Please note that we’re not immigration experts and advise you to do your own research if you want to work in the US. Ideally, speak with an immigration attorney before you make any important career decisions that involve moving to the US. The US immigration system is complex and expert advice can help you avoid mistakes, wasted effort, and unnecessary frustration.

Summary

• Some foreign nationals migrated to the US and went on to have successful careers in public service (e.g. see the naturalized policymakers on this list). But the challenges for foreign nationals to work in US policy are often significant, including a period of several years involving severely limited job opportunities, e.g. since they cannot work directly for the government.
• The four main immigration categories for working in the US are, in increasing order of difficulty to obtain and flexibility once you have it: (1) pursuing an academic degree in the US, (2) temporary work visa, (3) green card (i.e. permanent residency), and (4) becoming a US citizen.
• You can do valuable policy-related work in any of these four immigration categories. But some jobs are off-limits if you are a student, on a temporary work visa, or (though with much fewer restrictions) on a green card.
• Among those interested in working in the US long-term, many progress through these four categories sequentially, which may take them more than a decade before becoming US citizens (and some people who try never manage to get a green card/citizenship). By “skipping” steps (1) and/or (2), some people substantially shorten their immigration journey (though doing so is often difficult).
• To live and work in the US long-term, you typically need at least a green card, which is often challenging to get. Once you have a green card, becoming a citizen is fairly straightforward, though it will take another 3-5 years. You can’t become a citizen without first getting a green card.
• There are different types of student visas (F-1, J-1), temporary work visas (H-1B, O-1, etc.) and green cards, each with differing application processes and restrictions. We cover these in more detail below.

Policy work by immigration status

The following table provides an overview of the types of policy work you can do across four categories of US immigration status, along with other practical information. Subsequent sections of this post elaborate on the types of policy work and on the specifics of the four immigration status categories and visa types.

	Student	Temporary work	Green card	Citizenship
Duration	Length of your degree + 1-3 years OPT	1-10+ years (very uncertain, can be skipped if lucky)	Indefinite, but eligible to apply for citizenship after 3-5 years	Indefinite
Relevant visa categories	F-1, J-1	H-1B, O-1, etc.	Employment-based Family-based Lottery-based	——
Can get a security clearance?	No	No	No	Yes Some clearance levels might require you to give up your home nationality.
Eligibility for types of policy activities	Executive Legislative Academia Think tanks For-profits	Executive Legislative Academia Think tanks For-profits	Some exec Legislative Academia Think tanks For-profits	All executive Legislative Academia Think tanks For-profits
What can you do?	Easy to work on campus. Off campus work requires special authorization.  You can work for 1 year (or 3 years for US STEM graduates) after graduation using “Optional Practical Training” (OPT) in a position that is “directly related to [the] student’s major area of study”.	You can work at a think tank/non-profit, university, or in industry (e.g. government contracting).	You can do any work, except for (i) work that requires a security clearance, and (ii) running for office. You can work in Congress, but you mostly can’t work in the executive branch (with some exceptions).	You can do any work.
Difficulty and practical requirements?	Straightforward as long as you can prove you have strong ties to your home country and have sufficient financial resources to cover tuition and living expenses. Requires a university offer.	Medium-difficult. Requires employment sponsorship (job offer + willingness to sponsor). H-1B sponsorship is costly, so not every employer is willing to sponsor foreign nationals. H-1B visa involves an annual lottery with < ⅓ chance of success unless the employer is exempt from the H-1B cap (details below) H-1B holders are tied to one employer. Changing employers requires re-applying for H-1B (though with a simplified process). O-1 visas require that the individual have sustained national or international acclaim and be one of the small percentage at the very top of their field. There is no annual limit on these visas, but they are difficult to attain.	Difficult. Three main paths: 1. Employment-based (EB) 2. Family-based (FB) 3. Lottery-based (LB) EB: Most categories require employer sponsorship. Extraordinary Ability and National Interest Waiver cases can be self-petitioned.  FB: Requires sponsorship from spouse (or other close family member) with US citizenship or green card. LB: Eligibility and chances of success depend on nationality. There are 50,000 diversity visas available worldwide per year.	Green card required, but straightforward to get once you have a green card.   Eligible to apply for citizenship 5 years from when you get your green card (only 3 years if you were married to a US citizen the entire time).  Citizenship application typically takes 6-12 months to be approved.
Number capped?	No	No cap for O-1 visa. H-1 visas are capped, but: (i) a higher cap applies if you hold a US master’s, (ii) you’re cap-exempt at a nonprofit or government research organization, a university, or a nonprofit affiliated with a university, (iii) no cap applies if you already have an H-1B (that was subject to the cap) and want to switch location, role, or employer.	There are no caps for immediate family sponsorship (US citizens sponsoring their spouses, unmarried children under age 21, or parents) There are caps for EB, other FB, and LB green cards. Wait times and probability of success vary by country due to country-based caps.	No

