H-2A VISA

The H-2A Visa is a specific visa category designed for U.S. employers who needs the alien's skills. Specifically, the H-2A visa allows foreign workers entry to the U.S. to work in agriculture.

The H-2A visa is not self-petitioned. The U.S. employers must apply on behalf of the aliens. The U.S. employer can be self-employed, a partnership, corporation or agricultural association. An agent may also apply on behalf of the employer.

H-2A holders' spouses and unmarried children under the age of 21 are allowed to join them in the U.S. under the H-4 status. Dependents are not permitted to work, unless they personally qualify for a work visa.

Procedures

The application process has three steps. As the first step in obtaining H-2B status for alien workers, the US employer needs to apply for a Temporary Labor Certification from the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). The application must meet all requirements of the DOL, and the employer must prove that there are no U.S. workers available for the proposed position(s).

After the Temporary Labor Certification is approved, the petitioning employer must attempt to recruit eligible U.S. individuals for the proposed positions. After the recruitment process is complete, the DOL will subtract the number of accepted U.S. workers from the requested amount of H-2A workers. If no U.S. workers were able to be recruited, the employer will be eligible to apply for the requested amount of visas. The employer will then petition for the agreed amount of H-2A Visas with INS.

The third and final step occurs when after approval of this petition, foreign workers must take the petition approval notice to a U.S. consulate to apply for H-2A visa permitting their admission to the U.S.

Forms and Documents

The following forms and documents are required for the petition:

Form I-129/I-129H (Petition for non-immigrant worker).
A copy of the approved Temporary Labor Certificate.
A statement detailing the number of workers required.
An application including the workers' names and qualifications.
The documents required for the H-2A Visa include:

Temporary labor certification approved by DOL.
Application for Alien Employment Certification (Form ETA 750, Part A, the Offer of Employment).
Agricultural and Food Processing Clearance Order (Form ETA 790).
Documents that support the required Forms.