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A Visa, G Visa, and
Nato Visas
A visas are granted to diplomats, officials and employees of foreign governments coming to the US for official business. G visas are granted to employees of nongovernmental organizations and to lower ranking officials of foreign governments. NATO visas are granted to representatives of countries that are members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Because these visas are an important component of US foreign policy, they are largely under the control of the State Department, with little involvement from the USCIS.
B-1/B-2 Visitor's Visas
Available to visits coming to the U.S. for business or pleasure. B-1 business visitor visas are for a short duration and must not involve local employment. Nationals of certain countries may be eligible to visit the U.S. for up to 90 days without obtaining a visa.
E-1/E-2 Treaty Trader and Investor Visas
Investors and traders and their employees may receive visas to carry on their businesses in the U.S. if their home country has a commercial treaty with the US conferring visa eligibility.
F-1 and M-1 Student Visas
Persons seeking to pursue a full course of study at a school in the United States may be eligible for a visa for the course of their study plus, in some cases, a period for practical training in their field of study.
H-1B Specialty Occupation (Professionals) Visas
Professional workers with at least a bachelor's degree (or its equivalent work experience) may be eligible for a non-immigrant visa if their employers can demonstrate that they are to be paid at least the prevailing wage for the position.
H-2A Visas
The H-2A temporary agricultural visa is a nonimmigrant visa which allows foreign nationals to enter the U.S. to carry out temporary or seasonal agricultural labor or services.
H-2B Visas
For a foreign worker to be covered by an H-2B visa, the job the employer offers needs three essential criteria:
H-3 Visas
The H-3 nonimmigrant visa category is designed to allow foreign nationals to come to the US to receive training in many different
activities. Unlike the H-1B category, the H-3 is not a dual-intent visa, so the beneficiary cannot be pursuing avenues toward permanent
residency.
I Visa
The I visa is a nonimmigrant visa for persons entering the United States temporarily who are representatives of the foreign media traveling the U.S. to engage in their profession.
J-1 and Q-1 Exchange Visitor Visas
Persons coming to the U.S. in an approved exchange program may be eligible for the J-1 Exchange Visitor's visa. J-1 programs often cover students, short-term scholars, business trainees, teachers, professors and research scholars, specialists, international visitors, government visitors, camp counselors and au pairs. In some cases, participation in a J-1 program will be coupled with the requirement that the beneficiary spend at least two years outside of the U.S. before being permitted to switch to a different non-immigrant visa or to permanent residency.
K-1 Fiancee Visas
A Fiance(e) of a U.S. citizen is eligible for a non-immigrant visa conditioned on the conclusion of the marriage within 90 days.
K-3 and K-4 Visas
On December 21, 2000, the Legal Immigration and Family Equity (LIFE) Act amended the K nonimmigrant visa category to include the spouse and unmarried children of United States citizens. With this modification, the spouse and children of a United States citizen may be admitted to the United States as K-3 and K-4 nonimmigrants to complete their process for permanent residence.
L-1 Intracompany Transfer Visas
The L-1 Intracompany Visa is defined in the regulations as a foreign national who, within three years preceding the time of his or her application for admission into the United States, has been employed continuously for one year by a firm or corporation or other legal entity or parent, branch, affiliate, or subsidiary thereof and seeks to enter the United States temporarily in order to render his or her services to a branch of the same employer or a parent, affiliate, or subsidiary in one of the following capacities:
L-1 classification may be granted to a foreign national coming to the United States as a manager, executive or someone with specialized knowledge to OPEN or to be employed in a new office in the United States. The foreign national may also be the owner or major stockholder of the company.
O-1 Extraordinary Ability Worker Visas
The O-1 category is set aside for foreign nationals with extraordinary ability. This includes entertainers, athletes, scientists, and business persons.
P-1 Artists and Athletes Visas
This category covers athletes, artists and entertainers.
R-1 Religious Worker Visas
Religious workers may be eligible for an R-1 visa.
S Visa
The S visa is given to aliens who assist US law enforcement to investigate and prosecute crimes and terrorist activities.
T Visa
The visa was created by the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000, and allows people who have been trafficked into the US to remain in the US while the case against their trafficker is pursued. It is believed that as many as 50,000 to 75,000 people, mostly women and children, are trafficked into the US each year and are often forced to live in slavery-like conditions. The visa was created in the hope that by offering victims a way to remain in the US lawfully, they would be more willing to contact authorities with information about traffickers.
TN Status Under the North American Free Trade Agreement
A special category has been set up for nationals of Canada and Mexico under the provisions of the North American Free Trade Agreement.