Types of policy work by immigration status

Oversimplifying somewhat, there are three main types of public policy work, each of which can allow you to gain valuable experience and make a difference:

1. Policy research: research to inform or develop policy proposals
2. Policy advocacy: promoting specific policy proposals
3. Policy implementation: implementing specific policy proposals (e.g. execution in a government agency)

As the following table demonstrates, non-citizens are eligible to do many types of policy work (except for implementation), including as a “non-immigrant” (i.e. temporary resident without green card).

	Activities	Requires			Example
		green card	citizenship	security clearance
Executive	Research Advocacy Implementation	Yes	Often	Sometimes	Work for a government agency like the State Department
Legislative	Research Advocacy Implementation	Yes	Sometimes	Rarely	Work as a staffer in Congress
Academia	Research Advocacy	No	No	No	Pursue an academic career researching relevant policy topics
Think tanks / nonprofits	Research Advocacy	No	No	No	Work for organizations like Brookings, CSIS, or CSET.
For-profits	Research Advocacy Implementation	No	Rarely (for gov’t contracting)	Rarely (for gov’t contracting)	Work as a researcher, government contractor / consultant, etc.

US policy careers often involve permeable boundaries between different types of US policy organizations: it is relatively common in the US to move between different types of policy work, such as switching from a think tank to the executive branch and back. Many policy professionals thus don’t stay on one specific path long-term (e.g. only working in think tanks).

Due to the above-mentioned work and security clearance restrictions, international students and temporary workers have more limited job options and cannot switch as easily between organizations and roles. But even then, your work outside of government can still be valuable from a policy perspective, both in directly informing policy and helping your professional development that could later help you transition into government when further along in your immigration journey.

Immigration category details

The following visual illustrates the most common pathways into and through the US immigration system. The longest (but common) process would involve starting as a student, getting a temporary work visa, then a green card, and then citizenship—depending on how long it takes to get green card sponsorship, this process can take more than a decade. If you start in the US later during the chain, or skip a step (e.g. going straight from student to green card), your immigration journey could be considerably shorter.

One caveat before going into the specific categories: all student and some temporary work visas do not allow for “dual-intent”, which is the intent to remain in the US both temporarily on the visa and permanently as a green card holder. While it is possible to, for example, go from student visa holder to permanent resident, it could impact your ability to travel internationally and/or to extend your temporary visa status once you reach a certain point in your green card case. Thus, you should consult with an immigration attorney if you are contemplating permanent residence while in a nonimmigrant visa category which prohibits dual intent (see appendix).

Student visas

Pursuing an academic degree in the US can be a good entry point to US policy work, whether at the undergraduate or graduate level. Depending on your degree and university, studying in the US will help you to (1) test your fit for US policy work, (2) learn about the US political system, (3) build a network among (future) US policy researchers and practitioners, (4) gain a valuable credential (one that will often be more highly valued by US employers than a degree from a foreign university), and (5) in the case of research degrees, conduct useful studies.

International students are generally not permitted to work in the executive or (with rare exceptions) the legislative branch, and they are barred from any positions requiring a security clearance. Consequently, the main options for international students seeking to (prepare for) work in US policy are think tanks, universities, nonprofits, and some private sector organizations.

