Office of Human Resources

The H-1B visa is an employment-based visa that allows a foreign national to legally work in the United States in a specialty occupation. A specialty occupation can be defined as a position that has specified requirements. The employer (known as the petitioner and the sponsor) submits the H-1B application on behalf of the foreign national (known as the beneficiary).

An H-1B visa can be valid for up to six (6) years, however the maximum time the employer can request at the time of filing is up to three (3) years. If an employer seeks the maximum time, then an employer should only need to file two (2) times on behalf of the foreign national – at the point of initial hire and at the point of renewing for another maximum timeframe.

H-1B visa sponsorship refers to the process in which the employer bears both responsibility for filing and financial responsibility for required fees. At Appalachian State University, this means that the University will file the H-1B petition and cover the required fees. In some cases, the University may cover the optional fee of premium processing if there is a business need that requires it.

If a business need is not present for premium processing, then the University can deny support of this cost. The beneficiary (foreign national) can elect to pay this cost if they choose. If premium processing is not used, then the filed petition would be subject to regular processing times, which can be up to 6 months.

Positions eligible for H-1B sponsorship at App State may include full time faculty and full time staff roles.

Positions NOT eligible for H-1B sponsorship at App State include part-time faculty roles, part-time staff roles, temporary roles, time-limited roles, and positions classified as SHRA.

Premium processing refers to the optional fee and form associated with an application filing. Premium processing can be used in both the H-1B process and the permanent residency process, however, use in permanent residency is limited.

As of July 2025, premium processing costs $2,805. This amount is subject to change without notice or reason. In most cases, if premium processing is used, it reduces the wait time of processing to 15 business days and therefore resulting in an adjudication (decision) response from USCIS within this timeframe.

In most cases, an H-1B visa is submitted by an employer on behalf of a beneficiary (foreign national) through one employer for one position at one location. This simply means that the beneficiary (foreign national) cannot have multiple employers, multiple jobs, and multiple worksites without prior approval. The University does not approve multiple employers or multiple jobs, but will review requests on case-by-case basis.

A worksite is a location where work can occur for employment. At App State, we seek to provide an H-1B petition with at least two worksites – with the first being the foreign national office building (or building where classes are taught) and the second being the US home address of the foreign national. By listing the US home address, this would allow foreign nationals to work from home. Additional worksites can be provided by the foreign national and/or by the hiring department, but may require approval by the Department Chair.

If a foreign national has multiple employers, multiple jobs, and/or multiple worksites without authorization from the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), it can result in the revocation of the H-1B visa or future denial of status (if eligible for an extension).

The processing times listed in the below process are estimated as of May 2025 and are subject to change without notice or reason. In addition, the process listed below is subject to change if policies and/or procedures with USCIS change.

The general H-1B process can take about five (5) weeks to reach the point of filing. At filing, it can take an additional 3 weeks (if premium processing is used) or an additional 3-6 months (if regular processing is used) to be processed by USCIS.

The process begins with the foreign national accepting a job offer and then completing a questionnaire that provides information on the foreign nationals, their dependents (if applicable), visa history, work history, and education history. In addition, the foreign national will provide verifying documents, such as passport biographical page, degree transcripts, travel documents, and previous visa status approval documents.

Upon review of the questionnaire and documents, the Office of Human Resources will provide necessary information to the contract writer to confirm details of the employment contract. An employment contract with appropriate visa support language is required to continue the H-1B process. Once a contract is finalized, signatures are required from all relevant parties.

Upon the completion of the contract, the Public Access File is assembled, which provides verifiable information on the position for which the foreign national is being hired into. This will include information about the position salary, benefits, labor codes, and minimum expected wage. Following the assembly of the Public Access File, a Notice of Filing is posted to the Office of Human Resources website for 10 business days. Once the Notice has been posted for at least 1 business day, a Labor Condition Application is submitted to the Department of Labor. It takes about 7 calendar days to be certified by the Department of Labor.

While the Department of Labor certification is underway, the assembly of the H-1B petition begins, which requires additional documentation to be provided from the hiring department. This documentation is included in the final H-1B petition. In some cases, additional documentation from the foreign national may be required.

Once all documentation has been provided, including the Department of Labor certification, the H-1B petition gets fully assembled and goes through two review stages. The first review stage is internal to the Office of Human Resources. The second review stage is through the UNC System Office immigration attorney. Upon a successful review, the H-1B petition is then prepped for mailing.

At the point of mailing, it is determined if a business need is present to conduct premium processing. If premium processing is used, then the H-1B petition will receive an adjudication within 15 business days. If there is not a business need for premium processing, then regular processing will be used. Regular processing can take between 3-6 months to process and is dependent on the USCIS caseload and time of year. H-1B petitions submitted between April to August may result in longer wait periods than petitions submitted October to February.

Upon adjudication from USCIS, the foreign national and their hiring department will be informed of the response. If further action is required, this will be communicated. If approved, the foreign national will receive a digital and printed copy of the approval notice.

The process for filing an extension of H-1B status is generally the same as the initial filing, however the process will typically begin about 7 months prior to the current H-1B status expiration, with an anticipated filing date of approximately 5 months prior to the current H-1B status expiration. A new employment contract may be required if the current contract has a defined end date, or if the current contract has a defined contract renewal process.

If a foreign national is under a different status at the time of hire (such as an employment authorization like F-1 OPT status) or they are moving to H-1B status after employment begins, then the foreign national may be subject to additional steps.

For the most part, the H-1B filing would occur as specified in the “General Initial H-1B Filing Process” section. However, upon approval of the H-1B status, if the foreign national were to leave the US or is located outside of the US at time of approval, then they may be required to have a consulate appointment to receive an H-1B visa stamp in their passport to enter the US.

If a foreign national is moving to H-1B status after employment begins, then their H-1B status will be set to begin either on the day following their previous status expiration, or the H-1B status will be set to begin prior to the current status expiration. This will vary case-by-case. If the foreign national were to leave the US after H-1B approval, then they may be required to have a consulate appointment to receive an H-1B visa stamp in their passport to re-enter the US.

If a foreign national is changing status and is currently in the US, they cannot leave the US until an adjudication has occurred on their H-1B. Leaving the US while the H-1B is still pending can result in a denied H-1B status and/or denied future H-1B status, as USCIS views this as abandonment of status.

Spouses and children of an H-1B visa holder or H-1B visa applicant are considered dependents and may be authorized to be in the US on the H-4 visa. Typically, the H-4 visa does not permit employment authorization.

H-4 status for dependents can be authorized in two general ways:

• If the H-1B visa holder is outside of the US, then the dependents are able to receive an H-4 visa stamp at a consulate appointment in their home country following the approval of the H-1B visa. The H-1B visa holder must have their approval in place prior to dependents receiving the H-4.

• If the H-1B visa applicant is inside of the US, then the beneficiary is able to submit an application for all dependents to be on H-4 status. This can occur concurrently with the H-1B filing, or separately after the H-1B is filed or approved.

  • If choosing to file concurrently, the beneficiary is to provide Immigration Support with the necessary application documents, supporting documents, and filing fees in a sealed envelope. This sealed envelope would then be included with the H-1B petition.

  • If choosing to file separately, the beneficiary would be required to have the H-1B filed and have the valid USCIS receipt number to proceed with filing for dependents. Some foreign nationals choose to wait until the H-1B visa is approved before seeking H-4 filings. Application documents, supporting documents, and filing fees would be submitted directly to USCIS.

Immigration Support does not provide any review of dependent documents or applications. It is recommended that foreign nationals with dependents seek an immigration attorney to provide such review.