Apply for a U.S. visa for temporary non-farm workers (H-2B) in Kosovo

A visa for temporary work that is not farm work. A U.S. employer or agent files Form I-129 for you.⁶

The employer asks for a prevailing wage at least 60 days before it is needed, then files the job order and application 75 to 90 days before the job starts. The Department of Labor reviews the application within 7 business days; with the certification, the employer files the petition.^6,7

Your employer pays USCIS $1,080 for the I-129 with named workers ($1,030 online, only when exempt from the cap), a fraud prevention fee of $150 and an Asylum Program Fee of $600. No one may charge you a job placement fee, and if you are dismissed early, the employer pays your way home.^10,6,24

Visas to work in the United States for a fixed period. H-1B is for a specialty occupation that needs at least a bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience. H-2A is for temporary or seasonal farm work, H-2B for other temporary or seasonal work. L-1 moves a manager, an executive or a specialist within the same company, and O-1 is for extraordinary ability or achievement.^8,25,26

Yes. Your U.S. employer files Form I-129 with USCIS, and USCIS must approve it before you can apply. Only the employer can file it, not a relative. For H-1B, H-2A and H-2B the employer first gets a certification from the Department of Labor. After approval USCIS sends the employer a Notice of Action, Form I-797, and you book the interview with the receipt number on it.^8,9,27,28

Yes. Your spouse and unmarried children under 21: on H-4 with an H worker, L-2 with L, O-3 with O. On H-4 and O-3 they may not work; some H-4 spouses of H-1B workers who have started the green card process may apply for a work permit. An L-2 spouse may work. You must show you can support them financially.^{8,27,28,25,26}

No. No placement fee, penalty for breaking the contract or other fee related to the job may be taken from you at any time, not even as a deduction from your wages. If USCIS finds that the employer, an agent or a recruiter took one, it denies or revokes the petition.^28,6

$205 to the U.S. Department of State, and €10 to DHL to bring your passport home. Your employer pays USCIS $1,080 for the I-129, or $1,030 online, plus a fraud prevention fee of $150 and an Asylum Program Fee of $600.^2,3,10

Online or at VFS. Online with a debit or credit card, or in cash at the VFS Visa Application Center in Pristina, Lidhja e Prizrenit St., No. 20, Tophane.^14,15

$205 per applicant. It is the fee for petition-based visas. The employer’s Form I-129 petition has its own USCIS filing fee.^2,9

No. The visa application fee is non-refundable.²

In 15 days. The published wait for petition-based (H, L, O, P, Q) interviews in Pristina, when last updated on October 21, 2026.²³

Generally no. Apply at the U.S. Embassy or Consulate in the country of your nationality or where you live, and be able to show you live there if that is why you apply there. Elsewhere it may be more difficult to qualify, and the fee is not refunded or transferred.²⁹

On the State Department’s Visa Status Check, at ceac.state.gov. Choose your visa type, then enter your passport number and the first five letters of your surname.³⁰

No. Any claim that someone can guarantee a visa is fraudulent. A consular officer decides at the interview whether you qualify.³¹

You may reapply. After a refusal under section 214(b), you submit a new application, pay the fee again, and must be able to show significant changes in your circumstances since your last application.³²