Credential Evaluation
Good for You, Your Family, and Your Boss: H1B Status
Under H1B visa status, you can bring your family with you to stay for the duration of your visa status. This is often up to six years because the 3-year H1B visa is often extended. You can bring your spouse and your children up to the age of 21 with you under H4 visa status. Currently, H4 spouses cannot work in the United States, but statutes surrounding this are changing. Your children will be able to attend school in the US during your H1B stay as well.
Having an H1B job is a great way to get your foot in the door for a green card. Your employer can sponsor your green card petition and you will have developed a history of responsible US residency during your H1B stay. Of course, the H1B visa is a non-immigrant visa so naturalization is just an option. An H1B job is a great way to test out the US for you and your family before making a plunge into pursuit of citizenship.
Once you have H1B status, you are no longer subject to the annual cap. That means if you want to extend your visa beyond the first three years, you can do so without going through the lottery. You can also change jobs – as long as your new job is also an H1B position – and transfer your visa without being subject to the cap as well.
Getting this visa is the first step to retaining the benefits of having it. If you are petitioning for H1B visa status, you need to make sure you have ALL of the necessary documents ready to submit on April first. That means having your foreign degree evaluated for US equivalency. You need to order a credential evaluation from an agency authorized to convert classroom hours and work experience into college credit hours because educational structures and standards vary from country to country. A detailed evaluation that makes these conversions can clearly show the academic content of your degree.
For a free consultation on your credential evaluation, call or text us anytime at 1.800.771.4723 or visit us online at cciFree.com.]]>
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3 Details to Remember When Filing Your H1B Petition
Three things to remember when filing your H1B petition that will make a huge difference:
- Keep a Blue Pen Nearby. You need to sign everything in blue ink so the USCIS work evaluating your petition knows which signatures are originals and which signatures are yours from the time you filled out your petition. They’re going to request a host of original documents. Make it easy on overworked eyes to tell which signatures are originals and which ones are yours.
- Double-Check for Inconsistencies before Filing. This cannot be stressed enough. USCIS workers cannot assume what you meant if some of your answers contradict each other or don’t match up with the resumes, transcripts, and other documentation accompanying your application. Don’t mail in a petition without meticulously going over your answers.
- Include a Credential Evaluation. If your degree is from somewhere besides the United States and you submit your petition without having your degree evaluated by an authorized credential evaluation agency, the USCIS has no way of knowing the value or your education. Since you need a bachelor’s degree or higher for an H1B visa, it is essential for you to be able to clearly show what your degree means in terms of US academic standards.
USCIS workers cannot make assumptions about anything on your petition. Competition is too fierce to skimp on important details. Never be too hurried to double check your work, include all necessary documentation, and take that extra step to make your petition clear to the reader.
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How to Circumvent the H1B Petition Lottery
st of every year the USCIS begins accepting H1B visa petitions. Although they must stay open and continue accepting H1B petitions for at least five days, after the cap of 65,000 visas is exceeded the rest of the petitions are selected by lottery. That means if you don’t get your petition in as soon as you possibly can, the chance that your petition will even see the desk of a USCIS agent dwindles.
How can you avoid the lottery?
One way to circumvent the H1B lottery is to obtain an H1B job that is not subject to the annual cap. Government and non-profit research centers, non-profit sector occupations, and jobs working for colleges, universities, and other institutes of higher education are not subject to the cap.
Another way is to get your visa in as soon as the USCIS begins accepting petitions on February 1st. Every year more and more petitions are being filed due to the exploding information technology industry. Make sure you are ready to file on February 1st with all of the proper documents in their proper order.
One of these documents is an evaluation of your foreign education. If you got your degree outside of the United States it is your responsibility to clearly show what its academic value means in terms of US educational standards. The only way to do this is to get your degree evaluated by a credential evaluation agency with the authority to convert classroom contact hours into US college credit hours. This will bridge any gaps between the academic content of US degree programs and corresponding programs from other countries.
Have everything ready to submit on time to avoid the H1B lottery and boost your chances of having your petition approved. Once you have your H1B visa, renewals, extensions, and transfers are exempt from the cap. You will also have your labor rights protected and your family will be able to join you for your stay in the United States.]]>