US companies are looking for skilled, talented and educated foreigners to move to Illinois to work and help grow their business and the economy. Relocating to Chicago as an expat requires a lot of effort, paperwork and fees, including a work permit, which can take some time to get approved. Illinois business immigration work visas are a work permit that allows you to live and work in the US. Nonimmigrant (temporary) and immigrant (permanent) employment-based visas are established and regulated by the United States Congress.
If you want to move to the US permanently, you need to apply for a permanent work visa:
• EB-1 visa: for priority workers with extraordinary ability, including professors, researchers, executives, managers and athletes – not required to obtain labor certification
• EB-2 visa: for advanced degree professionals and professionals with extraordinary abilities in the sciences, arts or business
• EB-3 visa: for skilled workers filling positions for which qualified U.S. workers are not available
• EB-4 visa: for special immigrants and religious workers, including broadcasters, physicians, armed forces members, international organization employees and others
• EB-5 visa: for investors and entrepreneurs investing a minimum of $1 million or, in a targeted employment area, a minimum of $500,000 in an enterprise that will create or preserve at least 10 full-time jobs for qualifying U.S. workers within two years
Foreign nationals seeking a temporary work visa for the US for a specific time period need to qualify and apply for one of the many categories of temporary and special work visas:
• TN NAFTA visas are for Canadians and Mexicans who want to work in the United States
• Q visa are for a cultural
• L-1A/B visa are for intra-company transfers
• J-1/2 visas for exchange visitors
• O visas are for people with extraordinary or exceptional skills
• I visas are for foreign media
• P-1A/1B/2/3 visas are for athletes, entertainers, and performers in a cultural exchange program
• E-1/2/3 visas are for traders and investors from Australia
• H- 1C visas are for nurses
• H-1B visas are for tech workers and specialty occupations
• H-2A/B visas are for agricultural and non-agricultural workers
• R visa for religious workers
In many cases, both the foreign employee and the US employer will be required to complete immigration and visa applications for visas, and many of the categories have annual caps or limits that vary from year to year. Requirements, applications, and processes can be challenging. Many employers who want to hire foreigners and foreigners who want to work in the US hire a business immigration lawyer for advice and to help them successfully manage the immigration procedures.
Business immigration law is the practice of immigration law for employment reasons. A business immigration lawyer works with both employers who want to hire skilled foreign workers, and foreign nationals who want to come to the United States to work temporarily or permanently.
At Godoy Law Office with locations in Chicago, Lombard and Oak Brook, Illinois, we work with employers in many fields including health care, technology, startups, sports, business, education and finance to help identify the best way to solve your foreign worker’s needs. We also work directly with foreign nationals who want to live and work in the Chicago area.
If you have a question about immigration employment in Illinois, contact the immigration attorneys at Godoy Law Office.
