CASE: H-1B Visa Extension Petition
PETITIONER: School District in New Town, ND
BENEFICIARY: Filipina Elementary School Teacher
ISSUES: H-1B Extension, Cap-Exempt, Nonprofit Organization Affiliated with an Institution of Higher Education
Our client is a public school district affiliated with several institutions of higher education. They contacted our office in June 2024 to seek legal assistance for their foreign employee. The beneficiary is an elementary school teacher from the Philippines who has been working for this employer for the last three years in H-1B status.
The proffered position for the beneficiary is an elementary school teacher. We demonstrated that this is a “specialty occupation” because the minimum requirement for this position is a bachelor’s degree in education or its equivalent.
In the first week of April, the numerical cap of H-1B visas for fiscal year 2025 was already reached. However, our client qualifies for cap-exempt petitions since it is a non-profit organization affiliated with an institution of higher education, as defined in 8 C.F.R. 214.2(h)(19)(iii)(B).
Once retained, our office filed the H-1B visa extension petition with various supporting documents on August 26, 2024, via regular processing. Eventually, our client’s H-1B application was approved on January 30, 2025, without any Request for Evidence (RFE). She can now work for her employer for three years in H-1B status.