Senior Staff Engineer Jobs at Affirm with Visa Sponsorship
Senior Staff Engineer jobs at Affirm sit at the intersection of financial technology and large-scale distributed systems. Affirm has a consistent track record of sponsoring work visas for engineering talent at this level, making it a realistic target if you're building a long-term U.S. career in fintech.
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INTRODUCTION
Affirm is reinventing credit to make it more honest and friendly, giving consumers the flexibility to buy now and pay later without any hidden fees or compounding interest. The Money Movement & Card Ledger team is looking for a passionate Software Engineer to help build the tools and systems that we use to manage money movement, bank data integration & merchant data. Affirm Card is Affirm’s newest financial product that marries the functionality of a debit card with access to Affirm's buy now pay later financing options. Our ability to move money effectively is critical to our ability to reach new customers and improve financial lives. We work closely with experience, data science, product, and a wide range of engineering teams to both leverage existing systems and build new systems. This role requires a high level of technical capability, strong cross functional communication, and a creative mindset. Our work needs to be correct, scalable, and extensible. Our job is to have an industry leading money movement system to empower our product. Affirm is experiencing explosive growth with millions of customers across thousands of merchants in-store and online, and your contributions will be a key enabler of that growth. Come join us as we build a beloved, lasting financial services brand predicated on honesty and trust. It’s going to be an amazing ride!
ROLE AND RESPONSIBILITIES
You will be responsible for owning and delivering quarterly goals for your team, leading engineers on your team through ambiguity to solve open-ended problems, and ensuring that everyone is supported throughout delivery.
You will support your peers and stakeholders in the product development lifecycle by collaborating with product management, design & analytics by participating in ideation, articulating technical constraints, and partnering on decisions that properly consider risks and trade-offs.
You will proactively identify project, process, technology or business issues, advocate for them, and lead in solving them.
You will support the operations and availability of your team’s artifacts by creating and monitoring metrics, escalating when needed, and supporting “keep the lights on” & on-call efforts.
You will foster a culture of quality and ownership on your team by setting or improving code review and design standards for your team, and advocating for them beyond your team through your writing and tech talks.
You will help develop talent on your team by providing feedback and guidance, and leading by example.
BASIC QUALIFICATIONS
You have 4+ years of experience designing, developing and launching backend systems at scale using languages like Python or Kotlin.
You have a track record of developing highly available distributed systems using technologies like AWS, MySQL and Kubernetes.
You have experience defining a technical plan for the delivery of a significant feature or system component with an elegant, simple and extensible design. You write high quality code that is easily understood and used by others.
You are proficient at making significant changes in a large code base, and have developed a suite of tools and practices that enable you and your team to do so safely.
Your experience demonstrates that you take ownership of your growth, proactively seeking feedback from your team, your manager, and your stakeholders.
You have strong verbal and written communication skills that support effective collaboration with our global engineering team.
* This position requires either equivalent practical experience or a Bachelor’s degree in a related field.
COMPENSATION
Base Pay Grade - N
Equity Grade - USA 9
Employees new to Affirm typically come in at the start of the pay range. Affirm focuses on providing a simple and transparent pay structure which is based on a variety of factors, including location, experience and job-related skills. Base pay is part of a total compensation package that may include equity rewards, monthly stipends for health, wellness and tech spending, and benefits (including 100% subsidized medical coverage, dental and vision for you and your dependents.)
USA Pacific base pay range (CA, WA, NY, NJ, CT): $195,000 - $255,000
USA Sapphire base pay range (all other U.S. states): $173,000 - $233,000
Affirm is proud to be a remote-first company! The majority of our roles are remote and you can work almost anywhere within the country of employment. Affirmers in proximal roles have the flexibility to work remotely, but will occasionally be required to work out of their assigned Affirm office. A limited number of roles remain office-based due to the nature of their job responsibilities.
BENEFITS
We’re extremely proud to offer competitive benefits that are anchored to our core value of people come first. Some key highlights of our benefits package include:
Health care coverage - Affirm covers all premiums for all levels of coverage for you and your dependents
Flexible Spending Wallets - generous stipends for spending on Technology, Food, various Lifestyle needs, and family forming expenses
Time off - competitive vacation and holiday schedules allowing you to take time off to rest and recharge
ESPP - An employee stock purchase plan enabling you to buy shares of Affirm at a discount
We believe It’s On Us to provide an inclusive interview experience for all, including people with disabilities. We are happy to provide reasonable accommodations to candidates in need of individualized support during the hiring process.
Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance and Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance, Affirm will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.
By clicking "Submit Application," you acknowledge that you have read Affirm's Global Candidate Privacy Notice and hereby freely and unambiguously give informed consent to the collection, processing, use, and storage of your personal information as described therein.
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Get Access To All JobsTips for Finding Senior Staff Engineer Jobs at Affirm
Align your systems experience to fintech infrastructure
Affirm's Senior Staff Engineers own architectural decisions across payment processing, underwriting, and credit systems. Frame your resume around distributed systems, high-availability design, or financial data pipelines before you apply. Generic backend experience reads weaker than domain-adjacent depth.
Verify your visa type fits Affirm's sponsorship scope
Affirm sponsors H-1B, TN, and OPT for engineering roles, but each carries different filing timelines and constraints. If you're approaching your OPT expiration or STEM extension window, confirm the role's start date aligns with your authorized period before accepting an offer.
Target roles with defined technical ownership areas
Senior Staff Engineer postings at Affirm that reference platform reliability, lending infrastructure, or core API architecture are more likely to support sponsorship through the full Green Card process. Roles with vague scope tend to face more scrutiny at the PERM stage.
Request the LCA filing timeline before signing
Your employer must file a certified Labor Condition Application with the DOL before USCIS can process your H-1B petition. Ask Affirm's recruiting team when they plan to initiate the LCA so you can map your start date to a realistic approval window, not an optimistic one.
Use Migrate Mate to identify open Senior Staff Engineer roles at Affirm
Filter Migrate Mate's job board by company and visa type to surface active Senior Staff Engineer openings at Affirm that are open to sponsorship. Applying through listings confirmed for sponsorship saves time you'd otherwise spend screening out roles that won't support your status.
Prepare credential documentation early for specialty occupation review
USCIS scrutinizes whether Senior Staff Engineer roles meet the specialty occupation standard, particularly in fintech where job duties can overlap with general software engineering. Gather degree transcripts, employer letters confirming your specialized scope, and any professional certifications before your employer files the I-129.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Affirm sponsor H-1B visas for Senior Staff Engineers?
Yes, Affirm sponsors H-1B visas for Senior Staff Engineers. At this seniority level, roles typically involve specialized systems architecture in financial technology, which supports the specialty occupation classification USCIS requires. If you're subject to the H-1B cap, your employer must file during the annual lottery window, with an October 1 start date if selected.
Which visa types does Affirm commonly sponsor for Senior Staff Engineer roles?
Affirm sponsors H-1B, TN visa, F-1 OPT, F-1 CPT, and EB-2 or EB-3 Green Card pathways for engineering roles. H-1B is the most common long-term path. TN visa is available to Canadian and Mexican nationals in qualifying engineering occupations. OPT and CPT support students transitioning from F-1 status into full-time roles before pursuing a longer-term visa.
What qualifications does Affirm expect for Senior Staff Engineer positions?
Senior Staff Engineer roles at Affirm typically require deep experience with large-scale distributed systems, strong architectural judgment, and the ability to drive technical direction across multiple teams. Experience in payments, lending, or financial data infrastructure is a practical advantage. USCIS also requires a relevant bachelor's degree or higher to support the H-1B specialty occupation classification.
How do I apply for Senior Staff Engineer jobs at Affirm?
You can find active Senior Staff Engineer openings at Affirm through Migrate Mate, which filters roles by company and visa sponsorship type so you're not applying blind. Once you identify a relevant role, apply directly through Affirm's careers portal. The process typically includes a recruiter screen, technical system design rounds, and a cross-functional leadership interview before an offer is extended.
How do I plan my timeline if Affirm is sponsoring my H-1B as a Senior Staff Engineer?
If you're not cap-exempt, the H-1B lottery runs in March for an October 1 start date, meaning there's a potential six-month gap between registration and when you can legally begin. Coordinate with Affirm's immigration team early so the Labor Condition Application is filed with DOL and the I-129 is ready to submit as soon as USCIS opens the filing window after selection.