You've found the right person for your job opening, but you suspect there's going to be one little catch: She's not a U.S. citizen. In fact, you're pretty sure she doesn't have a green card or any other kind of legal status in the United States that would allow her to work for you. Is there any way to hire this person?

The short answer is maybe, and it won't be easy. But with enough advance planning, it is possible for you as the employer to obtain for certain workers the right to live and work in the United States, either temporarily or permanently.

Before You Begin

Before you spend time and money sponsoring your worker, be certain there are no other ways in which she can obtain work authorization. Certain immigration statuses carry with them an automatic right to work for anyone, anywhere in the country. Permanent residence (a “green card”) is one of those; you might want to explore with your prospective employee whether she has any way (other than through you as an employer) to get a green card. Typically, this would involve marriage to a U.S. citizen or some other close family relationship to a U.S. citizen. Keep in mind that refugees, people granted asylum and people granted Temporary Protected Status are work authorized, as long as they have obtained an employment authorization card.

If there are no other options, it will fall to you to sponsor your intended employee. Sponsoring means filing a petition with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to classify your intended employee as someone who is potentially eligible for legal status in one of the various categories of workers recognized under the immigration law. It can take many months for USCIS to approve your petition, unless you pay a significant extra fee for a quick decision. Moreover, your petition is not the only step in the process. Your worker has to meet the legal requirements for changing her status in the United States, or else leave the country and obtain a work visa to come back. If you're trying to get your worker a job-based green card or authorization for certain temporary work, you may face an additional hurdle: proving you're not harming the job prospects of U.S. workers.

Classifying Your Employee

Let's look at the various steps in the process in a little more detail. To start, you must determine your needs and your intended employee's immigration goals. Broadly speaking, the possibilities are permanent residence in the United States for your employee or temporary residence, either short-term or long-term. In all cases, you must identify a category of workers in which your intended employee would fit. Each category has rules for who qualifies—some simple, some complex.