Executive Summary
- Most immigration delays trace back to information errors made at the very start of a case, not during USCIS processing.
- A standard intake process gives every new case the same foundation: the right information, collected from the right people, before anyone starts working.
- You do not need a large immigration team to build this. A clear checklist and defined ownership is enough to prevent the most common problems.
Where cases go wrong
When a visa case gets delayed, the root cause is usually not what happened at USCIS. It is what happened in the first few days after the decision was made to sponsor someone.
Here is what goes wrong most often:
- Wrong start date. The hiring manager tells the candidate they start September 1. HR passes the same date to counsel. Nobody checked whether that date is realistic, given current processing times and the employee's current status.
- Vague job description. The role was described in the offer letter as "Senior Software Engineer." USCIS wants to know exactly what the person will do, what degree is required, and why a degree in that specific field is needed. A generic title is not enough.
- Missing documents. The attorney sends a document request and gets responses back two weeks later, in pieces, from three different people.
- Wrong work location. The employee is remote, working from a different state than the one listed on the petition. Nobody flagged it before filing.
None of these are complicated problems. They are coordination problems. A standard intake process solves them.
What to collect at the start of every case
A good intake is not a long form. It is a structured moment at the beginning of every case where you gather the right information before anyone starts working on it.
Here is what it should cover:
Employee information
- Full legal name as it appears on passport
- Date of birth
- Country of birth and country of citizenship
- Current visa status and the authorized end date
- I-94 expiration date
- Whether they have any pending immigration cases with another employer
- Travel plans in the next 6 months
Role information
- Official job title
- Full-time or part-time
- Primary work location - city, state, and whether the role is remote or in-office
- Start date requested by the hiring manager
- Salary, including any bonuses or variable components that may affect prevailing wage
- Job duties written in plain language, not copied from the offer letter
- Minimum education and experience requirements for the role
Sponsorship details
- Type of visa being pursued
- Whether this is a new petition, an extension, or a transfer
- Whether premium processing is needed
- Who at the company has signing authority for this case
When counsel receives all of this upfront, they can open the file and begin working immediately. No follow-up emails. No waiting on a passport scan that should have come in on day one.
Who is responsible for what
The intake process only works when each person knows their role. Here is how to divide it:
HR owns the process
- Sends the intake form
- Follows up on anything missing
- Confirms all information before it goes to counsel
- Sets timeline expectations with the hiring manager from the start
The hiring manager provides the job details
- Job title, duties, work location, and degree requirements
- HR should not be guessing at this information
- The hiring manager should review and confirm before it goes to the attorney
The employee provides their personal documents
- Passport, I-94, prior approval notices, and any documents related to their current status
- Give employees a clear list and a deadline - 5 to 7 business days is reasonable
- If the employee has dependents who also need status, collect their documents at the same time
Immigration counsel reviews and works the case
- The attorney should not be chasing down missing information
- Their job starts when they receive a complete intake package
- If something is missing, it should be flagged back to HR, not handled directly with the employee or hiring manager
A basic intake checklist to start from
If you do not have a formal intake process yet, this is a reasonable starting point. Adjust it to fit how your company works.
Within 24 hours of the sponsorship decision
- [ ] Notify immigration counsel that a new case is opening
- [ ] Send the intake form to both the employee and the hiring manager
- [ ] Confirm the intended start date and ask counsel if it is achievable given the employee's current status
Within 5 business days
- [ ] Collect the completed intake form from the employee
- [ ] Confirm job title, duties, work location, and salary with the hiring manager
- [ ] Gather supporting documents: passport bio page, most recent visa stamp, current I-94, most recent approval notice
- [ ] If dependents need status, collect their documents now - not later
Before sending to counsel
- [ ] Confirm all documents are legible
- [ ] Confirm the work location on the intake matches what will go on the petition
- [ ] Confirm salary is in line with prevailing wage for the role and location
- [ ] Get written sign-off from the hiring manager on the job description
How WayLit handles this for you
Building and maintaining an intake process on your own is doable, but it requires ongoing coordination, follow-up, and version control across HR, hiring managers, employees, and counsel.
WayLit combines experienced immigration attorneys and practitioners with software that automates the intake process, so every new case starts correctly without HR having to chase anyone down.
Here is how it works in practice:
- When a new case opens, WayLit automatically sends the right intake questions to the right people - the employee gets a request for their documents, the hiring manager gets a request for job details, and your WayLit immigration practitioner is notified.
- All responses come back into one place, so nothing gets buried in email threads or lost in a shared drive.
- WayLit flags missing or inconsistent information before the case moves forward - wrong work location, a salary that may not meet prevailing wage, a start date that is not achievable given the employee's current status.
- Because cases arrive at your immigration practitioner complete and organized, filings move significantly faster. WayLit customers see visa filings completed up to 3x faster compared to managing the process manually.
- The intake process is one of the most straightforward things to get right, and one of the most commonly overlooked. Having it handled through WayLit means your team can focus on the decisions that require human judgment, not on document collection.
Common questions from HR teams
We only sponsor a few cases per year. Is a formal process worth it?
A small case volume is exactly when a standard process matters most. There is no institutional memory to fall back on. If you run three cases a year and one of them has an error, that is a significant portion of your program affected.
What if the employee is in a hurry and wants to skip steps?
The intake process protects the employee as much as it protects the company. A petition filed on incomplete information is more likely to get an RFE, which adds 60 to 90 days to processing time. A short delay upfront almost always beats a long delay mid-process.
How do we move quickly when a case is urgent?
Speed and completeness are not at odds. A well-run intake can be finished in 48 hours if HR and the employee are responsive. The fastest cases are the ones that start with complete, accurate information - not the ones that skip the intake and have to backfill documents later.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Consult qualified immigration counsel before making decisions about your sponsored workforce.
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