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Foreign National Hiring Processes

All foreign nationals who are offered employment by UWF must have employment authorization in the form of an employment-based visa before they can begin work.

F-1 or J-1 Visas (Student)

Departments requesting permission to hire an F-1 or J-1 student must submit an F-1 and J-1 Student Employment Form. The student must then contact the International Affairs office (international@uwf.edu) to obtain the social security card application (if required). If directed, the student will need to visit the Social Security Administration office in downtown Pensacola before they may continue the hiring process. Once the student has received their Social Security Card, or if they already had one, they will need to make an appointment with Human Resources, 850.474.2694, to complete their Form I-9.

Please review and follow the entire F-1 and J-1 Student Employment business process in Confluence. Additional information can also be found on the Student Employment web page. Departments should never allow an F-1 or J-1 student to start work until they have received authorization from Human Resources. 

International students may not work more than 20 hours per week (all jobs combined) during the spring and fall semesters. During summer and semester breaks, they may work up to 40 hours/week. Please check with Human Resources or the International Center for additional details. 

H-1B Visas (Specialty Occupations)

H-1B visas are for the purpose of hiring temporary (nonimmigrant) foreign nationals to work in a specialty occupation that requires:

  • theoretical and practical application of a highly specialized body of knowledge, and
  • minimum bachelor's degree, or equivalent, in the specific occupational specialty.

Time is of the essence in employment based sponsorship. Normal processing can take anywhere from 4-6 months from date of filing. Premium processing can be requested for an additional fee and may expedite processing to about 15 days from date of filing. H-1B transfers and extensions can be completed in a shorter amount of time (90 days or less).

Departments who wish to consider employment-based visa sponsorship, should designate this in their job postings. As soon as an offer of employment is made to an individual who will need sponsorship, hiring managers should notify Christine Dillard in Human Resources. Christine serves as the liaison between the foreign national; the hiring department; the UWF General Counsel's Office; and Fragomen Del Rey, Bernsen & Loewy, LLP. UWF retains Fragomen to handle and file all non-immigrant and immigrant employment based cases on behalf of UWF. Fragomen is recognized as a leading immigration law firm, and immigration is their only practice.

The employer (UWF hiring department) is required to pay the USCIS filing fees and associated attorney fees. These fees vary based on individual circumstances.