H-1B Visa

Departments who wish to hire an applicant requiring a H-1B visa must reach out to the VISA Office at visa@case.edu to start the process. H-1Bs are permitted a maximum stay of six years in the US (with some exceptions). Initial appointments may not exceed three years, and a minimum stay at Case Western Reserve University is one year. Requests for three years are highly encouraged. 

Please note: Departments who terminate the employment of an H-1B worker before the period of authorized stay expires are liable for paying the reasonable cost of transportation for the worker to return to their home country.

If an H-1B worker ends employment with CWRU before their authorized stay expires - whether the employee resigns or is separated - the Department MUST contact the VISA Office so that the H-1B and the LCA can be withdrawn, as required by government regulations.

How to Begin the H-1B Visa Process

  1. The Department should contact the VISA Director or email the VISA Office at visa@case.edu with any preliminary questions or concerns. 
  2. The Department should start collecting information for the H-1B application, including:
    • Job description
    • Minimum education and experience requirements
    • Proposed salary
    • Letter of Appointment or Hire
      • The appointment letter should include: Department, complete position title (e.g., Research Assistant III, Engineer I, etc.), inclusive dates of appointment and salary. Faculty appointment letters should include a Board of Trustees contingency clause.
    • Determine whether premium processing will be requested. Current processing times are available at https://egov.uscis.gov/processing-times/. 
    • The Department must create a sponsorship request in the Scholar Portal at https://visas.case.edu/, complete the required forms and upload the requested documents. If the Department Administrator does not have access to the portal, they must contact the VISA Office at visa@case.edu
    • The Department must request appropriate fee checks from Accounts Payable, and notify the VISA Office when they are ready to be picked up from the Cashier's Office. Current USCIS fees are available at https://www.uscis.gov/forms/filing-fees. Contact the VISA Office if there are questions regarding current fee amounts.
  3. The VISA Office will review the sponsorship request and reach out to the H-1B Candidate. The H-1B candidate should start collecting copies of required documentation, including:
    • Resume
    • All degrees - diplomas and transcripts, including English language translations, if application
    • Most recent I-94 records accessed from https://i94.cbp.dhs.gov/I94/#/home
    • EAD(s) (if applicable)
    • Form(s) I-20 ID (or IAP-66), with practical training endorsement (if applicable)
    • All previous H-1B approval notices (if applicable)
    • J-1 home residency waiver approval (if applicable)
    • If currently working in the United States in any status, three most recent paystubs
    • Passport identification pages
    • Marriage certificate (if applicable)
      • If married and/or if any children, please provide evidence of current visa status
    • The H-1B applicant will need to login to the Scholar Portal after receiving the invitation from the VISA Office and upload the required documentation.
  4. If the H-1B applicant will be accompanied by spouse and/or dependent children, the H-1B applicant is responsible for preparing their applications for H-4 dependent status. The VISA Office will submit the dependent applications with the H-1B petition on behalf of the H-1B applicant, but the H-1B applicant is responsible for payment of filing fees.

If you have any further questions about the process, please email the VISA Office at visa@case.edu or telephone us at 216-368-6964.