Work Visa Attorney for Tampa, Florida & Surrounding Areas: Call Maney | Gordon Today

Non-US citizens who wish to work in the Tampa, Florida area will typically need a work visa. The procedure involved in getting a work visa, however, is filled with legal requirements and red tape. Whether you are interested in an H1B work visa to join a Clearwater, FL engineering firm or a P1 work visa to compete at a Tampa sporting event, call Maney | Gordon, P.A. for a free initial consultation with a work visa attorney about your case.

A first step in your path to a work visa is deciding which visa will suit your needs. There are more than 60 temporary, non-immigrant work visas available in the United States. In addition to a temporary non-immigrant visa, you may also be interested in learning more about an immigration visa to become a permanent US resident through employment.

Examples of non-immigrant, temporary work visas include the following:

• B1 visa—This “business visitor” visa allows foreign businessmen and businesswomen to enter the United States for short periods of time, typically no more than 6 months per year. A B1 visa is ideal for business travelers who wish to attend a meeting or conduct interviews in the US. However, the B1 visa is technically not a work visa because it does not allow gainful employment in the United States.
• E1 visa—An E1 “treaty trader” visa is a highly desired work visa because it permits foreign nationals to be employed indefinitely by their own import/export enterprise in the US as long as their business is involved in a substantial amount of US trade with treaty countries.
• E2 visa—The E2 “treaty investor” visa enables investors from qualified treaty countries to work in the US for the purpose of directing and developing their investments.
• H1B visa—Foreign professionals would request an H1B visa to work in the United States in a specialty occupation. Companies might also be interested in H1B visas in their quest to recruit qualified employees from overseas. A specialty occupation requires at least a bachelor’s degree or its equivalent in fields such as medicine, engineering, architecture, mathematics, and the arts.
• H2 visa—Foreigners who have been offered a job for temporary or seasonal agricultural work in the greater Tampa Bay, Florida area would need to hold an H2 work visa through their petitioning employers.
• L1 visa—When an employer in the Tampa, Florida area wishes one of its foreign executives to transfer from an overseas office to the US, an L1 “intra-company transferee” visa typically would be appropriate. This work visa is reserved for those in executive and management positions (L1A visa) or those with specialized knowledge and/or skills (L1B visa).
• O1 visa—For those with extraordinary abilities in the arts, science, sports, and/or entertainment.
• P1 visa—Foreign born athletes, performing artists, and culturally unique entertainers may enter the US to compete or perform under a P1, P2, or P3 work visa.
• R1 visa—The R1 religious workers visa allows non-US citizens to enter the United States so that they may temporarily perform the duties of their religious profession. This work visa applies to those who have demonstrated a serious commitment to religious work in a recognized denomination.

While the work visas listed above are for individuals who want temporary, non-immigrant status, there are permanent visas, also known as green cards, available for working immigrants who want to make their home in the United States. In some cases, foreign citizens can use their temporary work visas as a stepping stone to later obtain an immigration visa and permanent residence in the US. Keep in mind, however, that an immigrant interested in permanent residence thorough employment usually must be sponsored by a US employer. Another work-based option for lawful permanent residence in the US is the EB5 visa for business investors.

A Tampa immigration attorney from Maney | Gordon, P.A. will have the experience and knowledge necessary to assist both immigrants and employers with temporary and permanent work visas in the Tampa Bay area and beyond. Call our immigration and visa attorneys in Tampa, Florida toll-free at 1-866-324-8775 if you are in the United States. From outside the US, you may reach us at 813-221-1366. We also have an online form on our “Contact Us” page for your convenience.