Colorado Springs Employment Immigration Attorney

Employment immigration attorneys in Colorado Springs assist businesses and other organizations in bringing employees into the United States for employment purposes. These visas can be temporary or aimed at permanent residence or citizenship. 

Employment-Based Immigrant Visas

The first step in sponsoring someone for an employment-based immigrant visa is often for the prospective employer to obtain a labor certification approval from the US Department of Labor. Not all employment-based visas require certification, but most do. We look at some of the categories for employment-based visas below. 

Employment First Preference – E1

The E1 visa is for priority workers and persons of extraordinary ability. More specifically, these are:

• Persons with extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics. Individuals must have extensive documentation showing sustained national or international acclaim and recognition in their field. The E1 visa does not require a job offer, so long as the candidate is entering the US to continue work in their existing field. 
• Outstanding professors and researchers with at least three years of experience in teaching or research, with international recognition. Applicants in this category must be coming to the US. to pursue tenure, tenure track teaching, or a comparable research position at a university or other institution of higher education. The employer must make a job offer and file the Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker.
• Multinational managers or executives who have been employed for at least one of the three preceding years by the US employer overseas. The applicant’s employment outside of the US must have been in a managerial or executive capacity, and the applicant must be coming to work in a managerial or executive capacity. The prospective employer must provide a job offer and file an Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker

Employment Second Preference – E2

The E2 applicant must have a labor certification, job office, and petition for an alien worker. Some of these individuals may apply for a National Interest Waiver, removing the job offer and certification requirements. Applicants in the National Interest can file their own petitions. Otherwise, these individuals are either persons holding an advanced degree (or degree and relevant experience) or persons with exceptional ability in the arts, business, or sciences. Exceptional ability means having expertise significantly greater than that ordinarily found in the individual’s field. 

Employment Third Preference – E3

These individuals must have an alien petition filed by the prospective employer and a labor certification. They include skilled workers whose jobs require at least two years of training or experience, professionals whose jobs require at least a bachelor’s degree, and unskilled workers who fill jobs that require less than two years of training or experience.

Employment Fourth Preference – E4

This category is a mixed bag of miscellaneous preferences. Ministers of religion and religious workers are included here, as are various former US government employees in specific locations. Groups of Iraqi and Afghan nationals may also enter under E4. 

Employment Fifth Preference – E5

Immigrant investors are foreign nationals who invest in new commercial operations in the US that create jobs. 

Call a Colorado Springs Employment Immigration Attorney

If you are an employer in Colorado Springs seeking to bring an employment-based immigrant into the US, you should contact an employment immigration attorney immediately. Employment immigration law is complicated, and a seemingly simple mistake can lead to a denial of an application. Contact us or call 303-297-9171 for an initial consultation on your employment immigration matters.