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Each year, U.S. companies extend thousands of
job offers to temporary workers in both skilled
and unskilled occupations to fill jobs for which
U.S. workers are in short supply. H-2B visas are
available for individuals with a variety of backgrounds,
as opposed to the H-1B visa, which is intended
only for individuals with a college degree or
its equivalent.
We assist companies, workers, and their dependent
family members in obtaining the H-2B visa. We
prepare the extensive paperwork, guide them through
the ever-changing rules, regulations and definitions,
coordinate matters between employer and employee,
and represent the parties before the INS and U.S.
Department of Labor, as well as the consulate
of the employee’s home country. We guide
the parties through decisions regarding the appropriate
job description, in light of INS regulations and
applicable jurisprudence, the application for
a Temporary Labor Certification with the U.S.
Department of Labor, financial requirements, travel
issues, extensions of stay, and the eventual change
from an H-2B visa to another visa, as appropriate.
The H-2B Visa Is
Outlined Below.
H-2B Visas are available for both skilled and
unskilled workers coming to the U.S. to engage
in a temporary or seasonal job for a U.S. employer
who has shown that that there are no qualified
Americans to take the job. Typical instances in
which H-2B visas are issued include: 1) seasonal
employees, such as cooks at resort hotels; 2)
peak-load situations, in which employers may have
a need to expand their staff to meet the temporary
demands of a particular contract; 3) lesser-known
entertainers who do not qualify for the O or P
visa; 4) athletes; 5) home attendants for the
terminally ill; 6) camp counselors; and 6) ski
instructors.
H-2B Visa Privileges:
• You can work legally in the U.S for
your H-2B sponsor.
• You may travel freely in and out of
the U.S. for the term of the visa.
• H-4 visas may be issued to accompanying
relatives, who are authorized to study, but
not work.
H-2B Visa Prerequisites
and Restrictions:
• You must be the recipient of a job offer
for a position that is to last for less than
one year. ( Once in receipt of a job offer,
you can apply for your H-2B visa without leaving
the U.S., if you meet certain criteria).
• Your employer must obtain a Temporary
Labor Certification (“TLC”) form
the U.S. Department of Labor, certifying that
there are no unemployed Americans available
to take the specific job offered to you. and
to determine whether the job is temporary and
thus appropriate for H-2B classification. Processing
time for the TLC is approximately four months.
• You must work for the employer who acted
as your H-2B sponsor. If you wish to change
jobs, you must apply for a new H-2B visa.
• H-2B status can be held for an initial
term of one year, with one year extensions permitted,
to a maximum of term of three years.
• Once you have held the H-2B visa for
the maximum term of three years, you must return
to your home country, and wait at least 6 months
before becoming the beneficiary of a new H or
L visa, unless you are eligible to change to
another status. (This rule does not apply if
you did not reside continually in the U.S. and
your employment in the U.S. was seasonal or
intermittent or was for an aggregate of six
months or less per year.)
Contact
us: jgagel@jgagel.com
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