To share university standards for sponsorship for work authorization.
All university faculty and staff vacancies.
Office of the Chancellor, maintained by Illinois Human Resources and the Office for Access and Equity.
The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign values the hiring of eligible international employees as part of our talent strategy. The ability to provide immigration sponsorship for work authorization can be an important opportunity, especially when in alignment with unit goals and strategy.
Illinois retains the right to make decisions about sponsorship for work authorization on behalf of its employees or potential employees. Individual hiring units will consult with the Office of International Student and Scholar Services on all immigration and sponsorship for work authorization matters, including, but not limited to, J-1, H-1B, O-1, TN and LPR statuses.
The filing of an immigrant or nonimmigrant petition is not a guarantee of new or continued employment, a guarantee of any fixed-terms or conditions of employment or a guarantee that the petition will be granted. All offers of employment, notices of appointment, contracts, continued employment and all other agreements between Illinois and the individual are contingent upon the individual having the legal right to work in the U.S. If at any time the individual loses the legal right to work in the U.S. or an effort to obtain U.S. work authorization is untimely or unsuccessful, Illinois retains the right to terminate employment immediately or rescind an offer of employment. Illinois will not be held responsible to the individual for any expenses incurred, time spent or any other offers of employment which were declined. Illinois will not assume responsibility for any individual who perjures, makes false statements or otherwise misrepresents Illinois or him/herself/themself when completing the employment paperwork, obtaining visa documents or entering into the U.S.
When aligned with business need and subject to the provisions of this policy, Illinois will make reasonable efforts to obtain the requested immigration sponsorship for work authorization. However, Illinois cannot guarantee any result. Illinois may end or withdraw its sponsorship at any time. Illinois reserves the right to make decisions based on business need and compliance with applicable U.S. law, regulations and policy in all cases. Illinois reserves the right to amend this policy without notice and at its own discretion.
Eligibility for Sponsorship
Faculty positions
Tenure system and specialized faculty positions will, in most cases, be eligible for sponsorship for work authorization. Consult with the Office for Access and Equity, accessandequity@illinois.edu, if it is determined a position may need to exclude sponsorship, such as if a position fund source requires U.S. lawful permanent residence or citizenship.
Overtime-Exempt Positions other than faculty
For Overtime-Exempt Positions other than faculty, individual hiring units may determine whether sponsorship for work authorization is available for a given vacancy based on legitimate business factors, which include, but are not limited to:
Hiring units must declare during the job description review and approval process whether or not the position is eligible for sponsorship. Overtime-Exempt Positions include, but are not limited to, academic professional, overtime exempt civil service, postdoctoral research associates and visiting scholars.
Ineligible for sponsorship
Overtime-eligible positions (e.g., nonexempt per the Fair Labor Standards Act Wages and the Fair Labor Standards Act | U.S. Department of Labor) are not eligible for sponsorship for work authorization. Such positions include office support, service workers, temporary hourly positions, etc.
Consideration of Applicants
Units cannot consider applicants who require sponsorship if the position was advertised as Sponsorship for Work Authorization Not Available.
Units must consider applicants who require Sponsorship for Work Authorization if the position advertisement/posting indicated Sponsorship for Work Authorization was available, either explicitly or by failing to indicate it was not available.
When Sponsorship for Work Authorization is not eligible based on the “Eligibility for Sponsorship” section then the job posting for the position *shall* include the following statement: “Sponsorship for Work Authorization is not available for this position.”
Costs and Fees Associated with Immigration Sponsorship
If Illinois elects to sponsor an employee or potential employee for work authorization, Illinois will cover certain costs and fees associated with sponsorship, including fees that the employer is required to pay by law. This includes all costs and fees associated with I-129 and I-140 forms, but does not cover personal application costs such as entry visa fees or I-485 adjustment of status expenses. Premium processing fees will be covered on a case-by-case basis only where premium processing is a business need. In rare cases, premium processing fees may be paid by the individual, but for the employee to pay this fee, their salary must meet a certain threshold and premium processing cannot be required for business purposes. Discretionary travel that could impact sponsorship for work authorization does not qualify as a business need to secure premium processing, even if it invalidates existing work authorization.
Dependents
Illinois is not responsible for the immigration needs of foreign national dependents, which are the sole responsibility of the employee. Illinois does not cover any costs and fees associated with the filing of applications for dependent family members, including, but not limited to, H-4 applications, extensions and Form I-485 Applications to Adjust Status. Additionally, Illinois does not track expiration dates or status of dependent family members.
Sponsorship for Work Authorization: When an employer agrees to support or “sponsor” a foreign national in securing the appropriate work authorization in order to employ that individual.
At Illinois, this frequently is related to an H-1B visa petition, an O-1 visa petition, an E-3 visa petition, TN status and the Legal Permanent Residency process.
Faculty: encompasses both tenure system and specialized faculty.
Overtime-Exempt Positions: salaried positions that meet the provisions under the FLSA and are ineligible for overtime pay.
Overtime-Eligible Positions: hourly paid positions.
Noted within the eligibility section of the policy
Illinois Human Resources, ihr@Illinois.edu, (217) 333- 9063
International Students and Scholar Services, isss@illinois.edu, (217) 333-1303
Office for Access and Equity, accessandequity@illinois.edu, (217) 333-0885