How do I get a H1-b visa quickly?

[dean3d 0]

Hi,

I've had a look through the website but really overwhelmed by which forms are which and what I need to do.

I am currently staying with my girlfriend in the States and looking to secure some work in the IT field and was wondering what the best approach is for getting a visa. I hear the H!-B is good for someone with an in demand skill set. Looking at the job market though, there is a lot of contract work in my field. Is an H1-B visa suitable for this or can I get a temp worker visa for contract work?

Speaking with some recruiters, it looks like I have to get my own H1-B visa, but how do I get one if I can't get a job because I don't have a visa? Chicken and egg scenario or so it appears to me at the moment.

Please help.

[paojack 41]

You can't get a H1-B visa on your own at all, H-1B work-authorization is strictly limited to employment by the sponsoring employer. So you first need to find a job that would be willing to sponsor you thru the process, which is not easy and then I believe they have to demonstrate that nobody else would be able to do what you do... I hope you have awesome skills cause you are going to need them for this. I am not sure about the temp work visa though, that might be an 'easier' option.

[dean3d 0]

You can't get a H1-B visa on your own at all, H-1B work-authorization is strictly limited to employment by the sponsoring employer. So you first need to find a job that would be willing to sponsor you thru the process, which is not easy and then I believe they have to demonstrate that nobody else would be able to do what you do... I hope you have awesome skills cause you are going to need them for this. I am not sure about the temp work visa though, that might be an 'easier' option.

Thank you for the information. It has proven difficult to even get an interview due to a lot of companies not sponsoring prospective employees from overseas. Its been a wall I've come up against time and time again.

Do you know if there is a way I can at least extend my stay by my partner sponsoring me(supporting me financially)? This would not be under a K-1 which I think is the fiance visa.

Thanks again.

[aaron2020 11,651]

Thank you for the information. It has proven difficult to even get an interview due to a lot of companies not sponsoring prospective employees from overseas. Its been a wall I've come up against time and time again.

Do you know if there is a way I can at least extend my stay by my partner sponsoring me(supporting me financially)? This would not be under a K-1 which I think is the fiance visa.

Thanks again.

What visa did you enter the US with?

Your partner cannot sponsor you for anything unless you are intending to marry or are married. Marriage would be your only option for your partner to sponsor you (it cannot be a same sex marriage because the US government does not recognize them.)

[extrarius 1]

[...] Thank you for the information. It has proven difficult to even get an interview due to a lot of companies not sponsoring prospective employees from overseas. [...]

Unfortunately it's a hard truth, even for residents when it comes to the IT industry. The market is extremely super saturated (has been for about 10 years) due to the prolific upstarting of numerous "Computer Expert" classes, certification courses and so forth. So there are more people than there are jobs in the field (same happened with the forensics industry no thanks to television shows like CSI and ITT Tech). The problem with sponsoring IT H1-B is most companies either cannot afford or are willing to deal with the associated costs, and the ones that can (e.g. Google, Oracle, Microsoft which are notorious for using H1-Bs) require extremely specialized skills (Advanced Software Engineering, etc).

Edited February 28, 2012 by extrarius

[Boiler 43,430]

If you are good enough then the Employer will apply for and sort out the Visa. Their Lawyer anyway.

[kzielu 1,147]

Thank you for the information. It has proven difficult to even get an interview due to a lot of companies not sponsoring prospective employees from overseas. Its been a wall I've come up against time and time again.

Do you know if there is a way I can at least extend my stay by my partner sponsoring me(supporting me financially)? This would not be under a K-1 which I think is the fiance visa.

Thanks again.

Why would companies incur costs why they can get tons of people locally at no additional cost (cost of sponsoring for H-1B visa - typically 4-digit kind of number) ? That's why you are hitting the wall and you attitude is somewhat (sorry) - naive.

And by the way - if you entered on a VWP or B1/B2, once you overstay, you can forget about any kind of work visa. Only path for you seems to be marriage.

