H1B Visa Requirements and Process

By: Paul Anderson | Posted: 09th November 2010

Any foreign national who seeks to enter the United States must obtain a visa. The United States visas are classified into Immigrant and Non-immigrant visas. The immigrant visas are used by people who wish to travel to live permanently in US and non-immigrant visas are used by people who travel to US on a temporary basis for business or pleasure.

People who wish to enter United States for employment purpose must obtain a working visa in order to be eligible to work in the United States. United States offers working visas such as H1B and H2B visas . The H1B working visa falls under the non-immigrant visa category. This visa allows a foreign national to be sponsored by a US Company for a period of six years and may lead to sponsor for Green Card. This H1B visa is mainly designed to be used for people who come under the Specialty Occupations category.

People who seek to enter United States using the H1B visa must be offered a job in the United States and must be sponsored by the employer of that company / organization. Also it is the duty of the US sponsor or the employer to prove that the position requires a skilled person from a specialty occupation and the intended employee has the required skills. The Specialty Occupations require a high degree of specialized knowledge (usually this requirement can be met by having a 3 year degree or 3 years' equivalent post-graduate experience), such as mathematics, architecture, engineering, and other occupations

List of documents needed for H1B visa

There are certain eligibility requirements to be met by both the US employer and the applicant when applying for the H1B visa. The U.S. employer must agree to pay the H-1B employee at least the prevailing wage earned by similarly employed workers in the area of employment and must make other attestations as required by the Department of Labor. The applicant must hold a bachelor's degree, possess specialized skill, and must speak and read English.

The applicant must ensure he/she provides the required supporting documents to be eligible for H1B visa. Below listed is the basic documents that the applicant must provide.


After the application for H1B visa has been submitted by the US employer, USCIS will review the application for completeness with inclusion of the supporting documents. If USCIS finds the application is incomplete or if any required document is not submitted, the application might be rejected. On approval of the application, USCIS will send an approval notice to the US employer. If the petition visa is approved, an Approval Notice will be sent. Using the Approval Notice, the applicant may obtain the H1B visa from the US Consulate. If the application is denied, USCIS will notify applicant in writing the reason for rejection.
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Tags: 3 years, six years, bachelor, occupations, department of labor, mathematics, eligibility requirements, green card, company organization, post graduate, immigrant visas, visa category, working visa, non immigrant visa, skilled person