The main temporary categories
- B-1 / B-2 — business visitors and tourists. Short stays, no employment.
- F-1 — academic students, with practical training options during and after study.
- H-1B — specialty occupations requiring at least a bachelor's degree in a specific field; subject to an annual cap and lottery for most employers.
- L-1A / L-1B — intracompany transfers of managers, executives and specialised-knowledge employees.
- O-1 — extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business or athletics — the temporary cousin of EB-1A.
- TN — for Canadian and Mexican professionals in listed occupations.
- J-1 — exchange visitors, some of whom carry a two-year home residency requirement.
Intent decides more of these cases than anything else
Most temporary visas require you to show you do not intend to immigrate. Consular officers presume otherwise, and it is the applicant's job to overcome that presumption with ties, a coherent plan and a credible account of the trip.
A few categories tolerate dual intent — H-1B and L among them — which is precisely why they matter to anyone whose plans might become permanent. Getting this distinction wrong causes refusals that then follow you through later applications.
Students, and the mistakes that cost status
Student cases are lost after arrival more often than at the consulate: dropping below a full course load, working without authorisation, or letting a document lapse. Status problems compound quietly and surface years later on a green card application.
If something has already gone wrong, bring it to us early. Reinstatement and other remedies exist, and they get harder with time.
Questions we are asked about this
My visa application was refused. Can I reapply?
Usually yes, but reapplying without changing anything tends to produce the same result. What matters is understanding the ground of refusal — a nonimmigrant intent refusal and a finding of inadmissibility are very different problems with very different answers.
Can I change from a student or visitor visa to a work visa?
Often, though the timing rules matter and acting too soon after arrival can raise a misrepresentation question. Talk to us before you file, not after.