The H1-B visa program, designed to give highly skilled individuals the right to work in the U.S., is currently very popular, with a record-breaking 233,000 applications received for FY 2016. With a federally mandated cap on the number of visas granted at 65,000, only about 28% of applicants who apply actually receive an H1-B visa each fiscal year, leaving nearly 150,000 applicants with a denied petition.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) begins accepting applications as early as April 1 for the next fiscal year beginning October 1. Employers needing to bring highly skilled workers into the country under H1-B visas are well advised to speak with an experienced business immigration lawyer at the earliest opportunity.

Richard Tashjian with Tashjian Law Group PC has nearly a quarter of century of experience obtaining nonimmigrant visas for his clients. With an estimated 99% success rate, he has earned a reputation as one of the top H1-B visa attorneys in the country.

H1-B Visa Attorney to Help You Meet USCIS Requirements

The USCIS H1-B requirements are very specific, requiring extensive documentation. Due to the USCIS’s complex, extensive application criteria, and the limited number of visas granted, you cannot afford to make a mistake in your petition. Thus, obtaining the assistance of an experienced H1-B visa attorney can be key to the success of your petition. The requirements for obtaining an H1-B visa include the following:

• H1-B worker must have an employee-employer relationship with petitioning employer. This is determined by whether the U.S. employer has the right to hire, fire, supervise, pay, or otherwise control the work performed by the H1-B worker.
• The job must meet certain educational criteria to qualify as a specialty occupation. The job will qualify if: 1) a bachelor’s or higher degree or equivalent is the normal minimum requirement for the position; 2) the degree requirement is common in the industry, or the job can only be performed by someone with at least a bachelor’s degree in the field, because of its uniqueness or complexity; 3) the employer normally requires an employee who holds the position to have a degree or its equivalent; or 4) the specific duties of the job are so specialized and complex that the knowledge required to perform them is generally associated with a bachelor’s degree or higher.
• The job must be in a specialty occupation related to the worker’s field of study. H1-B petitioners must submit evidence, such as written opinions from experts in the field, printouts from online resources about the degree fields typically associated with the occupation, or evidence that similar companies require similar degrees for similar positions.
• The worker must be paid the higher of the actual or prevailing wage for that occupation. The prevailing wage is taken from the U.S. Department of Labor’s database of wages, based on location and occupation.
• Unless the petition is exempt from numerical limits, an H1-B number must be available at the time the petition is filed. The federally mandated numerical cap for H1-B visas is 65,000 per fiscal year. (The first 20,000 applications filed for individuals who hold U.S. master’s degrees or higher are exempt from the cap.) Numbers are used up quickly, and it is important to plan well in advance to obtain an H1-B visa.

Our practice at Tashjian Law Group PC is focused exclusively on immigration matters, including nonimmigrant visas. You can rely on us for fast, efficient, and effective representation. Contact us today if you need to obtain an H1-B visa.