Green card

Nonimmigrant visa

Skilled Workers, Professionals, and Other Workers

Temporary Agricultural Workers

Almost any worker

Agricultural workers, Seasonal farm workers, Horticultural employees, Forestry workers, Dairy farm workers, Orchard workers

• Must have a job offer and undergo labor certification (PERM), showing no available qualified U.S. workers.

• Skilled Workers: Job offer requires at least 2 years of training or experience.

• Professionals: Job offer requires a U.S. bachelor's degree or foreign equivalent.

• Other Workers: Job offer requiring less than 2 years of training or experience.

• The employment must be of a temporary or seasonal nature.

• Employers must prove there are no available U.S. workers who are willing, qualified, and able to perform the temporary work.

• Employers must certify that hiring H-2A workers will not adversely impact the wages and working conditions of similarly employed U.S. workers.

• Provides complete flexibility to work, live, and study in the U.S.

• Straightforward process with clear requirements.

• Highly flexible, applicable to almost any job that aligns with your experience or qualifications based on its minimum requirements.

• Provides a legal pathway for foreign agricultural workers to work in the U.S.

• Addresses critical labor shortages in the agricultural sector.

• Allows for seasonal employment flexibility, matching crop harvest cycles.

• The labor certification process (PERM) is lengthy and time-consuming.

• Applicants are tied to the employer sponsoring the petition for most of the application process.

• Slower processing times compared to other categories, particularly for applicants from certain countries.

• Limited exclusively to agricultural work and subject to seasonal demands.

• No pathway to permanent residency or long-term employment.

• Spouses and dependents do not receive work authorization.

• Employers must undergo a rigorous certification process.

• Requires employer sponsorship and a specific job offer.

Required

Required

Permanent residency

Duration of labor certification, up to 1 year, renewable twice in 1-year increments for a total of 3 years.

Every 10 years

Twice in 1-year increments for a total of 3 years.

Three stages, totaling about 36-48 months¹

1-3 months¹

15 business days²

15 business days

Yes

No

¹Applicants from India, China, or Mexico may experience longer wait times.

²Available for only one stage of the process, with minimal impact on the overall processing time.

¹Varies based on processing center workload and employer need; fee applicability uncertain.