Greenberg Traurigs Business Immigration Group is a full-service business immigration practice representing businesses, organizations, and individuals from around the world on immigration matters and related issues. The firms practice has achieved international recognition for outstanding legal advocacy, results-oriented service, and responsiveness to our clients. In addition, GTs Business Immigration Group is at the forefront of using technological innovations to facilitate fast and efficient case preparation and to provide immediate status updates to our clients.

We assist clients in a broad range of matters including:

U.S. Work Authorization for Foreign Nationals

The Business Immigration Group assists , large and small businesses, organizations, and talented individuals with obtaining temporary and permanent work authorization in the United States for foreign nationals. Depending on the purpose of an individuals visit to the United States, it may be necessary to file a petition with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services before applying for a visa at a United States Consulate overseas and admission at a designated port-of-entry. Temporary work permits are obtained more quickly than permanent work authorization, which is given only to individuals who have obtained lawful permanent resident status. Our attorneys identify the best options for clients to obtain work authorization, develop strategies to obtain temporary work authorization and permanent resident status, explain the requirements, and discuss the application processes. We advocate on behalf of clients before the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the Department of Labor, U.S. Consulates and the State Department. A team of immigration attorneys and immigration specialists work together to prepare cases, maximizing efficiency and quality.

Immigration Policy Development for Businesses and Organizations

Companies ranging from start-up entities to Fortune 500 multinational corporations call upon the Greenberg Traurig Business Immigration Group to develop corporate immigration strategies for their Human Resource and Legal Departments. The GT Business Immigration Group is unique as it includes leading authorities regarding immigration and nationality law, as well as other authorities in practice areas that impact company decisions regarding immigration, including labor and employment, tax, and corporate law. This ability to provide comprehensive strategies for our clients is a distinct advantage over firms that can only provide immigration counsel . Moreover, we offer on-site training for corporate human resource professionals to acquaint them with important immigration issues and to update them on recent legislative and agency developments that could affect their employees.

Legislative Advocacy and Representation

Our attorneys bring an impressive range of public, private and legislative backgrounds to the table. In-depth familiarity with a multitude of businesses, and our close ties to the various governmental agencies at the local, state and federal levels, enable us to keep clients abreast of regulatory and legislative trends.

Our Washington, D.C. location affords unique access to high level officials at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the Department of State, the Department of Labor, as well as other administrative agencies. We are well situated to handle legislative matters and routinely advocate on behalf of our clients on Capitol Hill. GT's Business Immigration Group includes lobbyists and legislative specialists who have proven track records achieving success on behalf of clients with special interests in immigration issues.

Employer Regulatory Compliance

Employers face administrative, criminal and financial penalties for violations of the Immigration & Nationality Act. Moreover, no employer can afford negative publicity generated by reports that they employ "illegal workers." The GT Business Immigration Group assists companies in developing comprehensive systems to ensure compliance with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Department of Labor, and State Department regulations. In addition, our attorneys conduct audits for businesses to identify immigration violations, minimize the potential liability for past violations, and train staff to prevent future problems.

Global Tax Minimization For Employers and Foreign Workers/Compensation & Benefits

Our Business Immigration Group advises companies and individuals regarding global tax minimization techniques. In addition, we assist companies in structuring compensation packages to take advantage of tax treaties and tax benefits available in each country. The Business Immigration Team includes international tax experts who design and implement international benefits programs ensuring maximum tax effectiveness. We also advise on all aspects of global share plans, including: tax, payroll, data protection, exchange control, securities and labor and employment laws worldwide.

Foreign Work Visas

We are the central point of contact for businesses who have visa needs in countries in addition to the United States. The GT Business Immigration Group partners with a broad network of highly regarded immigration professionals in foreign centers of commerce and government to assist clients with obtaining work authorization outside the United States. We monitor work authorization expiration dates and notify clients beforehand to prevent interruptions in periods of authorized employment.

Export Control

U.S. based companies involved in international business are generally aware that the U.S. maintains laws restricting the types of products and technology that can be exported from the U.S. to foreign destinations. Many companies have developed internal programs to ensure compliance with these restrictions. One issue that businesses may not be aware of is that in certain circumstances the U.S. export control laws also apply to foreign nationals in the U.S. who are exposed to technical data. This exposure can be considered a "deemed export." This is true especially in the technology sector, but may apply to other areas as well. Our Business Immigration Groups helps employers ensure that they comply with all export control rules that arise when employing foreign nationals.

Corporate Restructuring

Mergers, acquisitions, and corporate spin-offs may have significant immigration consequences. GTs Business Immigration Group advises clients how to structure deals that enable successor companies to continue to employ foreign national workers in compliance with U.S. immigration law. The Business Immigration Group also analyzes business purchase agreements, conducts due diligence investigations of potential acquisitions to identify potential liability associated with the target companys prior immigration violations, and identifies foreign national workers who will need their work authorization amended to work for the new corporate owner. After careful investigation and analysis, the GT Business Immigration Group works with our clients to implement the best strategy to ensure a successful transition.