa preference category.
Pursuant to bilateral agreements between the U.S. and another country, certain nationalities are eligible for temporary nonimmigrant visas.
In general, individuals demonstrating extraordinary ability in business, science, education, art or athletics may qualify for an O-1 visa. Employers in the semiconductor industry tend to pursue this option for their engineers who have an advanced degree(s) and distinguished achievements, including published journal articles, peer review for academic journals, national or international awards and/or employment in a critical or essential capacity for distinguished organizations.
Employers may request up to three years initially and may extend the petition indefinitely in one-year increments. Due to the high legal standard as well as the significant required evidence for an O-1 visa, the preparation process is long and labor intensive. As such, employers should plan accordingly.
It is challenging to navigate immigration considerations while balancing the demands of an industry that is positioned to experience explosive growth. For this reason, it is critical for semiconductor companies to engage experienced immigration counsel to plan for and mitigate any possible employment interruption of their foreign national employee population.
BAL is a leading corporate immigration law firm with over 40 years of experience. We partner with organizations in the semiconductor industry and other tech fields to power human achievement, ensuring you have the highly skilled talent you need to be competitive. Our team of legal immigration experts will ensure a timely, compliant process that takes the administrative burden off your plate. Schedule a consultation to learn how we can support your immigration program.