Athletes

Sports Immigration Group

Our Sports Immigration Group focuses on immigration law for professional athletes within the major sports fields. Members of the group have handled professional players from the National Hockey League (NHL), Major League Baseball (MLB), National Basketball Association (NBA) and National Lacrosse League (NLL).

Athletes who are Members of Professional Sports Teams

• We assist teams in obtaining temporary work visas, including P-1s and H-2Bs, needed for their non-US citizen athletes to be legally employed
  

Coaches, Managers and Support Personnel of Professional Sports Teams

• We help team coaches, managers and key support personnel obtain work authorization quickly, and efficiently.
  

Green Cards for Professional Athletes

While an athlete's team typically handles securing the temporary work visa to play each season, few athletes take advantage of the opportunity to secure a U.S. Green Card, or United States permanent resident status. Some of the advantages to obtaining a Green Card:

• Never having to worry about securing a temporary work permit
• Being able to work in the U.S. in another occupation
• Immediate family members (wife, children) also receive a Green Card
• Preserving the option of retiring in the U.S.
• Establishing the ability to obtain U.S. Citizenship while maintaining their home country's citizenship

Immigration Guidance for Athletes' Spouses and Family Members

• We help eligible players' spouses (and significant others) and other members of their immediate family develop an immigrant strategy to live and work in the United States and help secure U.S. work permission and Green Cards

Visa Types - Professional Athletes

B-1 Visas. Professional athletes, such as tennis players, jockeys, golfers and auto racers, who receive no salary or remuneration other than prize money for their participation in a tournament or sporting event, are eligible for the B-1 visa as business visitors.

Athletes who seek to enter the United States as members of a foreign based team in order to compete with another sports team are also eligible for the B-1 visas. In order for a team to qualify for the B-1 visa, athletes must be in a position to demonstrate:

• Their principal place of business or sporting activity is in a foreign country;
• The income of the foreign based team and the salary of its players are principally accrued in a foreign country; and
• The foreign based sports team is a member of an international sports league, or the sporting activities involved have an international dimension.

O-1 Visas. This visa is available to individual athletes of "extraordinary ability." To obtain an O-1 visa, athletes must demonstrate that they possess "a level of expertise indicating that they are one of the small percentages who have risen to the top of the field of endeavor." Examples of O-1 eligible athletes would be Wayne Gretzky, Ronaldo, and Annika Sorenstam.

P-1 Visas. Athletes who cannot meet the "extraordinary ability standard" required for an O-1 visa may qualify for the P-1 visa. To qualify, the athlete must show that he is internationally recognized and is coming to the U.S. to participate in a league or event with a distinguished reputation. Athletes under contract with the National Hockey League, Major League Baseball, National Basketball Association, Major League Soccer, Major League Lacrosse and the National Football League need only establish that they have a major league contract to qualify for a P-1 visa.

H-2B Visas. The H-2B visa allows athletes who cannot meet the higher standards of the O-1 and P-1 visas to be temporarily employed in the U.S. However, to obtain an H-2B visa the sponsoring team must obtain a labor certification from the Department of Labor. Athletes playing under a minor league contract typically are issued an H-2B visa but only for the duration of the season, up to a maximum of one year.

Visa Types - Amateur Athletes

B-2 Visas. An amateur athlete or group of athletes competing in an athletic event for which they will receive no payment, other than incidental expenses, are eligible for the B-2 visa as visitors for pleasure.

For additional information, please contact Jamie Lynn Maddalena at jmaddalena@serottelaw.com