How to Obtain a U.S Work Visa for Canadians

America known as the land of opportunities for most is one of the most popular destinations for Canadians to explore different prospects and gain employment. Most Canadians prefer moving to the United States not only because of its closer to home but also because it’s a familiar culture and environment. However, in order to start working in the United States, Canadians are required to have a valid work visa that will allow them to work in the U.S without any complications.

It is important to keep in mind that, Canadians can only apply for a work visa for the U.S only and only if they have a job lined up for them in the U.S and the employer is willing to sponsor them for the visa.

There are various categories of work visa’s that Canadian qualify for and although the process sounds a bit overwhelming in the beginning, it’s extremely simple and once you start the progression, it’s just a matter of time until you obtain your work visa.

H-1B Visa

This visa is for Canadians who are looking to gain employment in a specialty occupation which basically means that are professionals who at least have a bachelor’s degree or equivalent and can be anyone from accountants, engineers, computer programmers, web designers etc. They can be issued for both full-time and part-time positions.

How to Apply?

In order to apply for this visa, your employer has to file an H-1B petition before April 1st. The process takes place between multiple stages where the documents are submitted to the Department of Labor, Department of State and USCIS and it takes a few months for the whole process to be complete.
It is important to note that H-1B allows for ‘dual intent’ which basically means that you can apply for U.S residency while being on this particular visa.

TN Visa

This Visa was founded under the North American free trade agreement (NAFTA) between Canada, U.S, and Mexico. In order for Canadians to be eligible for this visa, they have to be:

• Qualified under the ‘professionals under the NAFTA’ list. More details on the listed professionals can be found here: http://www.tnvisaexpert.com/overview/nafta-job-list/
• The corporation in the U.S requires someone of that profession to work for them
• The corporation is a U.S based company
• The Canadian citizen meets the requirement for the specified profession.

The biggest advantage of TN visas is that they are valid for 3 years and you can apply for this visa one of two ways; either at the port of entry which is basically approved or rejected immediately on the spot or through the USCIS, which may take a couple of weeks. However, it is important to keep in mind that you cannot apply for U.S citizenship while on this visa, unlike its counterpart the H-1B visa.

L-1 Visa

This visa is suitable for companies who have affiliations within Canada and the U.S and are looking to send managers or executives from their Canadian office to the U.S for additional experience. The only disadvantage of this visa is that the employee applying for the visa has to be working in the Canadian company for at least one year. As with other visas, the visa will be issued for an initial 3-Year period.

This visa can also be applied to managers and executives who are going to the U.S to set up an affiliation with their Canadian company to the U.S provided that they have sufficient proof that there is a physical location to house the new office and the employee has been with the company for 1 year. These employees are only granted a visa for a year as opposed to three years.

O-1 Visa

The O-1 Visa is issued for individuals who hold an extraordinary ability in the arts, sciences, education or sports and may also include people in the motion picture or television industry. Most individuals are ineligible for this visa category but if you are qualified to apply for this visa you need to provide the necessary proof of the ‘extraordinary’ ability. This can be anything from memberships in associations, professional publications or a high salary as evidenced by contracts.

Now that you are well on your way to apply for a U.S work visa and are planning to move there, you will need to send funds from Canada to the U.S KnightsbridgeFX can do this for free as well as provide you with the best rate guarantee and a much better rate than your bank. You can contact us for currency exchange in Vaudreuil-Dorion.

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