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Nonimmigrant Visas

General Information

Opening Hours

Arrival-Departure Record (I-94)

Our Service Commitment

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Voluntary Departure/ Bond Returns

How to Read Your Visa

Application Process

Renewal of Lost, Expired, or Mutilated Visas

What to Expect

Additional processing

Visa Refusals

Visa Types

Business/Tourist

Student/Exchange

Work

Diplomatic/Official(A/C3/G)

Petition-based (H/L/O/P/Q)

Specialty Position E-3

FAQ

Immigrant Visas

American Citizen Services

Petition-based work visas

Anyone going to the United States with the intention of working there temporarily must obtain a nonimmigrant work visa. Applicants for nonimmigrant visas to work in the United States as skilled workers (H), intra-company transferees (L), persons of extraordinary ability (O), professional athletes, artists, and entertainers (P), or International Cultural Exchange Visitors (Q) first require a petition from a U.S. sponsor approved by the Department of Homeland Security’s Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Please contact your sponsor or USCIS if you have questions about your petition. You may check the status of your petition online at www.uscis.gov. Consular officers at U.S. Embassy Tel Aviv have no role in, or access to, the petition process.

USCIS will send you or your attorney and your sponsor a Notice of Action (I-797) when it approves your petition. You may apply for an H, L, O, P, or Q visa only after CIS approves your petition. The Embassy will have no information about the status your petition until it has been approved. A visa cannot be issued Without an approved petition or form I-797 from USCIS.

Please remember that while the approval from USCIS grants an applicant legal status to work in the United States, you will still need to apply for a visa to enter the United States. You should apply for a visa and pay the processing fee for you and your family as you would for any other visa type. However, you must not apply until you have received an approved petition.

Skilled Worker (H)

An H visa is issued to a nonimmigrant to allow travel for the purpose of temporary employment in the United States. To qualify for an H visa, the applicant must demonstrate that (a) the prospective employer has filed and USCIS has approved a petition (Form I-129) requesting H status for the applicant, and (b) the applicant qualifies for the specified employment by showing proof of education and relevant work experience.
Follow this link for more information on applying for an H visa.

Intra-company Transferees (L)

The L visa classification was created to permit multinational companies to transfer qualified employees temporarily to the United States for the purpose of improving management effectiveness, expanding U.S. exports, and enhancing competitiveness in overseas markets. An applicant for an L visa must demonstrate that (a) the prospective employer has filed and USCIS has approved a petition (Form I-129) requesting L status for the applicant; (b) the prospective employer is the same firm, corporation, or other legal entity, or parent, branch, affiliate or subsidiary thereof, for whom the applicant has been employed abroad; (c) the prospective employer will continue to do business in the United States and at least one other country; (d) the applicant has been employed overseas by the transferring organization for at least one year within the past three years; and (e) the applicant is a manager, executive, or employee with specialized knowledge and is destined to a managerial or executive position, or a position which requires specialized knowledge. Follow this link for more information on applying for an L visa.

Persons of Extraordinary Ability (O)

The O visa classification provides for the admission into the United States of persons with extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business and athletics, or extraordinary achievement in motion picture and television production, and their essential support personnel.

Only individuals qualify for the O-1 visa category. In order for a group to qualify, each member would be required to meet the extraordinary ability test. The visa is granted for a specific event, such as a tour, lecture series or project. Follow this link for more information on applying for an O visa.

Professional Performers, Entertainers, and Athletes (P)

The P-1 visa classification provides for admission into the United States of certain athletes, entertainers and artists, and essential support personnel. Individual members of the entertainment industry are not eligible for the P-1 visa classification, but individual athletes are. For members of the entertainment industry, the visa will be issued for a specific event only. However, individual athletes may be admitted for five years and a team for a period of six months.

The P-2 visa classification provides for the admission into the United States of an artist or entertainer, either an individual or group, involved in a reciprocal exchange program between an organization or organizations in the United States and one or more foreign countries which provides for the temporary exchange of artists and entertainers.

The P-3 visa classification provides for the admission into the United States of an artist or entertainer, either an individual or group, to perform, teach, or coach under a program that is culturally unique.
Follow this link for more information on applying for a P visa.

International Cultural Exchange Visitors (Q)

Participants in an international cultural exchange program designed to provide practical training, employment and sharing of the participant’s native culture, require classification Q visas.
The training/employment must be approved in advance by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) office in the United States on the basis of a petition, form I-129Q, which must be filed by the U.S. sponsor. Follow this link for more information on applying for a Q visa.