H-1B Employees
An H-1B visa permits a Loyola hiring unit to engage a foreign national in temporary employment for a specialty occupation. A “specialty occupation” is one that requires “theoretical and practical application of a body of highly specialized knowledge, and attainment of a bachelor’s degree or higher in the specific specialty as a minimum for entry into the occupation in the U.S.”
Types of positions that qualify for H-1B status at Loyola:
- Full-Time Tenure Track or Tenured Faculty positions
- Full-Time Non-Tenure Tack Faculty with Renewable Appointments
- Full-Time Research Assistant Professors, Research Associate Professors, and Research Professors
- Some Staff positions*
All hiring units must notify ISSS as soon as a candidate requiring visa sponsorship has been identified, to initiate the pre-hire vetting process. Upon completion of this review, hiring units proceeding with H-1B sponsorship will receive the H-1B Request Form from ISSS. This form must be completed and returned to ISSS before the petition process can begin.
*NOTE: Visa sponsorship for administrative staff positions can be challenging, as these roles often have broad minimum qualifications that may not meet the U.S. Department of Labor’s requirement for a specific degree or skills match necessary for H-1B eligibility. If you are considering an international candidate for an administrative position, please contact ISSS. Our external immigration counsel will review both the position and the candidate’s CV to determine whether H-1B (or another visa type) sponsorship is appropriate.
Estimated Timeline
With Premium Processing: 6-8 weeks (plus consular processing of visa abroad, if applicable)
Without Premium Processing: 6+ months (typically only used for Extensions and Amendments)
Advantages of H-1B status:
- Pathway to Permanent Residency (PR)
- Can be used for tenure-track positions
Potential disadvantages/considerations:
- Limited to “specialty” occupations
- Temporary (6-year max)
- Approval is not guaranteed
- Substantial legal and filing fees for the sponsoring department
Extension Requests
H-1B extensions can be filed no earlier than 6 months before the initial H-1B expiration date. Since beneficiaries are permitted to continue working for 240 days while the extension request is being processed, extensions can be submitted without Premium Processing. If Premium Processing becomes necessary, it is possible to add that expedite request to the petition later. Depending on the circumstances, Loyola may require the beneficiary to pay the Premium Processing fee.
H-1B Process Overview
An interested hiring unit first needs to initiate a request to ISSS for H-1B visa processing. The hiring unit is responsible for: timely responses to emails from ISSS and Zulkie Partners (Loyola’s external immigration counsel), providing the legal and filing fees, and notifying ISSS of any other needs in preparing for the candidate’s arrival.
Pre-Hire Process:
If you are preparing to offer a position to an international candidate who has indicated they require visa sponsorship, please contact the ISSS team with any questions (especially in the case of Administrative Staff positions—see above). ISSS will request information about the candidate and the position to complete the pre-hire vetting process with Loyola's external immigration counsel. If issues with the candidate, or position are identified, ISSS will share those with the hiring unit. If no issues are identified, ISSS will email the hiring until the H-1B Request Form and request that they complete it once they are ready to move forward with the petition process.
H-1B Petition Process:
- Work on filling out the form and obtaining approvals after conducting the pre-hire review with ISSS.
- Once ISSS receives the approved paperwork, ISSS will then open the case with Zulkie.
- Zulkie will direct the sponsoring unit to complete the H-1B Employer Questionnaire with details about the position. They will reach out to the candidate for additional documentation.
- ISSS will post the LCA posting notice for 10 days and then file it in the Public Access File.
- Once the LCA has been certified by the Department of Labor, the petition will be filed with USCIS.
- The approval notice will be sent to the beneficiary after approval to that they can use it to obtain a visa stamp, if necessary.
Initial Requests
H-1B petitions can be filed with the USCIS no more than 6 months before the employment start date. Loyola requires Premium Processing Service for all initial petition requests. This means that USCIS will adjudicate the petition in 15 business days. The duration of the initial request may not exceed 3 years.
An H-1B visa permits a Loyola hiring unit to engage a foreign national in temporary employment for a specialty occupation. A “specialty occupation” is one that requires “theoretical and practical application of a body of highly specialized knowledge, and attainment of a bachelor’s degree or higher in the specific specialty as a minimum for entry into the occupation in the U.S.”
Types of positions that qualify for H-1B status at Loyola:
- Full-Time Tenure Track or Tenured Faculty positions
- Full-Time Non-Tenure Tack Faculty with Renewable Appointments
- Full-Time Research Assistant Professors, Research Associate Professors, and Research Professors
- Some Staff positions*
All hiring units must notify ISSS as soon as a candidate requiring visa sponsorship has been identified, to initiate the pre-hire vetting process. Upon completion of this review, hiring units proceeding with H-1B sponsorship will receive the H-1B Request Form from ISSS. This form must be completed and returned to ISSS before the petition process can begin.
*NOTE: Visa sponsorship for administrative staff positions can be challenging, as these roles often have broad minimum qualifications that may not meet the U.S. Department of Labor’s requirement for a specific degree or skills match necessary for H-1B eligibility. If you are considering an international candidate for an administrative position, please contact ISSS. Our external immigration counsel will review both the position and the candidate’s CV to determine whether H-1B (or another visa type) sponsorship is appropriate.