H-1B1 Visa Jobs: Top 8 Specialty Occupations for Chileans

The H-1B1 visa is the work route most Chilean professionals overlook, and it has one advantage the H-1B cannot match: there is no lottery. Chile gets 1,400 numbers a year under the free trade agreement, they have never come close to running out, and an employer can file for you in any month rather than waiting for a March registration window.

H-1B1 status is granted in increments of up to one year, and it is not a dual intent category, so a green card plan needs its own thinking rather than an assumption that the two connect.

Below are eight occupations that account for most H-1B1 hiring.

First, what makes a job eligible

The H-1B1 uses a specialty occupation test. The role has to normally require a bachelor's degree or higher in a specific field as the minimum for entry, and your qualifications have to match that field.

The test looks at the job rather than at you. A developer applying to a role that does not require a degree will not qualify, and a role that clearly requires one will qualify even at a small employer.

Wage figures throughout are national mean annual wages from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey, May 2025 estimates released May 2026. They cover all U.S. workers in each occupation, so a sponsored role at a large employer often pays above them.

1. Software developer

Full-stack, backend, mobile, and platform roles all sit in the largest single category of H-1B1 hiring, and the degree requirement is rarely in question.

Large technology companies and mid-size product firms are the most frequent filers, largely because their recruiters already recognize the visa class and will not treat your application as an unknown.

Filed under SOC 15-1252, Software Developers.

Mean annual wage: $148,100 across 1.69 million U.S. workers, as of May 2025.

2. Financial and investment analyst

Covers analysts whose core work is quantitative analysis of financial data. Investment banks, corporate finance teams, and consulting firms file most heavily here.

If you work in financial planning and analysis, the role qualifies when the main duty is analyzing data rather than managing budgets or people. That distinction decides eligibility more often than your title does, so read the job description closely.

Filed under SOC 13-2051, Financial and Investment Analysts.

Mean annual wage: $116,800, as of May 2025.

3. Management analyst and consultant

Consultant, strategy analyst, and business analyst titles sit here when the work involves organizational studies, process design, or work measurement. Large consulting practices and internal strategy groups are the main employers.

The free trade agreement includes a management consultant category with alternative credentials. It is part of the H-1B1 rather than a separate visa, which is a point Chilean applicants are often told incorrectly.

Under it, your degree can be in an unrelated discipline as long as you hold a bachelor's, licenciatura, or título profesional and have three years of experience in a field related to the consulting work. If your degree does not match your career, this is the route to ask about.

Filed under SOC 13-1111, Management Analysts.

Mean annual wage: $113,790, as of May 2025.

4. Medical scientist and research scientist

Covers Chilean researchers at universities, biotech companies, and hospital research labs. Principal investigator and staff scientist positions qualify without difficulty.

Research assistant roles sit closer to the line. Confirm the posting names a bachelor's degree or higher as the minimum requirement, because some assistant positions do not, and that alone can end the case.

If you hold a doctorate and are weighing this against an O-1, the H-1B1 is the practical choice while your publication record is still building.

Filed under SOC 19-1042, Medical Scientists, and SOC 19-1029, Biological Scientists, All Other.

Mean annual wage: $116,840 for medical scientists and $106,330 for other biological scientists, as of May 2025.

5. Physician

Chilean physicians use the H-1B1 for residency and attending positions. The medical degree satisfies the specialty occupation test on its own, so eligibility is rarely the obstacle.

Certification is the harder gate. U.S. residency programs require certification from the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates, not completion of a Chilean residency, and Match timelines leave no room to sort this out late.

Confirm your certification status is current before you target programs.

Filed under the SOC 29-121X physician and surgeon codes, which vary by specialty.

Mean annual wage: $277,260 across all physicians, as of May 2025. That figure is pulled upward by high-paying specialties. Family medicine averages $255,820 and general pediatrics $212,110, which are closer to what most entrants see.

6. Postsecondary teacher and postdoc

Covers tenure-track and postdoctoral appointments across disciplines. Chilean academics move on the H-1B1 regularly, and universities are experienced filers.

The classification depends on your field rather than on the fact that you teach. Postsecondary teaching codes run across the whole SOC 25-10XX range, so an engineering postdoc, a humanities lecturer, and a biology researcher each file under a different one.

Ask about the H-1B1 explicitly when a university offers you J-1 instead. J-1 can carry a two-year home residency requirement that blocks H, L, and permanent resident status until you have spent two years back in Chile or obtained a waiver. The H-1B1 carries no such condition, and the default lands on J-1 more from habit than from analysis.

Filed under SOC 25-10XX, Postsecondary Teachers, varying by discipline.

Mean annual wage: $103,470 across all postsecondary teachers, as of May 2025. Discipline drives the spread: engineering teachers average $124,520, biological science teachers $102,840, and humanities teachers $92,420.

7. Architect

Architecture and engineering firms hire Chilean architects on the H-1B1 without much friction. Chilean architecture programs run five to six years, so degrees clear credential evaluation as equivalent to a U.S. bachelor's or better.

Get the evaluation done before you start applying rather than promising it later. Most U.S. employers expect the report attached to the application.

Firms that have filed for Chilean architects before move fastest, since their counsel already knows the timeline.

Filed under SOC 17-1011, Architects, Except Landscape and Naval.

Mean annual wage: $106,260, as of May 2025.

8. Accountant and auditor

Large accounting firms are the most common employers here, and the degree requirement is rarely contested.

The H-1B1 itself does not require a U.S. certified public accountant license. Many employer job descriptions do require a path to licensure within a set window after hire, which is a different thing and worth clarifying at offer stage.

Chilean contadores do not automatically hold the U.S. credential. State boards do accept international candidates, though exam eligibility and experience requirements differ by state.

Filed under SOC 13-2011, Accountants and Auditors.

Mean annual wage: $94,750, as of May 2025.

Wage figures throughout are national mean annual wages from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey, May 2025 estimates released May 2026. They cover all U.S. workers in each occupation, so a sponsored role at a large employer often pays above them.

Find H-1B1 visa sponsors on Migrate Mate

Most U.S. employers have never filed an H-1B1, so the question that decides your search is which ones have sponsored before. Migrate Mate lists only roles from employers with a verified history of sponsoring work visas, and gives you direct contact for the hiring manager so you can raise the visa question before you apply.

Frequently asked questions