Conditional on receiving an offer from a US university, it is relatively more straightforward¹ to get a visa to study in the US since there are no caps on the number of student visas that can be issued each year (unlike with temporary work visas, reviewed below). The most common visa category for international students is the “F-1” visa, the second most common being the “J-1”² visa (here is a good overview of the differences). Studying in the US does not directly help to obtain a green card or US citizenship later. But some international students may find a US spouse or a US employer, which can create a path to getting a family-based or employment-based green card).

International students in the US face restrictions regarding the amount and type of work they are allowed to do. During the academic semester, F-1 students cannot work more than 20 hours per week, though full-time work is possible during breaks, including the 3 month summer break.

It tends to be straightforward to get a work authorization for “on campus” employment, such as being a research assistant for a professor at your university. Depending on your university, there may be at least some on campus work opportunities that are relevant to policy work. (Policy schools like Georgetown University typically offer more policy-relevant on campus employment opportunities; e.g. CSET, GHSS.)

It is more difficult, though often still possible within limits, to be authorized for “off campus” employment (i.e. working for an organization that is not affiliated with your university). F-1 students may be authorized to complete 1-3 off campus internships during their degree under a program called “Curricular Practical Training” (CPT), though the details differ by university and degree program.

All F-1 students are allowed to work in the US for up to one year (or three years for US STEM students) after completion of their degree under a program called “Optional Practical Training” (OPT). Note that your job must be “directly related to an F-1 student’s major area of study”, which may limit your flexibility.

Some policy-relevant degree programs include public policy, political science, international relations, economics, and law. Being located in Washington, DC, is often beneficial; the DC-based policy schools include (but are not limited to) Georgetown University, Johns Hopkins SAIS, George Washington University, George Mason University, or American University (in rough order of reputation). See our graduate school guides, including in-depth advice on policy master’s programs and law school. 

Temporary work visas

The most common path to work in the US is on a temporary work visa. There are various different types of temporary work visas, each with different requirements. The most relevant types are the “H-1B specialty occupation” visa (the most common professional work visa), country-specific analogs to the H-1B (E-3, TN, H-1B1), and the “O-1 extraordinary ability visa”.

Similar to international students, temporary workers are usually not permitted to work in the executive or (with rare exceptions) the legislative branch, or in positions requiring a security clearance. So, the main policy-relevant options for temporary workers are think tanks, universities, nonprofits, and some private sector organizations.

Generally, temporary work visas require employment sponsorship. That is, an organization needs to offer you a job and be willing to sponsor your visa (which may come with significant costs and administrative overhead for the organization). As the name suggests, these visas are also time-limited: the default duration of both H-1B and O-1 visas is three years. The H-1B visa period is extendable up to six years and you can reapply in the future after spending at least one year abroad. The O-1 visa period may be extended indefinitely in one-year increments.

Temporary work visas can be subject to caps: While O-1 visas are not capped, the number of H-1B visas granted per year is limited to 65,000. There are an additional 20,000 H-1Bs for foreign nationals holding a master’s or higher degree from US universities. Another 6,800 spots are available specifically for citizens of Singapore and Chile. Moreover, you’re exempt from the cap if (1) you’re working at a university, a nonprofit associated with a university, or a nonprofit or government research organization, (2) if you have been counted toward the H-1B cap in the previous 6 years, or (3) you already have an H-1B and want to extend your visa, change your location or role while working for the same employer, or change employers. Every year many more people apply for H-1B visas than are available. To select which applicants get the H-1B, the government runs an annual lottery, which involves an approximately ⅓ chance of success (though it differs by year and your education level).

H-1B visa holders are tied to a particular employer. If you quit your job or get fired, you lose your H-1B status and might have to leave the country within a 60-day grace period unless you can find another employer to sponsor you in time. Also, while H-1B employees may not be treated differently from similarly situated US workers, US employers are allowed to replace H-1B workers with qualified US workers.

Working in the US on a temporary work visa does not directly help you to obtain a green card or US citizenship later. But some international students may find a US spouse or a US employer, which can create a path to getting a family-based or employment-based green card).

