Specialty Chefs and Green Cards for employment based immigration and United States Visas

Restaurants that specialize in certain types of cuisines are in need of specialty chefs who have at least two years of chef experience in that cuisine. Restaurants that are in need of these chefs can petition for a chef to immigrate to the United States to get a green card and become a lawful permanent resident.

A common challenge for a restaurant owner is to find a qualified chef who has experience and knowledge to cook the restaurant specialty dishes. However, this can be accomplished by hiring a chef from outside of the country. This process will take longer than a year so it is good to start exploring this option immediately if you are looking for a specialty chef. Factors that will play into this process include Department of Labor’s processing times, whether the visa immediately available for the chef to immigrate here, the process times of USCIS, and the U.S consulates interview and schedule abroad if the chef will be going through the U.S. consulate for immigration visa review.

The visa category for a specialty chef would fall under EB-3 which is a skilled worker category. The amount of experience the chef must have is at least 2 years of experience in the field. For further details on these requirements and for help and assistance with finding a specialty chef we recommend contacting JLJ Law Group. Our law firm is based in Salt Lake City, Utah and we serve the Wasatch Front. One of JLJ Law Groups specialties is in business immigration and immigration services. If you have questions or would like to inquire about business immigration please contact us today at 801-883-8204.

There are several steps that go into this process, as well as important time sensitive deadlines.  For many of my restaurant clients, it is well worth the wait because this is a permanent solution to resolve the ongoing issue of many restaurant owners not being able to find qualified U.S. workers for specialty chef positions.