H1B Visa is a temporary work visa for U.S.A.

In order to be eligible to get H1B Visa, you need to meet 3 qualifications

• Do you have a bachelor’s degree or the equivalent?
• Will you be working in a “specialty occupation?”
• Will you be earning atleast prevailing  wage?

USCIS is the governing organization that controls the approval of initial H1B Visa Application.  They have defined Specialty Occupation requirements and decide if your job qualifies as specialty occupation.

Current H-1B Visa Season : H1B Visa 2016 started on April 1, 2015.

Here’s a quick overview of  H1B Visa Process

1. Preparation Phase

This is the most important phase of H1B Visa processing. Either finding a sponsor or convincing your current employer to apply for H1B Visa in upcoming cap season with USCIS.

2. Application Phase

After you receive you job offer, employer will pass your details to Immigration Attorney. Then Immigration Attorney will contact you requesting further details. This works when you are directly hired by an employer  in U.S.A.

IT Services company at times will not let employer speak directly with Immigration Attorney. All the communication will be via company’s HR person.

Here, employer and employee provides the required documents to Attorney. They would file the application with USCIS for further processing.

3. H1B Visa Processing Phase by USCIS

Getting H1B Visa approval can also be challenging at times. If the employer is an Consulting company, then documents required by USCIS are sometimes difficult to provide by the employer (small firms).

Unofficial statistics says about  15% H1B Denials by USCIS for various reasons.

4. After H1B Visa Approval Phase

This is the Happy Phase. If you are located outside U.S.A. you can get ready to attend visa interview at U.S. Consulate then get ready to come to U.S.A.

If you are already in U.S.A. you can get ready to work on H1B from the start date as mentioned in the I-797 approval notice.

Employer can initiate the Green Card Process after you have been working for them for a period of few years or months.