Hiring Unsponsored International Employees
In many instances, a Georgia State department will hire an international faculty, researcher or staff member who already has work authorization from the U.S. government. In these cases, they may even be hiring tenure-track faculty members who the department will later sponsor for an employment-based visa (such as an H-1B) and permanent residency. Due to the federal requirement of export control screening, it is imperative that ISSS be notified Prior to the Start Date of any foreign nationals hired in a faculty or researcher position. This prior notification also aids in future immigration applications or petitions which the department may wish to pursue for the individual, especially the permanent residency (green card) process, which have tight filing windows that we would otherwise miss if not notified of a new foreign hire.
Employment Authorization Document (EAD Card)
The non-Georgia State sponsored work authorization can take a few forms but the most common one is an Employment Authorization Document (known as an “EAD” card). These cards appear like the image below and should not be confused with the “green card”. These cards allow someone to work for the time allotted on the card itself. They are generally applied for by the foreign national themselves via U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Typical processing times are around 3 months from when they file.
See below for the various stipulations associated with the EAD card. Each EAD card “type” is determined by the category code listed on the card.
F-1 OPT (either Georgia State graduates or graduates from other institutions, category: C3B or C3C)
- The F-1 status allows for students to work for at least one year after finishing their degree program. Unlike other EAD cards, these come with a stipulation that the student work in their field of study.
- Some students are eligible for a two-year extension of their work authorization if they have graduated from a STEM program. They will need to discuss this with their student advisor at their home institution.
- As part of this extension process, the department will be responsible for filling out the Form I-983, instructions for which can be found on this website. You will need to fill need the following information to assist you in filling it out:
- Georgia State EIN Number: 58-6002050
- Number of employees: 6,767
- NAICS Code: 611310
- Extensions using the STEM Extension will receive an automatic 180 day extension of their employment authorization while waiting for the full approval. You may use the receipt notice to extend their I-9 with HR.
- As part of this extension process, the department will be responsible for filling out the Form I-983, instructions for which can be found on this website. You will need to fill need the following information to assist you in filling it out:
Other EAD Card Types
- J-2 Dependent (code: C05)
- E-3 Dependent (code: A17)
- L-2 Dependent (code: A18)
- Applicant for Permanent Residency (code: C09)
- H-4 Dependent (only in certain situations, code: C26)
There are no restrictions on these work authorization cards in terms of type or hours of work.
J-1 Academic Training
Some J-1 Student Categories (Student Bachelors, Masters or Doctorate or even Non-Degree on occasion) allow for a period of employment known as Academic Training. In these instances, there will be no EAD card. The work authorization will be found on their Form DS-2019, under section 5 on the right-hand side.
A person on Academic Training can have a maximum of 18 months of work if they graduated with a Bachelors or Masters. If they graduated with a Doctorate, they can request a maximum of two 18 month periods of work authorization.