The E3 visa is a United States visa for which only citizens of Australia are eligible. It was created by an Act of Congress in the aftermath of the friendly but tough negotiations on the U.S.-Australia Free Trade Agreement (AUSFTA), although it is not formally a part of the AUSFTA. The legislation creating the E-3 visa was signed into law by President Bush on May 11, 2005.

The E3 visa is similar in many respects to the H1B visa. Important differences include the fact that spouses of E3 visa holders may work in the United States without restrictions (unlike other US non-immigrant visas, even the TN visa issued to Canadian and Mexican citizens), and that the E3 visa is renewable indefinitely (in two year increments). Australian citizens applying for an E3 visa are also no longer subject to the 65,000 annual visa limit for H-1B visas; although there is a separate annual quota of 10,500 E3 visas, this is believed to be much more generous to Australians than requiring them to compete with all other nations for H-1B visas. Visas issued to spouses and children are not included in the E3 quota and spouses and children do not need to be Australian citizens.

E3 visa holders do not officially benefit from the doctrine of dual intent, which allows certain US temporary visa holders to apply for the green card without concern that it may jeopardize their temporary status in the US[citation needed].

The regulations for applying for an E3 visa were published in the United States Federal Register on September 2, 2005. Following these procedures will allow an Australian citizen to apply for an E3 visa at a US consulate in Australia.

Similar to an H1B visa, the prospective employer of the E3 visa holder will first apply for a "Labor Condition Application" (LCA) with the US Department of Labor, with a note at the top of the form indicating it is for an E3 visa for an Australian citizen. After the LCA is granted, the Australian citizen will then apply for the actual visa at a US consulate in Australia, and then enter the US. Australians who are already in the United States on another type of temporary/non-immigrant visa may also apply to change their status to an E3 visa. Change of visa status is not possible if the applicant has entered the country under the visa waiver program

E3 Visa Document Checklist - From Employee

• Copies of the passport for yourself and all dependent family members, including copies of any U.S. visas and biographical pages
   
• Copy of the most recent resume
   
• Copies of all educational documents (college and above), including diplomas (and transcripts if readily available; if diploma is not readily available, applicant must provide confirmation of completion of university degree from an authorized university or college official). Also please provide translations for all pertinent foreign language documents
   
• Copy of any previously conducted formal credential evaluation
   
• Copy of all available USCIS previous Approval Notices (I-797)
   
• Copies of previous H-1B support letters (if available)

E3 Visa Document Checklist - From Employer

• The job title
• A detailed job description
• A statement of the minimum requirements for the position which includes: The specific academic degree required; The specific academic degree required; The minimum number of years experience required, if any;
• The title of the supervisor for the position;
• The number of employees the E-3 worker will supervise, if any;
• A statement of any licensing requirements for the position;
• The proposed salary;
• Location where employee will work; and
• a written description of the company including nature of products or services, number and location of facilities, number of employees, gross revenues, number of years in business or a recent annual report, descriptive corporate profile, company brochures, or other printed information which provides this information or reference to the company's web site where this information may be found