§ 2.2 Visa Categories

• Library: Rights of Foreign Nationals (OSBar) (2020 Ed.)

§ 2.2 VISA CATEGORIES

U.S. immigration law divides foreign persons entering the United States into two general categories: immigrants and nonimmigrants. Immigrants are those persons sponsored by a family member or a U.S. employer, often a lengthy and involved process that can sometimes take up to a decade or more depending on the foreign person's country of birth, immigrant category, or both. Once the person's application is approved, they are considered a lawful permanent resident (LPR). This status is also popularly known as having a green card.

There are relatively few restrictions on an LPR's ability to conduct business, except for certain government contracts and activities that require employees to be U.S. citizens, certain restrictions on transfer of technology and intellectual property to foreign citizens, and dealings with certain countries specifically designated for limitations by the Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC), a special section of the Treasury Department.

Generally, nonimmigrants and persons who have applied for LPR status but have not yet completed the process merit special consideration in business transactions. Nonimmigrants hold any one of a large variety of temporary visas that have specific conditions and requirements and are always time limited in some way. Some non-LPRs in the midst of permanent-resident processing may also hold an employment authorization document (EAD), which is discussed in greater detail in § 2.5-2.

The purpose of...