Non-immigrants
Nonimmigrants are admitted for a designated period of time and a specific purpose. They include a wide range of visitors, including diplomats, tourists, foreign students, and temporary workers. Although there are around 24 major nonimmigrant visa categories and many specific visa types, the nature and mission of The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston as a higher education institution and the specific purpose for which foreign nationals join the university determine the most common non-immigrant visas classifications used at UTHSC-H by international visitors, students and trainees, researchers, faculty and employees/
These visa categories are commonly referred to by the letter and numeral that denotes their subsection in the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA); for example, B-2 tourists, E-2 treaty investors, F-1 foreign students, H-1B temporary professional workers, or J-1 cultural exchange participants. Most of these U.S. nonimmigrant visa types and categories are defined in §101(a)(15) of INA
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) consular officer, at the time of application
for a visa, as well as the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) immigration
inspectors, at the time of application for admission to the United States, must be satisfied that the foreign national is entitled to nonimmigrant status. The law exempts only the H-1 workers, L intracompany transfers, and V family members from the requirement that they prove that they are not coming to live
permanently. The burden of proof is on the applicant to establish eligibility for nonimmigrant status and the DOS type of temporary visitor visa for which the application is made.
Immigrants
A foreign national who is lawfully admitted to the United States as an immigrant is commonly referred to by different terms, including: immigrant, permanent resident, lawful permanent resident and green card holder, among other labels. Immigrating to the U.S. is dependent on category, country of birth and visa number availability. A foreign national can qualify for lawful permanent residence through a number of avenues on three major bases: family, employment, and public or humanitarian policy.
Family-based categories require a close family member who is a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident to petition on behalf of the foreign national. Employment-based categories relate to the type of work that the foreign national will be coming to the United States to engage in, and usually require a U.S. employer to petition on behalf of the foreign national. Public and humanitarian policy bases for lawful permanent residents have developed to meet the needs of refugees as well as public policy goals such as diversity.
While U.S. permanent residence may be obtained through several pathways in a number of different categories, the information in this page concentrates on the employment-based categories most commonly used in an the academic environment .
Employment-Based Permanent Visa Application Categories, include:
Extraordinary Ability in the Sciences – This classification is reserved for aliens who have sustained national or international acclaim in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics. Congress intended this classification to be for “that small percentage who have risen to the very top of their field of endeavor.” Petition must be accompanied by evidence to prove national or international recognition and acclaim. A major, internationally recognized award such as an Academy Award or a Nobel Prize is sufficient to prove extraordinary ability.
Outstanding Professor and/or Researcher – This classification is for outstanding professors and researchers who are recognized internationally as exceptional in a specific academic area, have at least 3 years of teaching and/or research experience in the academic area and will be employed in a tenured or tenure-track teaching position or permanent research position. Petition must include evidence supporting specific criteria to proof that the visitor is recognized as internationally outstanding in the specific academic area.
Professionals holding advanced degrees - Through a Labor Certification process, this classification requires a test of the U.S. labor market proving there is no U.S. citizen or U.S. Permanent Resident who meets the minimum education, training and experience requirements to fill the position and perform the job. The Job cannot be tailored to the international.
National Interest - The alien must be seeking employment in an area of “substantial intrinsic merit, ”The proposed benefit of the alien’s employment will be national in scope; and The national interest would be adversely affected if a labor certification were required. To show this, the petitioner must prove that the alien’s work presents a national benefit, “so great as to outweigh the national inherent in the labor certification process.” The alien’s service will “serve the national interest to a substantially greater degree than would an available U.S. worker having the same minimum qualifications.”
Several employment-based categories may be an option for purposes of sponsoring a nonimmigrant foreign national for U.S. permanent residence based on full time long term employment with The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. In all cases,
institutional
policies and procedures must be met before the Office of International Affairs may process or sign a petition prepared by a hired attorney. At UTHSC-H, the Office of International Affairs is the solely designee for signing all immigration applications on behalf of the institution.
In general, depending on the pathways and the category selected, the process involved in becoming a U.S. permanent resident through an employment-based category involved several entities, include several phases,and might take from months to years.
Find more about these employment-based and other pathways to permanent residence from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and from the U.S. Department of State.
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Last Updated December 12, 2008
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