[kzielu 1,147]

Thank you for the information. It has proven difficult to even get an interview due to a lot of companies not sponsoring prospective employees from overseas. Its been a wall I've come up against time and time again.

Do you know if there is a way I can at least extend my stay by my partner sponsoring me(supporting me financially)? This would not be under a K-1 which I think is the fiance visa.

Thanks again.

Why would companies incur costs why they can get tons of people locally at no additional cost (cost of sponsoring for H-1B visa - typically 4-digit kind of number) ? That's why you are hitting the wall and you attitude is somewhat (sorry) - naive.

And by the way - if you entered on a VWP or B1/B2, once you overstay, you can forget about any kind of work visa. Only path for you seems to be marriage.

[paojack 41]

Why would companies incur costs why they can get tons of people locally at no additional cost (cost of sponsoring for H-1B visa - typically 4-digit kind of number) ? That's why you are hitting the wall and you attitude is somewhat (sorry) - naive.

And by the way - if you entered on a VWP or B1/B2, once you overstay, you can forget about any kind of work visa. Only path for you seems to be marriage.

Exactly! For companies to hire foreign people AND sponsor their visas can cost them thousands of dlls $$$, thing that obviously no one would like to do having so many IT's here, specially since that profession has become very popular lately and I am sure there's lots of them out there looking for a job. And again, you must be either very qualified or very lucky to find a company that would sponsor you.

Why you don't get married? Right here, right now! If you did not come to the US with intentions to marry, there will be no problem for you if you marry now and adjust status.

[Up and Away 10]

The above posters are correct, you cannot get your "own" H1-B.

Most recruiters do not understand work visa stuff at all, in my experience. So I am not surprised you were misinformed about the H1-B.

In my experience, companies that sponsor H1-B visas are the bigger, more sophisticated companies who have already done it a couple of times, have their own lawyer (in-house, even) to file the application, etc. If you are approaching small start-ups, you are going to have a hard time finding a H1-B sponsor.

If you are from Canada or Mexico, you can try to see if you qualify for a TN-1 visa, which is comparatively easier to obtain.

Finally, the only way your USC gf can help you is to marry you!

[dean3d 0]

Thanks everyone for the replies. It hasn't been the best reading some of these replies but if thats the way it is... Maybe I was been a little naive, but the market else where is very different than it is here, as I have been finding out.

Australia and New Zealand IT markets have to bring people in from abroad as they don't have the skills locally to fill the positions. I thought it would be the case here also but judging by your comments and my experience already this is not the case here.

Marriage does as many of you said seem like the best option though that is not yet possible in my current situation.

Thanks again.

[jaycali 415]

Thanks everyone for the replies. It hasn't been the best reading some of these replies but if thats the way it is... Maybe I was been a little naive, but the market else where is very different than it is here, as I have been finding out.Australia and New Zealand IT markets have to bring people in from abroad as they don't have the skills locally to fill the positions. I thought it would be the case here also but judging by your comments and my experience already this is not the case here.Marriage does as many of you said seem like the best option though that is not yet possible in my current situation. Thanks again.

H-1b visas come with a bit of luck, even if you'd been well qualified and as sponsored by Microsoft. There is a cap on H-1b visas, and there are about twice the amount of applicants as there are visas, so for those qualified, it's a 50/50 chance of actually getting one.

Like other poster have said, you best bet is to get married, but I understand that is not possible at this time.. It's a big step after all.

There is a temporary work visa available called H-2a, allowing for unskilled seasonal work for up to one year at a time. The catch is, the work generally has to be done in an area of the country where employers struggle to find enough willing and/or able workers. When I was on OPT, I managed a store up in Alaska during the summer in a town of 600 people. In the summer season, the town's population tripled, so nearly all the unskilled workers there working everything from the post office to the grocery store were on temporary H-2a visas. They even had a brigade of Bulgarian firefighters..!!

Again, the employer has to sponsor you for an H-2a.

Edited March 7, 2012 by jhsm85

[dean3d 0]

Thanks again for all your replies everybody.