Other temporary work visa categories include:

• L-1A and L-1B: intra-company transferees (if you work for a US multinational abroad)
• E-1 and E-2: treaty traders, investors, and investor employees
• E-3: specialty occupation visas for Australians
• TN: North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) temporary professionals from Mexico and Canada
• H-1B1: specialty occupation visas for nationals of Chile or Singapore 

Green card (permanent residency)

To live and work in the US permanently typically requires a green card, which can be very challenging to obtain. As a green card-holder, you can do most kinds of work, including in the legislative branch as a Congressional staffer. But you cannot get a security clearance or, with some exceptions, work in the executive branch.

There are three main routes to a green card:

Family-based (FB)

This requires sponsorship by an immediate relative—a spouse, parent, or child—who is a US citizen. There are four additional “family preference immigrant” categories (F1 through F4) which may make other family members eligible to apply for a green card, for example spouses and children of US permanent residents, adult unmarried children of US citizens or permanent residents, and siblings of US citizens.

There are no caps on green cards for immediate relatives of US citizens (i.e. spouses, parents, and unmarried minor children under age 21) and consequently no wait times. In contrast, there are caps for applicants of “family preference” FB green cards, meaning you have to wait for one to become available. The associated wait time depends on your preference category, which can range, according to this website, “from a year or two for F1 applicants and up to a decade or longer for F4 applicants”.

Employment-based

There are five categories (EB-1 through EB-5) of employment-based green cards and, with limited exceptions, they require either sponsorship by an employer or demonstration of “extraordinary abilities”. The sponsorship is required for EB-2 and EB-3 to get a “labor certification” (but not for EB-1, EB-4, or EB-5), which verifies that (i) “there are insufficient available, qualified, and willing US workers to fill the position being offered at the prevailing wage” and (ii) “hiring a foreign worker will not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of similarly employed US workers”.

As the employer is required to test the US labor market and demonstrate there are no qualified, interested, or available US workers, the process can be expensive, arduous, and time-consuming, which explains why many employers are reluctant to do so. Large employers typically find this easier than small employers, with the largest companies having dedicated in-house immigration lawyers to sponsor employees from abroad, though plenty of small and medium-sized employers are also willing to sponsor the right person.

In addition to the EB-1 extraordinary ability category, another option is the EB-2 National Interest Waiver (NIW) category which can be self-petitioned and does not require a labor certification. To qualify for an NIW, your work must be in an area of substantial merit and national importance, you must be well-positioned to advance the endeavor, and the benefit of your contributions must outweigh the interests protected by the labor certification process (e.g. your work is urgent and important to the US national interest).

Lottery-based

The US government runs an annual “diversity immigrant visa lottery”, which “makes up to 50,000 immigrant visas available annually, drawn from random selection among all entries to individuals who are from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States.” So, your eligibility and chances for success in the lottery depend on your nationality.

The chances of winning a green card via the lottery in a given year vary widely, ranging from well below 1% up to several percentage points. To participate in the lottery, you need to submit an application during an annual one-month window (usually in October). It is free to apply and can be done online. While the chances of winning are low, it does not cost any money and only a few minutes to apply.

Country-based green card caps

There are country-based caps on the number of EB and “family preference” FB green cards, such that immigrants from no single country can receive more than 7 percent of the green cards in any given year. This results in high backlogs and long wait times (often years, up to decades) for certain immigrants, especially those from populous countries like India, China, Mexico, and the Philippines. As stated here: “The per-​country limits treat each nation equally, but not each immigrant equally. China receives the same treatment as Estonia, but immigrants from Estonia who apply today could receive their visas this year, while immigrants from China who apply today could have to wait a generation.” (Proposals to eliminate country-based caps have been actively considered by Congress in recent years.)

Citizenship

As a green card-holder it is relatively straightforward to become a US citizen. To apply for citizenship, you need to have had a green card for at least 5 years (only 3 years if you were married to a US citizen the entire time). Once you are eligible to apply, the process itself is fairly simple—consisting mainly of a language and civics test—and typically takes another 6-12 months until naturalization is complete.

Naturalized individuals can do (almost) any work. For example, they can work in government, including political appointments.

