What to Know About the US Employer-Sponsored Work Visa

An employer-sponsored work visa, also known as an immigrant work visa, is a type of immigration visa that is granted to people who find work in the United States and will settle permanently in the United States. Also known as a permanent work visa, an immigrant work visa gives you the right to reside in the United States indefinitely (Green Card), study, buy property, get a driver’s license, and enter and exit the United States freely.

US immigrant work visa applications are a process that is carried out by the employer operating in the US and the visa applicant completing separate procedures. In this process, the US Department of Labor (DOL), Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), National Visa Center (NVC) and the US Embassy in Ankara are the institutions responsible for carrying out different procedures from obtaining the work certificate to the visa interview.

Who is Eligible for a US Immigrant Work Visa?

Persons who are eligible for a US immigrant work visa are listed below.

Employment First Preference (E1): Priority workers and persons of extraordinary ability, distinguished professors and researchers, persons of extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, athletics, business or education, and senior executives who have worked for a foreign branch of a U.S. company within the last 3 years

Employment Second Preference (E2): Professionals with advanced degrees and those with exceptional ability in the arts, sciences or business

Employment Third Preference (E3): Skilled workers with more than 2 years of experience, professionals with higher education degrees, unskilled workers with less than 2 years of experience

Employment Fourth Preference (E4): In religious organizations, public or government sector or

certain special expatriates working in international organizations

Employment Fifth Preference (E5): Immigrant investors who invest between $500,000 and $1,000,000 in the U.S. economy, creating jobs and increasing economic development

The application requirements and procedures for each of the EB (employment based) visa categories listed above vary. For example, for the E1 visa group, which is given to those with extraordinary abilities, the applicant can apply to USCIS himself, while for the E3 visa group, which is given to skilled workers, the USCIS application must be made by the employer.

The remainder of the article covers the E3 (skilled workers, professionals, unskilled workers) work visa, which is a more inclusive visa group.

How to Get a Permanent Work Visa in the USA?

To apply for a permanent work visa in the USA, the steps below must be followed in order.

Your U.S. employer must obtain a labor certification for you from the Department of Labor.
The employer must file an immigrant employee petition with USCIS on Form I-140.
Once USCIS sends the application to the National Visa Center (NVC), you should wait for the application letter.
After receiving the NVC letter, the immigrant visa application fee must be paid.
You must go to ceac.state.gov and fill out the immigrant visa application form coded DS-260.
The necessary documents must be prepared completely according to the EB visa group you will request.
Once the NVC has given you an appointment date, your passport drop-off location must be determined at ais.usvisa-info.com.
A medical report must be obtained from a clinic approved by the US Embassy.
You must go to the American Embassy, submit the necessary documents, and attend a visa interview.

After the visa interview is completed, you will be notified of the approval status of your visa. For approved applications, you will be required to pay the USCIS immigration (Green Card) fee of $220 online before your travel to the USA. After you enter the USA with an immigrant visa, your residence card will be mailed to you by USCIS within 90 days.

DOL Certificate of Employment

A DOL labor certification is a document from the Department of Labor, Form ETA9089, that indicates to U.S. employers who want to hire a foreign worker that they are unable to find a suitable U.S. worker for the job. A DOL labor certification confirms that there are not enough available, qualified, and willing U.S. workers to fill the position at the current wage and that hiring a foreign worker would not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of similarly employed U.S. workers.

A sample DOL labor certificate is provided below.

USCIS Form I-140

The USCIS I-140 form must be filed by the employer for the foreign worker after the DOL labor certification is obtained. The I-526 form must be filed for EB-5 investors. With this petition, the employer notifies USCIS that they want to sponsor the employee and that they meet the visa criteria. After the petition is processed by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, a decision is made and the employer is notified of this decision. If approved, the National Visa Center will receive the application file.

A sample USCIS I-140 form is provided below.

What are the documents required for a permanent work visa in the USA?

The documents that must be presented at the visa interview for a US immigrant work visa are listed below.

DS-260 visa form approval page
Current and undamaged passport
Current job offer letter
Health report
Archived criminal record
Original copy of population registration certificate
Original marriage certificate for married persons
Divorce or death registration certificate for previous marriages
Military service status or exemption certificate)
Court records for cases such as trials, name changes, adoptions, etc., if any
Past US visas, if any
2 biometric photos
Appointment record printout

How Much Are US Immigrant Work Visa Fees?

As of 2024, the application fees to be paid for a US employment-based immigrant visa are as follows.

Application for a labor certificate $3450, paid by employer
USCIS I-140 application $725, paid by employer
Visa application fee $365
Health report $290
USCIS immigration (green card) fee $240

US immigrant work visa costs may be higher if sworn translation or notarization is required for the required documents and if consultancy services are received for the visa application.

When are Work Visa Procedures Concluded?

Since there are annual limits for work visas, processing times are long. Depending on how many people applied before you, visa processing can take from a few months to 3 years to complete.

After Entering the US on a Work Immigrant Visa

After entering the United States with an immigrant work visa, USCIS will verify that you have paid the immigration fee and your green card will be delivered to the address you provided during your visa interview within the next 90 days.

The situation described applies to all types of US immigrant visas .

Frequently Asked Questions

Questions frequently asked to our experts about employment-based immigration in the United States are answered below.

Do I Need to Get a Work Permit After Going to the USA?

Once you arrive in the United States, you can work with an immigrant work visa even if you don’t have an employment authorization document (EAD). An EAD is a document that only those working in the United States with an H-1B visa or similar nonimmigrant work visa are required to obtain.

Can My Spouse and Children Get an Immigrant Visa?

Your spouse and unmarried children under the age of 21 may apply for an immigrant visa with you. Like you, they must fill out the required application forms, obtain the required documents, pay the required fees, and undergo medical examinations.

Are There Immigration Quotas for Work Visas?

There are immigration quotas for work visas. Each fiscal year (October 1 – September 30), approximately 140,000 employment-based immigrant visas are available to qualified applicants under U.S. Immigration Law.

EB-1, EB-2, and EB-3 visas each capture 28.6% of the 140,000 annual work visas, which translates to about 40,000 people receiving visas each year. EB-4 and EB-5 visas each capture 7.1% of the total, or about 10,000 visas per visa type.

What Visa Should I Get to Start a Permanent Business in the USA?

To establish a permanent business in the United States, you must obtain an E5 visa. The U.S. Immigration Act offers immigrant investor visas to individuals who wish to come to invest in commercial enterprises that will create new job opportunities in the American economy, and investors applying for this visa category receive 7.1% of employment-based immigrant visas issued worldwide each year.

You can get information about the application conditions and process on the US immigrant investor visa page.