H-3 Trainee category permits a host company to invite individuals to receive training in the U.S. for up to two years. The trainees must be able to demonstrate that they have residence and ties abroad that they intend to return to.
The four basic requirements of the training program:
- The proposed training is not available in the trainee’s own country
- The trainee will not be placed in a position which is in the normal operation of the business and in which citizens and resident workers are regularly employed
- The trainee will not engage in productive employment unless such employment is incidental and necessary to the training
- The training will benefit the trainee in pursuing a career outside the United States
To ensure proper completion of the application for a training program, a detailed description of the training program should be prepared. The application must include a description of the training and how the program will be taught and supervised. Additionally, the time spent in the classroom and on-the-job, as well as any devoted to productive employment must be detailed.
Doing this prevents training programs where productive employment is significant and/or a goal of the program, or those designed to recruit and train aliens for the ultimate staffing in the United States. The description should also explain why the training is unavailable in the trainee’s home country, and show how the training will prepare the trainee for the job in his home country in the future.
One of the natural advantages of the H-3 category is that a single training program for a group of individuals receiving the same training at basically the same time can be applied for at one time, avoiding the need for specialized individual applications with the USCIS. However, each individual will still need to make a personal application for the visa stamp at a consulate.
Training programs may include those involving management training programs for multinational corporations, training programs that will enable clients or prospects to enter the U.S. to gain further exposure to a company’s business, and training joint venture partners on the company’s business operations in the U.S. to enable them to establish similar ventures in their own country.
Typically, after an individual has worked outside of the U.S. for six months after H-3 training, that individual may then apply for the H1 or L1 category.