The H-1B Visa cap will open on April 1 and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will stop accepting petitions after April 7.

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1 H-1B Visa Roadmap The Complete 5-Step Guide The H-1B Visa cap will open on April 1 and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will stop accepting petitions after April 7. Don t be left out. Use this H-1B roadmap to make sure you are on track to having a successful H-1B cap season. Starts here

2 step 1 Get Started Now Notify Your Attorney Notify your attorney that you have a H-1B petition that needs to be fi led with this year s cap, including any employees that hold Optional Practical Training (OPT) status. The sooner you contact your attorney, the sooner you can prepare the case and identify what will be required. Start Your H-1B Petitions Contact VISANOW or your legal partner to start any H-1B petitions right away. Work with your attorney to confi rm that the employee s education meets requirements and that the job description and wage meet federal requirements. Confirm That All Requirements Are Met step 2 Requirements for sponsorship When sponsoring an H-1B visa, both the foreign national employee as well as the position being hired for must meet the following requirements: (on next page)

3 Foreign National Requirements: Must have completed a 4 year bachelor s degree in a fi eld of study related to the position If the degree was obtained overseas or is not a 4 year bachelor s degree, an education evaluation must be completed Work experience can be used to substitute years of study. 3 years of work experience is equivalent to 1 year of study. = 3 YEARS OF WORK YEAR OF STUDY 1 Position Requirements: Industry standard education requirements for the position must include a bachelor s degree Salary for the position must meet minimum prevailing wage requirements If the position requires the employee to work off-site, additional proof of employment may be needed step 3 Collect Documents and Submit to Attorney Which Documents Do you need? Use the following list of required documents to get organized. (on next page)

4 Employer DOCUMENTS Company Documents: USCIS uses marketing materials to verify that your company is a legitimate employer. Document examples Corporate website content Catalogs Brochures Collateral * financial Documents: Although not mandatory, fi nancial documents help USCIS verify the legitimacy of your company. Document examples Tax returns or an Annual report If this is your first time sponsoring a foreign national, request your FEIN issuance letter from the IRS. You can call the IRS at (800) and they can or fax you a copy of the letter. Local business registration Business plan Client list FEIN Letter! Special note for first time sponsors and small businesses: Small businesses and start-ups are sometimes scrutinized more, so be prepared!

5 Employee DOCUMENTS Use this list as a standard H-1B resource. Give this documents list to any employees in need of an H-1B visa. Education Documents: USCIS needs to confi rm that the employee s education and work experience meet requirements. Document examples College diploma Transcripts Education evaluation: If the employee s degree was completed outside of the U.S., an education evaluation must be completed to confi rm that the degree meets minimum requirements Don t know of any education evaluation partners? VISANOW can submit your employee s transcripts to one of our education evaluation partners! Turnaround is usually 3-5 days with rush processing available. Travel and Immigration Documents: If the foreign national employee is currently inside the U.S. or has ever entered the U.S., USCIS needs to confi rm that the individual has maintained all legal statuses while in the U.S. Document examples Passport Biographical Page If the employee has a previous U.S. visa Collect approval notices for all previous U.S. visas. If the employee is currently located in the U.S. The I-94 entry/departure document. You can get a copy of the I-94 online at If the employee currently holds F-1 Student Status Collect a copy of the I-20. If the employee has current work authorization and is employed Collect previous paystubs and work authorization documents.

6 step 4 Labor Condition Application (LCA) You don t want the LCA to get in the way of fi ling the H-1B petition. Make sure you give yourself plenty of time to fi le. Tips for Filing the LCA: To make things easier on yourself, work with a legal service provider who will fi le the LCA on your behalf. If the employee s offered wage is below prevailing wage requirements, the Department of Labor will not approve the LCA. If that happens, you will have to refi le. Standard processing time is 7 days, but during cap season can jump up to 10 days, so be sure to plan accordingly. To be on the safe side, try to fi le your LCA by March 20. In order to have any chance of making it into the lottery, the last day to fi le an LCA is March 31. SHOULD FILE BY: STANDARD PROCESSING TIME: DUE DATE:

7 step 5 File the H-1B Petition In order to make sure your H-1B petition is accepted into the lottery, it is ideal to have all petitions completed before April 1. WHAT TO EXPECT: If your application is accepted: This means you have been accepted into the lottery. Lottery selection is completely random and there is nothing you can do to increase your chances of making it into the lottery, which is why it s crucial to apply early. From there, USCIS reviews your application. You will receive a receipt number, which means your application is being processed. Use this receipt number to check the petition s status on the USCIS website. Before your petition is approved, USCIS can submit a Request for Evidence (RFE) if they feel not enough information was provided to make a final decision. 85,000 APPLICATION SPOTS are available for the lottery, but USCIS typically accepts more than that. If your petition is rejected (not accepted into the lottery): Your petition will be sent back to you along with any fi ling fee payment. If you work with VISANOW and the petition is not accepted into the lottery, we will re-file the same H-1B petition in next year s cap for free. *

8 How VISANOW can help: 1 VISANOW s online platform streamlines the immigration process, helping you and your employees file by April 1. 2 VISANOW s expert immigration attorneys advise you each step of the way, helping you meet all requirements for job descriptions and more. 3 We offer a money-back guarantee on all US work visas. If your petition is not approved, VISANOW will issue a full refund. Contact VISANOW today for a free demo at if you d like to learn more about our services.