The H-1B program applies to employers seeking to hire foreign nationals as workers in specialty occupations or as fashion models of distinguished merit and ability. A specialty occupation is one that requires the application of a body of highly specialized knowledge and the attainment of at least a bachelor’s degree or its equivalent.

Advanced Practice Registered Nurses: Advanced practice registered nurse defines a level of nursing practice that utilizes extended and expanded skills, experience and knowledge in assessment, planning, implementation, diagnosis and evaluation of the care required. APRN occupations that may satisfy the requirements for a specialty occupation:

• Certified Nurse-Midwife (CNM);
• Certified Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS);
• Certified Nurse Practitioner (CNP); and
• Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA).

Physical Therapists and Other Healthcare Workers: Eligible to apply for the H-1B Petition if a bachelor’s degree or higher it the normal requirement for the proffered position.

Canadian and Mexican citizens seeking to work in the U.S. in the following health care professions are eligible for a TN work visa under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA):

Employers may sponsor employees who are members of the professions holding advanced degrees or for persons with exceptional ability in the arts, sciences, or business.

Professionals: Professions that require a U.S. bachelor’s degree (or its foreign degree) related to the occupation, and that this degree is the normal requirement for entry into the occupation. Education and experience cannot be substituted for a bachelor’s degree.

Skilled Workers: Professions that require at least two years of job experience or training, not of a temporary or seasonal nature. Relevant post-secondary education may be considered as training.

Group I Occupations: Immigrant visa petition (I-140) for:

• Physical Therapists who possess all the qualifications necessary to take the physical therapist licensing examination in the state in which they propose to practice physical therapy.
• Professional Nurses who meet at least one of these two alternative requirements:
  • The nurse must have passed the Commission on Graduates in Foreign Nursing Schools (CGFNS) Examination; or
  • The nurse must hold a full and unrestricted license to practice professional nursing in the state of intended employment.