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U.S. immigration law is federal:
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no matter where you are located,
in any state, in any country.
Attorneys Practicing U.S. Immigration Law Since 1991
There is no single “U.S. work visa.” Instead, U.S. law offers roughly two dozen temporary categories, each built for a specific situation — a company moving a manager from its London office, a hospital hiring a physicist, a resort staffing a summer season, an artist on tour. Choosing the right one is most of the work.
This section introduces the categories we are asked about most often. Each has its own page with details on eligibility, timing and cost.
Most categories follow the same three steps. First, a U.S. employer files a petition with USCIS on your behalf — you generally cannot apply on your own. Second, once the petition is approved, you apply for the visa at a U.S. consulate, normally in your country of nationality or residence. Third, a CBP officer at the port of entry decides whether to admit you and for how long. If you need more time later, see Extension of Stay.
A few categories skip step one. E-1 and E-2, E-3 and TN applicants can generally go straight to the consulate or the border, which often makes them dramatically faster.
| If this describes you | Look at |
|---|---|
| Professional job requiring a bachelor’s degree | H-1B |
| Same, and you are Australian | E-3 |
| Same, and you are Singaporean | H-1B1 (Singapore) |
| Same, and you are Chilean | H-1B1 (Chile) |
| Canadian or Mexican professional | TN (USMCA) |
| Transferring within your own company | L-1A / L-1B |
| Trader or investor from a treaty country | E-1 / E-2 |
| Top of your field, or internationally recognised | O-1 |
| Seasonal or peak-load non-farm work | H-2B |
The list above is not the whole of U.S. immigration law. Farm work has its own category, H-2A; trainees use H-3; journalists and broadcasters use I; athletes and entertainers use P; religious workers use R-1; and cultural exchange participants use Q-1. All of these are set out in our comprehensive List of Temporary Visas and Classifications.
Students can also work in limited ways: see F-1 academic students, M-1 vocational students and J-1 exchange visitors, or start with our Student Visas overview. People with a pending green card application can usually apply for an employment authorisation document while they wait — see the List of Primary Avenues to U.S. Permanent Residency and Employment-Based Green Cards. Temporary Protected Status can also carry work authorisation, although most designations are currently being terminated or are tied up in litigation, so it should never be assumed to be available.
Finally, some travellers may enter the United States without a visa — but none of those routes permits working for a U.S. employer.
H-1B is no longer first-come, first-served. Employers must first enter a beneficiary in an electronic registration lottery each spring, and only a selected registration can support a cap-subject petition. The caps themselves are unchanged: 65,000 general, plus 20,000 for holders of U.S. advanced degrees.
Screening has tightened across the board. H-1B and H-4 applicants are now subject to social media review, applicants generally must interview in their own country, and a proposed $100,000 payment for certain H-1B petitions filed from abroad is currently blocked by the courts but has not gone away. Because these rules are moving quickly, treat anything here as a starting point and contact our office to confirm the current position before you file.
This page is general information, not legal advice. Reviewed 31 July 2026.