O1 Visa

I had a chat with a U.S. immigration lawyer to chat about my prospects for the O1 visa.

It was a free consultation through immigrantfirst.ai, founded by my friend Atal.

Apparently, I already have a good, albeit risky case for O1 if I was with Tesla right now under OPT.

Nonetheless, I have a second shot at this with my masters, and since I'm starting early now, I have the time to build and even stronger profile in my 3 years of OPT + STEM extension.

The O1 visa is an alternative to the H1B visa, that is valid for 3 years initially, but is eligible for unlimited renewals.

It has no quotas, no travel restrictions, and you can bring your family with you.

Specifically the O1-A visa is for people who have shown extraordinary abilities in fields such as business, athletics, education, and science, and based on an employment setup.

You have to satisfy the following 8 criteries:

Critical role: You perform a crucial role at a respected company or startup.
Memberships: You belong to a group that requires great achievements, as judged by experts.
High remuneration: You receive a large salary or other substantial compensation.
Awards: You have won national or global awards for excellence in your field.
Press: Respected publications or major media outlets have published articles about you.
Scholarly articles: You have written articles for important publications in your field.
Original contributions: You have made important, new contributions to your field.
Judging: You have judged the work of your peers individually or on a panel.

Some things I learned from the call

work with professors or mentors across industries and fields and try to get your name on things, this helps them recommend you for your work in different aspects and roles.
Connections is important! you need 5-7 support letters for O1
work on O1 application and submit in the second year of my OPT (it takes 4-6 months with non-premium processing)
H1B can be renewed while waiting for green card status (benefit of h1b)
H1B has a 6 year duration, while O1 has no limit as long as you're still displaying "extraordinary abilities"
EB2 NIW (National interest waiver) is a self-petition process for green card, which means you don't have to be tied to a company, and you could get it in 1-2 years
PERM application through a company for green card can take 3-4 years.
if you want to start your own company in the US, talk to DSO for approval, get e-verified, have a mentor sign off (professor or advisor), have a U.S. citizen cofound with you to handle documents

Resources

People

Lisa Wehden (@lisawehden) from Plymouth

Blogs on O1

For EB1-A

BENEDICT NEO

O1 Visa

Resources