United States

Work Visas (H-1B, L-1, O-1, E-2)

Non-immigrant work classifications for specialty occupation workers, intra-company transferees, individuals of extraordinary ability, and treaty investors.

Validity

H-1B: 3 yrs, renewable to 6+. L-1A: up to 7 yrs; L-1B: up to 5 yrs. O-1: up to 3 yrs, renewable in 1-yr increments. E-2: up to 2 yrs per entry, renewable indefinitely.

Processing Time

Premium processing 15 business days available for most categories

Pathway

H-1B and L-1 support dual intent and pair naturally with EB-based green cards; O-1 supports dual intent in practice; E-2 does not.

Section 01

Eligibility

Core criteria an applicant must meet to file under this category.

H-1B: specialty occupation requiring at least a US bachelor's degree (or equivalent); subject to the annual cap and lottery for new petitions
L-1A/L-1B: 1 of the prior 3 years employed abroad with a qualifying related entity in a managerial/executive (L-1A) or specialized knowledge (L-1B) role
O-1A/O-1B: extraordinary ability in sciences, education, business, athletics (O-1A) or extraordinary achievement in arts/entertainment (O-1B), evidenced by sustained acclaim
E-2: national of a treaty country investing a substantial amount in a real, operating US enterprise that is more than marginal

Section 02

Income Requirements

Financial Threshold

H-1B: wage must meet or exceed the prevailing wage and the employer's actual wage. E-2: 'substantial' investment is proportional to the cost of the enterprise — typically $100,000+ for most businesses, materially more for capital-intensive ones.

Section 03

Investment Requirements

Qualifying Investment

E-2: substantial, at-risk, irrevocably committed investment into the enterprise.

Other Qualifications

Documents & Conditions

Supporting requirements typically reviewed before and during the application.

Approved I-129 petition (or DS-160 + DS-156E for E-2 consular)
Consular interview where applying from abroad
For H-1B: registration selection in the annual lottery for cap-subject cases
For O-1: evidence across the regulatory criteria (awards, press, judging, original contributions, scholarly articles, leading roles, high salary, commercial success)

ImportantEligibility criteria, financial thresholds, and processing times are set by the relevant immigration authorities and change periodically. The figures shown are current general guidance only and do not constitute legal advice. We confirm exact requirements for your case during consultation.