We immigration attorneys practice law on behalf of immigrants, their families, and companies hoping to employ them stateside. We work within a system that can be difficult to navigate and even harder to understand. The system itself is why we say you need a business immigration attorney if you are hoping to bring foreign nationals here to work.
It is not our job to judge the U.S. immigration system as being right or wrong from a moral or ethical standpoint. The law is what it is. But we can say that satisfying immigration law is time-consuming. It involves a tremendous amount of paperwork that needs to be completed and submitted correctly. Immigration law is governed by a lot of rules and regulations, some of which are so mundane that they are easy to miss.
A Buffet of Visa Options
One of the first issues foreign nationals run in to when considering immigration for work purposes is figuring out what type of visa to apply for. Needless to say that our system allows for a veritable buffet of options. We have dozens of different visas all defined by their own criteria. How does a worker know which one is most appropriate?
One of the visas we specialize in is the H-1B work visa. It is for skilled laborers in very specific industries. Qualifying for an H-1B is not easy. And even if a worker does qualify, H-1B visas are limited in number and offered on a lottery basis. Qualifying does not guarantee approval.
Unfortunately, even being considered for an H-1B is impossible if paperwork is not completed correctly and submitted on time. It is not difficult for someone who doesn’t understand the system to fall behind and eventually find himself with his back against the wall as the deadline approaches.
A System-Wide Problem
We do not want to give the impression that the only challenge in U.S. immigration is applying for a visa. Indeed, the time-consuming and complex nature of the immigration process is a system-wide problem. Even foreign nationals attempting to seek asylum in the U.S. can struggle.
Take the case of a Nicaraguan immigrant profiled a few months ago by NBC News. He was exiled to the U.S. for political reasons. He is now seeking political asylum in this country. He has already been here five years and his case has stalled.
It is not that the man has done anything wrong. He hasn’t. It’s just that the system has been overwhelmed by backlogs. There are so many people needing help and far too few resources and personnel to help them. Meanwhile, this individual must continue maintaining records of his past to support his case when it is eventually heard.
It is Okay to Need Help
We mention all of this to say that it is okay to need help. Business immigration is not easy. It is certainly not simple. If your company is hoping to bring workers into the U.S. from other countries, your best bet for navigating the system as easily and efficiently as possible is to work with a business immigration attorney.
Business immigration is our specialty here at Graham Adair. We work with clients to get paperwork completed and submitted. We educate foreign nationals about the visa process. We can even help prepare them for their immigration exams.
We cannot make the process any simpler for you. However, we can work alongside you to help you do everything by the book. Needless to say that our system is difficult to work. But that is why you need an immigration attorney.