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Which work authorization should I pick?

Employers ask one question over and over: will you need us to sponsor you? Your answer here is what we put on those forms, so it is worth thirty seconds to get right.

Which work authorization should I pick?

We use this to answer sponsorship questions on application forms, and to hide listings that rule you out. Pick the status you hold today.

  • US CitizenNo sponsorship needed

    Born in the US or naturalized. Dual citizens count.

  • Permanent Resident (Green Card)No sponsorship needed

    You already hold the card. Conditional cards count — EB-5 investor, marriage-based, and asylee/refugee adjustments.

  • F-1 Student Visa · OPTNeeds sponsorship

    EAD card approved and you are working under it now, including the 24-month STEM extension.

  • F-1 Student Visa · CPTNeeds sponsorship

    Working under course-linked authorization from your school, not a USCIS EAD card.

  • F-1 Student Visa (pre-OPT)Needs sponsorship

    Enrolled on F-1 with no work authorization yet. Pick this if you are applying for next summer.

  • H-1B Work VisaNeeds sponsorship

    Currently on H-1B. A new employer must file a transfer petition.

  • Other Work VisaNeeds sponsorship

    Anything else needing employer support — TN, O-1, E-2, L-1, J-1, or an EB-5 petition that has not produced a card yet.

What we do with your answer

Two things. First, when an application form asks whether you now or in the future require sponsorship, we answer from this field rather than guessing. Second, we filter your queue: a listing marked Does Not Offer Sponsorship is skipped if your status needs it, and a listing marked U.S. Citizenship is Required is skipped for everyone except citizens. Skipped listings are reported back to you — they are not silently dropped.

Pick the status you hold today, not the one you expect to hold. If you are on F-1 and your OPT has not been approved yet, choose the pre-OPT option — employers read the two very differently.

Common edge cases

I have an EB-5 investor green card
Choose Permanent Resident (Green Card). EB-5 gives you a two-year conditional card first; conditional or not, you are a lawful permanent resident and no employer has to sponsor you. If your petition is approved but you do not hold the card yet, choose the status you are actually in right now instead.
I am on OPT but my STEM extension is pending
Choose F-1 Student Visa · OPT. The extension does not change the answer employers care about — you will still need sponsorship eventually.
I hold dual citizenship
If one of them is US citizenship, choose US Citizen. Your other nationality does not restrict you here.
My status is not on the list
Choose Other Work Visa — TN, O-1, E-2, L-1 and J-1 all belong there. We treat it as needing sponsorship, which is the safe assumption. You can add detail in the notes field on your profile.

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Which work authorization should I pick? — Job Matching