Immigration Laws on Work Permits

There are different types of work permits which allow non-US citizens to live and work in the States.

Two main categories are:

• Work Study Permit (this is allows people who are on Student Visa F-1 to work) A student has to be in school for at least nine (9) months before applying for off campus work visa.
• H1-B which an American employer petitions for the foreigner. The H1B has a cap of 65,000 per year, and this cap is normally reached on or a few days begining April of each year. For example, the Fy 2008 H1B cap was reached by the the April 2/3rd applications.

Notes

• There is an extra 20,000 visa for those with Advanced degrees.
• Some organizations, e.g. Non profit organizations and educational institutions are not affected by the H1-B cap

Related Information

• For more information see www.uscis.gov