Ask Me Anything About O-1 and EB-1A Extraordinary-Ability Visas
Ask Me Anything About O-1 and EB-1A Extraordinary-Ability Visas
July 31, 2020
Updated March 2024.
Got questions about O-1 and EB-1A “extraordinary ability” visas? I’ve got answers!
This is an ongoing AMA – use the “Leave a Reply” box below to post a question. I’m a licensed attorney, and I do know my stuff, but this isn’t legal advice, and I don’t represent you.
Thanks for stopping by! A warm welcome to friends from Hacker News. I’ll start it off with a few commonly asked questions, then open the floor to you.
A special note for 2024. The “extraordinary ability” advice here is accurate and evergreen, even from a few years ago. US immigration law isn’t on the 24-hour news cycle — more like the 24-year news cycle.
I’ve checked each question carefully to ensure the responses are still correct. They are.
While short-term events can disrupt many immigration plans, I strongly encourage EVERYONE considering an O-1 or EB-1A visa to take the long view.
Chance favors the prepared mind. Keep building those portfolios! Write some articles, judge some competitions, get profiled in a publication, and collect data about the impacts of your cool invention.
There’s absolutely no downside. Extending your timeline means a longer period of “sustained acclaim” for you.
Keep going … I believe in you and what you’re doing!
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98 responses to “Ask Me Anything About O-1 and EB-1A Extraordinary-Ability Visas”
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Hi Mary,
I have articles published in DZone, critical role in Big Organization but How can I get into judging panels to qualify for EB1A? -
Hi Mary,
Thanks for all your valuable inputs!! Have you ever thought of starting a community who are in this journey to build an ecosytem around it? Apart from legal advice, people can share their experiences and tips with each other and keep motivated. Just a suggestion.
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Hi Ani, this is a great idea! I’ve thought about it, but wasn’t sure whether people were interested. I’d love for VisaBuilder to be the place for that to happen. Thanks for the encouragement, I’ll definitely start building it. 🙂
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Hi – I am into IT for 17+ years and started looking for eb1a. Can my area of expertise map to multiple Emerging Technologies such as Advances Computing + AI + FinTech ?
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Hello Ani, thanks most kindly for your inquiry. This is a great question. The answer’s yes, a combination of multiple areas of expertise is a really excellent fit for an EB-1A. The more specialized your niche, the better your chances!
The essence of extraordinary ability is proving that you’re “one of that small percentage who have risen to the very top of the field of endeavor.” But what is the “field of endeavor,” and where is its “top”?
USCIS gives applicants a lot of scope in defining the field of endeavor. They don’t use picky occupational classifications like they do for H-1Bs or labor certifications. And it’s much easier to rise to the “top” of a specialized field than a broad, general field. The fewer people your field contains, the easier it will be to show that you’re at the top of the pyramid.
So, for example, the field of “AI supercomputer engineering for banking and finance” is way more EB-1A friendly than, say, the field of “software development.” I would absolutely run with this, and your cool niche is a great start.
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Hi,
I am a PhD in Microbiology from India. I have 16 scholarly articles with 215 citations (Google Scholar). Additionally, I have reviewed over 70 research articles, and the ones I reviewed have garnered over 100 citations in total. Can you guide me on whether I should apply for EB1a now or wait for more time to enhance my CV?I have arranged references letters from ma y people including people from my institute and with the one I met at conferences.
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Hi there Ankur, thanks so much for your inquiry, and your credentials look amazing! It looks like you are doing groundbreaking work. However, researcher cases aren’t my specialty, and I definitely recommend working with a specialist. For cases in research and academia I’d check out the Victoria Chen firm and similar attorneys focused exclusively on EB-1 / EB-2 for researchers. Good luck, and I’m betting that you’re very close to submitting a winning EB-1A package.
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Hello Mary,
Thank you so much for providing this wonderful platform to get clarity on EB1A.I would like to know what is my probability of being eligible for EB1A and what else I need to do to build the profile.
I work as a Principal Data Scientist at an MNC and I have 9 years of experience in total. Half of data science and half in business in various marketing and sales roles.. I have bachelors in computer science, MBA and MSc in computer science. Just an ieee member.
I lead an AI community in Canada which is focused on DEI and has grown the.community and delivered 60+ events over 3 years within volunteer capacity.
For this I have received several awards of national and possibly international level, eg: Top 100 Women in Emerging Tech, Top 25 women in AI etc. totally 4-5 recognitions.