Foreign-born US citizens can also get a security clearance. But having many foreign contacts may cause delays and somewhat decrease the chances of success (this is essentially equivalent to a US-born citizen who has lived abroad for a significant period of time). Some security clearance levels might require giving up your home nationality—though this is relatively rare. Continuing family ties in countries of concern (e.g. China, Russia, Iran) may also hamper some immigrants’ ability to get clearances. 

Appendices

“Dual intent”

The US immigration system distinguishes between foreign nationals (i) seeking to come to the US only temporarily (those with “nonimmigrant intent”) and (ii) those wishing to live in the US permanently (those with “immigrant intent”). When applying for a US visa, “dual intent” means you want a visa to gain temporary entry to the US and you also aim to become a US permanent resident by getting a green card. “Non-dual intent” means simply that you intend to leave the US again after your temporary visa period is over.

Some temporary US visas allow you to have dual intent while others don’t. Examples of dual intent visas include the H-1B and O-1 temporary work visas; non-dual intent visas include the F-1 and J-1 student visas. The following table includes some example visa categories and whether they allow for dual intent or not. 

Non-dual intent visas		Dual intent visas
Visa	Purpose	Visa	Purpose
F-1	Academic students	H-1B	Certain temporary workers
J-1	Exchange students	H-4	Dependents of H-1B workers
M-1	Vocational students	O-1	Extraordinary ability workers
B-1/2	Business or tourism visitor	O-3	Dependents of O-1 workers
E-1/2	Treaty traders, investors, and investor employees	L-1A/B	Intracompany transferees
E-3	Certain Australian professionals
H-1B1	Certain Chilean or Singaporean professionals
TN	NAFTA professionals from Mexico and Canada

When you apply for a non-dual intent visa, you need to demonstrate that you have nonimmigrant intent. As this website explains, you might be required to “bring many forms of proof to [your] visa interview, showing, for example, that [you] maintain a residence abroad, have a family abroad, have a temporary work contract in the US”. If you own property such as a house or car or hold bank accounts and credit cards in your home country, you should provide proof of those financial ties as well. If US immigration officials infer that you have immigrant intent, in the worst case, according to Wikipedia, “this is grounds for termination of nonimmigrant visas issued, refusal of the visa application, refusal of admission at the port of entry, refusal of readmission, or removal (deportation)”. 

The difficulty of demonstrating nonimmigrant intent varies by country of origin. According to a qualified immigration attorney, for those from wealthy countries, there is less mistrust and nonimmigrant intent will generally be assumed. For example, even applying for the annual diversity green card lottery is not seen as an indication of “immigrant intent” (still, if selected in the lottery, you should be careful when submitting your actual green card application). Those from lower-income countries more frequently have their visa applications rejected due to dual-intent concerns. In general, if you have questions about dual-intent issues, it is good to consult an immigration attorney (or, if you are an international student, your university’s international student office). As a starting point, this article is a useful guide on some things to pay attention to and avoid.

Selective Service for male immigrants & US citizens growing up abroad

The US legally requires male US citizens and immigrants to register for the “Selective Service” before the age of 26, regardless of whether they live in the US or abroad. This can be done online and should take only a few minutes. Importantly, “failure to register is a felony and non-registrants may be denied the following benefits for life:

• (…) Federal (and many state and local) jobs
• Up to a 5-year delay of U.S. citizenship proceedings for immigrants”

The US government explains that:

Selective Service registration is required by law as the first part of a fair and equitable system that, if authorized by the President and Congress, would rapidly provide personnel to the Department of Defense while at the same time providing for an Alternative Service Program for conscientious objectors. By registering, a young man remains eligible for jobs, state-based student aid in 31 states, Federally-funded job training, and U.S. citizenship for immigrant men.

Evaluation of Foreign Degrees

If you’re wondering whether your foreign degree will be recognized for federal government positions, read this page from the State Department. It states that:

For certain Federal positions (e.g. Civil Service, Expanded Professional Associates Program) applicants may need to submit proof of education (such as copies of transcript(s) and diploma(s)) as a part of the application.

Foreign education transcripts will not be accepted…Foreign education…must be evaluated by a credential evaluation service in order to be given credit towards qualification.

The State Department provides more detail in the article about how to request an evaluation.

Footnotes