Moving to United States

For individuals with extraordinary ability in sciences, education, business, or athletics. No job offer required — self-petition via agent.

Permanent residency path for professionals whose work benefits the US national interest. No employer sponsorship needed.

The most common US work visa for specialty occupations. Requires employer sponsorship and is subject to an annual lottery.

Allows multinational companies to transfer managers and executives to US operations. Strong path to EB-1C green card.

Permanent residency for individuals at the top of their field. Self-petition, no job offer or employer sponsor required.

Available exclusively to Canadian and Mexican nationals under CUSMA. No lottery, no employer petition — just a job offer in a qualifying profession. Canadians can often be approved at the border the same day.

Available exclusively to Australian nationals. Functionally similar to H-1B for specialty occupation roles, but with no annual lottery — renewals are indefinite as long as you have a qualifying job offer.

Available exclusively to nationals of Singapore and Chile under Free Trade Agreements. Similar to H-1B but exempt from the annual lottery cap — a significant advantage over the standard H-1B.

Exchange visitor visa for postdoctoral researchers, visiting scholars, and clinical research trainees. Sponsored by the host institution's Office of International Scholars, not by external sponsor orgs.

Visa for individuals with specialized knowledge transferring from a foreign office to a US office of the same employer. Different from L-1A (manager/executive). Up to 5 years total.

Permanent residency for skilled workers (2+ years experience), professionals (bachelor's degree), and unskilled workers. Lower bar than EB-2 but with longer processing times due to per-country quotas.

Academic student visa with up to 12 months of Optional Practical Training (OPT) post-graduation, extendable to 36 months for STEM degrees. The most common path for international students entering the US tech workforce.

Visa for nationals of treaty countries who invest a substantial amount of capital in a US business. Renewable indefinitely. Common path for entrepreneurs from UK, Germany, Spain, NL, Australia, and 80+ other treaty nations.