What Is The H-2B Visa Program?

The H-2B program permits companies in the United States or their agents in the United States that fulfill particular regulatory standards to import foreign nationals to the United States to fill temporary nonagricultural positions.

What is the difference between H1B and H-2B visa?

What is the difference between an H1B and an H2B visa?H-1B visas are intended for the hiring of highly skilled workers with university degrees and relevant job experience in a certain field.If their applications are accepted, they will be allowed a term of three to six years.H-2B visa holders, on the other hand, are only permitted to stay for one year, with the option of renewing for another two years.

How easy is it to get a H-2B visa?

The following standards must be met by your company in order to be eligible for an H-2B visa: The employer must have a requirement that is seasonal, one-time, intermittent, or peak in volume. The work must be available for less than one year at a time. There must be no qualified and willing people in the United States available for the position.

How long can I stay in the US after my H-2B visa expires?

Additionally, H-2B employees are authorized to remain in the United States for up to ten days after the expiry date of the granted H-2B petition in order to depart the country or apply for an extension or change of non-immigrant status if the petition is denied.

What is the difference between H-2A and H-2B?

H-2A visas can be granted to seasonal agricultural workers in order to cover temporary agricultural positions for whom no qualified U.S. employees are available at the time of application. H-2B visas are granted to unskilled individuals to do jobs that are temporary or seasonal in nature and for which there is a scarcity of qualified American employees in the United States.

Can I get married on a H-2B visa?

A marriage-based green card can be applied for if you are an H-1B visa holder who fell in love with and married an American citizen or lawful permanent resident (green card) in order to assure that you would be allowed to live and work in the United States continuously and without interruption. A green card also provides you with a potential road to citizenship in the United States.

How much does a H-2B visa cost?

What is the cost of an H-2B visa in the United States? The processing cost for an H-2B petition is $460 as of January 2021, according to the USCIS. In the event that you need to apply for a visa to the United States through an embassy or consulate overseas, the visa cost is $190. Depending on your country, you may also be subject to additional costs.

Can a H-2B worker apply for green card?

Is it possible to obtain a ″green card″ (permanent residency) or citizenship in the United States after receiving an H-2B visa? No. The H-2B visa is a nonimmigrant visa that is only valid for a specific amount of time. It does not place employees on a route to permanent residence in the United States or citizenship in the United States.

Can I stay in the US while my I-539 is being processed?

When my Form I-539 is pending and my I-94 has expired, what should I do? If you applied for an extension before your I-94’s expiration date and your application is still being processed, you will be allowed to remain in the United States for a total of 240 days.

How does USCIS know if you left the country?

First and foremost, yes, USCIS is aware of your departure from the country. How, you may wonder. Because anytime a foreigner purchases an airline ticket in the United States, such information is given to the Customs and Border Protection department (CBP). The information is subsequently forwarded to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

What happens if I stay more than 6 months in USA?

Cases of overstaying a term of stay in the United States by 180 days or more but less than one year are penalized by a three-year ban on entry to the United States. Overstaying for a period of one year or more is penalized by a 10-year ban on travel to and from the United States.

Who uses H-2B visas?

Citizens of Haiti, Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador are eligible to apply for the remaining 11,500 visas that are exempt from the necessity to return to their country of origin. The H-2B program allows firms to hire noncitizens to work in the United States for a limited period of time to conduct nonagricultural labor or services.

Can H-2B adjust status?

Is it feasible to modify the status of an H-2B visa if you have one?Indeed!When changing companies or employment, H-2B visa holders can petition to have their immigration status modified on their H-2B visas.The new employer must file Form I-129, the Petition for Nonimmigrant Worker, with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Regional Service Center in his or her home country.

Can I transfer my H-2B visa?

It is not possible to transfer the visa from one employer to another. If an H-2B visa holder wishes to work for a different company in a comparable role, the H-2B visa holder would be required to get a new H-2B visa from the Department of Homeland Security. The new employer must file ETA Form 750 and begin the H-2B visa application procedure all over again.