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H-1B specialty occupation

United StatesWork

Explore the five recorded questions, answers and sources for this pathway.

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Get your free results Read the five questions ↓

What type of worker, employment situation, occupation or professional activity is this pathway actually designed for?

H-1B is a temporary nonimmigrant classification for employment in a specialty occupation.

See recorded sources
Limits of the record
  • The captured official source does not establish every individual fact needed for approval; independent review and route-specific legal verification remain pending.

Does the applicant need a job offer, employer, sponsor, transfer relationship or other employer involvement? What is important about that employer relationship?

The H-1B employer files the required Form I-129 petition; the official page also describes employer changes through a new non-frivolous petition.

See recorded sources
Limits of the record
  • The captured official source does not establish every individual fact needed for approval; independent review and route-specific legal verification remain pending.
  • h1b captured official text, petition filing process
    The employer or agent should file Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker, at the correct location or online.
  • h1b captured official text, portability
    If you are changing H-1B employers, you may begin working for the new employer as soon as they properly file a non-frivolous Form I-129 petition on your behalf, or as of the requested start date on that petition, whichever is later. To be eligible for portability, you must not have been employed without authorization from the time of your last admission into the United States, and your new employer must properly file a new, non-frivolous petition before your H-1B period of authorized stay expires.

What are the few decisive professional characteristics of the pathway: occupation, qualifications, experience, salary, skill level, shortage status, labour-market condition or equivalent?

The H-1B annual cap is 65,000 new statuses or visas, with an additional 20,000 master’s-degree exemption and specified cap-exempt research and higher-education employers.

See recorded sources
Limits of the record
  • The captured official source does not establish every individual fact needed for approval; independent review and route-specific legal verification remain pending.
  • h1b captured official text
    The H-1B classification has an annual numerical limit (cap) of 65,000 new statuses or visas each fiscal year (with certain deductions and additions based on H-1B1 set asides and usage). An additional 20,000 petitions filed on behalf of beneficiaries who have earned a master’s degree or higher from a U.S. institution of higher education are exempt from the cap. Additionally, H-1B workers who are petitioned for or employed at an institution of higher education or its affiliated or related nonprofit entities, a nonprofit research organization, or a government research organization, are not subject to this numerical cap.

What work does the permission allow? Is the holder tied to an employer, occupation or sector? Can family accompany where clearly established?

The checked official sources did not provide enough route-specific evidence to confirm the work allowed, any tie to employer or sector and family accompaniment.

See recorded sources
Limits of the record
  • Not established: the correction failed a second independent check (NAO_SUSTENTA: Lead claim 'H-1B work authorization follows the filed Form I-129 petition' is a general rule no citation states (C1-C2 cover only new/changed employment and portability) - the same unsupported tie-to-petition claim flagged in round 1, reworded; rest is verbatim.)

How long is the permission normally granted for, how is it renewed, and what longer-term residence direction exists if officially stated?

The H-1B specialty-occupation worker may generally be admitted for up to 3 years, with a further period of up to 3 years, for a total of 6 years. After employment ceases, the worker may have up to 60 consecutive days, or the end of authorised validity if shorter, to find new employment, change status, or depart.

See recorded sources
Limits of the record
  • The captured official source does not establish every individual fact needed for approval; independent review and route-specific legal verification remain pending.
  • h1b captured official text, period of stay
    As an H-1B specialty occupation worker, you may generally be admitted for a period of up to 3 years. This initial period of admission may generally be extended for an additional period of up to 3 years, for a total period of admission of 6 years. If you possess a controlling interest in the petitioning organization or entity, meaning you own more than 50% of the petitioner or have majority voting rights in the petitioner, the approval of your initial petition and your first extension petition will each be limited to a validity period of up to 18 months.
  • h1b captured official text, portability grace period
    If you are laid off, fired, quit, or otherwise cease employment with your previous employer, you may have up to 60 consecutive days or until the end of your authorized validity period, whichever is shorter, to find new employment, change status, or depart the country.

These are the answers currently recorded in the catalogue. A missing or partial answer is not an eligibility decision.

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