Couple of articles and interviews about me was publisher by my organization and grad university on the above recognitions and journey. One of them is printed as a book and I have 2 pages in it.
I’m an invited speaker to national and international conferences as keynote and panel speaker on AI
I have one published paper, very few citations. One hackathon judge and another invited judge for Women in stem awards (national )
I’m now doing peer reviews and building my profile on judging criteria.
My questions are:1) What are my chances of being eligible for EB1A?
2) what criteria’s can I hit with my above contributions?
3) what else can I do to strengthen my profile as an industry professional?
I really appreciate the time and effort you share with others for helping them.
Thanks a lot!
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Hi TC, Thanks for your question, and yes, you have a huge head start on your EB-1A! It sounds like you’ve nailed the “acclaim” categories of awards and media coverage. These are usually the hardest criteria to satisfy in tech and engineering, which doesn’t have much of an acclaim-seeking culture. So with these accolades, your petition will have a “wow” factor that makes it very approvable.
Conference presentations qualify as publications, and your judging category is looking solid too.
The category I’d focus on for the backbone of your EB-1A is “original contributions.” This is the foundation of a tech industry case, because it shows the adjudicator your dent in the universe. I’m quite sure that you have many! They can be through your employer, your AI community, or preferably both.
Similarly, I’d build out the leading/critical role category, since it sounds like you have many of those as well.
This is a case that would really benefit from taking a look at the VisaBuilder Tech Toolbox product page. There’s a detailed course outline midway down the page that provides a detailed roadmap for structuring your case. The paid product would really supercharge your case-building! This AMA isn’t a sales page, but you do actually have the perfect use case here if you’re interested. Keep going, you’re almost there!
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Hello, thank you for holding this AMA.
Following is my credentials.
– 1 print media magazine has published an article on my work
– 2 print news media has published my article
– 1 TV interview of 5 mins during news
– 1 popular open source project where I was one of the contributors
– reviewed 1 book
– high salary
– close to 15 years of same work experience
– can prove for critical roles in organizationsQuestions:
1. Based on these, is it worth trying for EB-1A?
2. What letter of recommendations I should be getting and from whom?
3. What other things I should do to make strengthening my case?Thank you.
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Hello MS, your publications and media coverage are a great head start on “sustained acclaim”! In order to evaluate your overall progress toward EB-1A eligibility, I’d need to see these evidence items in the context of your career trajectory. Under the VisaBuilder framework, a winning petition in tech and engineering is about showing the USCIS adjudicator the mark you’ve made on your field. That’s the key to proving you’re at the “top of your field of endeavor.”
“Original contributions” is the foundational category for showing your dent in the universe. This is pretty much mandatory for a tech or engineering case. To develop this category, I’d review your entire career timeline, in chronological order, and then identify your “greatest hits” among all the projects you’ve worked on. For each of those, I’d go out and dig up some specific impacts that project had on the world at large, beyond your own employer or client.
Once that foundation’s established, then we’d build out the other seven categories, documenting critical role, high salary, publications, judging, and the 3 “acclaim” categories of exclusive memberships, awards, and media coverage. At that point you look like a superhero: a leader with “sustained acclaim at the top of the field of endeavor.”
So in the VisaBuilder framework, it’s not exactly about counting exhibits per category. It’s more that each exhibit is a building block in the story of your rise to the top of your field.
With these credentials, it sounds like you’re well on your way to building a solid evidence package for a winning EB-1A petition ~ and I’m pretty sure you’ve got some “original contributions” in there too. Happy case-building!
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Hi Mary,
Thanks for this initiative. Very helpful.
I am trying to explore my eligibility. I am in software sale but had played different role in past from developer, enterprise architect and so on.
1. High salary- I searched O*Net data base for my current role and it shows I am in 90th percentile.
2. Critical role- I am leading strategic initiatives in my org that has business changing impact on my company.
3. Judging – as part of strategic initiative, I had to conduct workshop for enablement and certify people globally
4. Awards- I had been named MVP across AMERICA for Q2
5. I had published blogs on my name but on my company website which is available for public.What do you think at a high level about my profile
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Hi there SV, thanks for your inquiry! It’s great that you’re starting your case-building for EB-1A. Here’s what you’ve got so far:
Critical role. This sounds like it meets the criterion, along with proof of distinction for your company.
Publications. Yes, a blog post on your company website under your byline counts in the “publications” category.
