Checklist for H-1B Employees - Required Documents to Upload
The following is a list of documents the employee (also known as the beneficiary) is responsible for uploading into Terra Dotta for H-1B requests.
  • Upload documents into relevant categories and subcategories below
  • Keep file sizes under 2MB
  • Please only provide PDFs of documents when at all possible. Other document formats have caused sizing, legibility, and other similar issues. If you have an iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch, you can use these instructions to scan a document to create a PDF. If you have an Android device, you can use these instructions to scan a document into your Google Drive as a PDF.
  • If there is a document listed in the Terra Dotta Documents tab, but it is not listed below, you are NOT required to upload anything for that. Ex: Under the Current Immigration category, Terra Dotta has a file type called "Current F-1 or J-1 student status letter from the institution"; however, this is not a document that UW-Madison requires you provide - you can just upload your most recent I-20 as noted below on this checklist.
Clinical faculty, fellows and residents, please see additional items to upload here.
Required Document Upload under this category/subcategory in TDS
Current Resume or CV Resume/Resume
Degree Certificate or diploma
  • English translation is required if is not in English
  • New graduates who do not yet have a degree certificate may obtain a letter from the Registrar's Office confirming the graduation requirements have been met. The letter must be on letterhead and include your name, degree, and field of study.
 Academic Information/Academic Degree Certificates
Transcripts
  • English translation is required if it is not in English 
 Academic Information/Other
Credential evaluation
  • This is a document that will show what the U.S. equivalency of your degree is
 Academic Information/Foreign degree credential evaluation certification
Passport
  • Biographic page only, unless directed otherwise by IFSS
  • Must be valid at least 6 months beyond the start date of the H-1B petition
 Current Immigration/Current Passport
Most recent Form I-94
  • Required only if in the United States when the H-1B petition is filed
  • Obtained online at www.cbp.gov/i94
  • It's ok if your I-94 has an old passport number - if it's your most recent entry, it's still a valid document
  • If you entered via land border, you may have been issued a paper Form I-94 that was stapled into your passport
 Current Immigration/Current I-94 entry document
Two (2) most recent pay stubs
  • Required only if currently working and getting paid by an employer in the United States
 Current Immigration/Most recent paystubs
Most recent U.S. visa stamp
  • This is the laminated U.S. visa page in your passport; it was issued by a U.S. embassy or consulate
  • It's ok if it's expired or for another status
 Current Immigration/Other
Most recent I-20
  • Required only if you are currently in F-1 status or an F-2 dependent
  • Please include all pages
 Immigration History/I-20
Employment Authorization Document (EAD)
  • Front and back of card
  • Required only if you have a current EAD card for employment authorization (ex: J-2 EAD, H-4 EAD, OPT or STEM OPT EAD, etc)
 Immigration History/EAD
All DS-2019s (Certificate of Eligibility for Exchange Visitor Status)
  • Required only if you have held J-1 or J-2 status in the past
  • Prior to September 1, 2002 this form was known as the IAP-66 (if you have this, please use subcategory IAP-66)
 Immigration History/DS-2019 or IAP-66
All previous H-1B approval notices
  • Required only if you have held H-1B status in the past
  • Also known as Form I-797
 Immigration History/H-1B approval notice
If you have held any other immigration status in the past (such as E-3, L-1, O-1, TN), please upload relevant documents here
  • Exception: B status or Visa Waiver Program (VWP) documentation is not required
Also, if you have applied for permanent residency (aka "green card") please upload any relevant receipt and/or approval notices in this category		 Immigration History/Other
If you are/were subject to the 2 year home residency requirement from a prior J-1 or J-2 program, then upload the appropriate documentation below:
  • If you obtained a waiver of the 2 year requirement, upload:
    • USCIS approval notice of the I-612 Application for Waiver of the Foreign Residence Requirement 
    • Department of State No Objection Recommendation letter or other waiver reason documents (persecution waivers, IGA waivers, etc.)
  • If you fulfilled the requirement, upload any of the following (you may not have all of this, so provide what you can and IFSS will advise further):
    • Copies of all passports you've held since returning to your country of last permanent residence (all pages, even the blank ones)
    • Employment letters or paystubs to show overseas employment
    • Copies of leases or mortgage statements to show overseas residence
NOTE: In December 2024, the skills list was updated and many countries removed. Click to review the Exchange Visitor Skills List. This change is retroactive as well. Therefore, if you were subject to the 2 year requirement due to the skills list, and your country no longer appears on the updated skills list, you are no longer subject to the 2 year requirement anymore. IFSS has additional documentation they will include in your case to show this.

But, if you were subject to the 2 year requirement because of government financing or because you are/were in the Alien Physician category, the updated skills list does not apply to you and you are still subject to the 2 year requirement. Consult IFSS if you have additional questions or clarifications regarding this.		 J visa Two-year residency requirement
If you have dependents in the U.S. changing status to H-4 or extending their H-4 status, please upload the following for your dependent(s).
  • Form I-539: Only use Adobe or another program to type into the form. The only fields that must be handwritten are signatures.
    • Digital and/or electronic signatures are not acceptable on Form I-539. You must print the form, sign it, then scan it to a PDF before uploading.
  • Form G-1450: This form is required to pay the H-4 filing fees. You must use a personal credit card issued by a U.S. bank. IFSS will delete this form from Terra Dotta after the petition is received at USCIS.
    • Digital and/or electronic signatures are not acceptable on Form G-1450. You must print the form, sign it, then scan it to a PDF before uploading.
  • Spouse only - Marriage certificate
  • Children only - Birth certificate
  • Copies of the biographical page in passport for each dependent
  • Most recent visa stamp for each dependent
  • Most recent I-94 entry document for each dependent
  • Prior H-4 approvals (if this is an extension; if your dependent obtained H-4 status upon entry to the U.S. they will not have an H-4 approval from USCIS)
  • Most recent I-20 if your dependent is currently an F student
  • DS-2019s (formerly IAP66s) if your dependent was a J-1 or J-2
  • Dependent work authorization document (EAD), if applicable
  • Other relevant documentation you would like to provide with the I-539 application
The address for IFSS is: 702 Langdon Street, Suite 130, Madison, WI 53706 (hours are Monday through Friday, 8:30am until 4pm). For anything that is mailed, please include your name (as the H-1B applicant) in the package so we know whose H-1B this H-4 application goes with. If you deliver documents and/or forms, put them in a sealed envelope with your name somewhere on the outside of the envelope.		 Beneficiary's dependents changing or extending status in the U.S.

 To determine where your application is in the process, please reference this document for what each phase/status in Terra Dotta means.