Getting an H-1B
nonimmigrant visa for new employment with a private employer in
the United States has become an obstacle course that now even
requires winning a
lottery. The process has become so complicated that H-1B
beneficiaries lucky enough to find a bona fide offer of employment,
win the visa lottery, and actually have their case approved by U.S.
Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) still cannot start to
work in H-1B status until October 1, 2014.
And if that were not bad enough, there is an additional hurdle
that H-1Bs who are outside the United States or who were not
eligible to change status in the United
States have to overcome: a visit to a U.S. Consulate abroad to
obtain an H-1B visa stamp based on the USCIS approval. Although
some aspects of the procedure vary from consulate to consulate, this process generally
involves filing an online visa application, paying a fee, and being
interviewed by a consular officer.
