You may be eager to get your H-1B visa application approved so that you may assume your specialty job position in the United States straight away. However, you must understand that the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) receives upwards of 200,000 applications per year; and with that, it may only approve 65,000 of those applications. This is all to say that you must anticipate lengthy wait times throughout this application process. Continue reading to learn the extent of the H-1B visa processing time and how an experienced work authorization permit lawyer in Milwaukee, WI, at Sesini Law Group, S.C., can help you expedite this process.
Approximately how long is the H-1B visa processing time?
First of all, you and your employer must effectively time out when you submit your Form I-129, Petition for Nonimmigrant Worker. That is, your employer should petition at least six months before they wish you to assume your specialty job position in the United States. This is because, while the USCIS may only take a couple of weeks to process your application, more realistically it may take closer to 10 months to get word on whether your application was approved or rejected.
But if you wish to start working in the United States sooner rather than later, then you may ask your employer if they are willing to pay for premium processing of your Form I-129. This ensures that the USCIS reviews your application within 15 calendar days of filing, or otherwise within 15 calendar days of your response to a request for evidence. As of 2024, this premium processing fee was set at $2,805.
If your H-1B visa application is taking more than 10 months to process, then you may place a service request with the USCIS. With this, you may receive a confirmation number and a new estimated time of processing. But if you still do not get word back, then you may seek the assistance of a legal representative.
How long is it until my H-1B visa expires?
You must understand that your H-1B visa is not a permanent visa. That is, you may only be allowed to stay in the United States for three years. You may extend your stay once for an additional three years, for a cumulative maximum duration of six years.
This is why, again, you and your employer must effectively time out when you submit a request for an extension. Meaning that this should be requested at least six months before its set expiration date. If not, you may experience a gap or loss of lawful status that ultimately interrupts your career trajectory in your specialty job position.
When requesting an extension on your H-1B visa, there is no one other than a skilled Milwaukee, WI work authorization permit lawyer to have in your corner. So please get in touch with us at Sesini Law Group, S.C. today.