High salary. I don’t consider O*Net to be a probative baseline for the “high salary” category. It’s kind of the minimum, when we’re aiming for the maximum. Check out this AMA from 09/16/2023 for guidance on this criterion.
Judging and awards. Activities and events that are internal to your company don’t count toward these criteria, so I’d omit these.
There’s lots of guidance here in this AMA and throughout VisaBuilder on where to start your casebuilding adventure. Congratulations and good luck!
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Hi , My name is Pratik and looking for guidance to get EB1A and or EB1B , my situation is I am on L1B and employer filled EB2 but with holding multiple skills in my team managing multiple people work across the globe so want to try for EB1 and I have no idea about what citation or Patent are and how does it work, I have team and technical credibility awards but not public citations , any help would be appreciated here.
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Hi Pratik, thanks for your inquiry! I’d start by reviewing all the materials on the VisaBuilder website carefully, with a view toward planning and outlining your own personal path toward EB-1A. The requirements for industry are different than for science and academia, and this can work to your advantage. As a general outline, after doing your research about general EB-1A requirements and expectations, I’d focus on the following areas:
1. Plot a timeline of all the projects you’ve worked on, in chronological order, to create an overview of your increasing responsibilities, accomplishments, and expertise, over the whole trajectory of your career arc. This will be the foundation of your extraordinary-ability narrative of “best in the world at what you do.” It will identify your core original contributions and critical roles, which are the foundation of a tech industry case.
2. Based on your timeline data, identify a niche or specialty where you can develop a reputation as a thought leader in your field. Become the “go-to person” for a particular topic. Write articles, do podcasts, make presentations, judge contests, and generally get known for that thing.
Hope that this is helpful. Check out the course outline for VisaBuilder’s new product, the Tech Toolbox (from the Build Your Visa page above), for a sense of what this looks like. Good luck with your case-building initiative!
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Hi Mary,
Thank you for your valuable Q&A and insights. I have few questions:
1. I am currently a senior member reviewer for IEEE, Judge at Codie 2023, HackMIT, QS Quacquarelli Symonds. Will this satisfy judging criteria?
2. What evidence will it take to satisfy “Critical Role”?
3. As an industry expert for 12 Years, I have written few articles in IEEE XPlore and waiting for it to get published. Will this count towards “Articles” criteria without any citation?Thank you in advance!
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Hi there PC, thanks for your question. Yes, your judging activities are highly qualifying and prestigious! I’d definitely keep adding more at this level. As to publications, the regulations do require that they be published. So it would likely be premature to submit them as evidence before then. If you have preprints with a public URL, that could work. In addition, publications in blogs and industry media also count. So does your code, if published, and your open-source contributions. Also include all your external conference presentations.
As to “critical role” and “original contributions,” it’s likely that you have both of these over 12 years. There’s a lot of great info on both these categories in this AMA, and also on the brand-new VisaBuilder product page, under “Build Your Visa.”
Good luck, it sounds like you’re well on your way to a solid EB-1A evidence portfolio!
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Following are my credentials and I would like to know if it’s worth giving a shot for EB1A. I have over 15 years of experience in the Information Security and Data Privacy domain. I have a Master Degree from UMass Amherst in Software Engineering. I do not have any patents or lot of citations. However, I have presented at multiple [15+] global conferences as a speaker, panel discussion and/or moderator. I have been part of international standard development organizations [UL/IEC/CSA/ioXt/CEN/CENELEC] in drafting cybersecurity standards used by many organizations. I have also reviewed 15+ papers as part of being on Program Committees for international conferences on Privacy and Cybersecurity. I have published in influential magazines and have had couple of my interviews appear in PC World and the Electrical Distributor. I am also one of the primary authors of IIC Security Framework. I can provide up to 6 recommendation letters from other experts in US, Europe, Australia, and Canada. I am representing US as an expert on IEC TC 65 (technical committee). I have been elected Chair of NEMA Cybersecurity Council – an influential industry trade association consisting of North American Electrical Manufacturers. Lastly, I have been working in the critical infrastructure sector (Energy Sector) and believe my contributions have had an impact on securing the US electrical grid.
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Hi Devre, Wow! Those are great credentials. Based on the contributions you’ve listed, you’re already fully qualified for EB-1A. You could take these to an extraordinary-ability attorney right now, and they’d help you organize them into a winning case. If you’d like to get a head start on that process, the suggestions on my brand-new “Build Your Visa” page here will set you in the right direction. Congratulations, and full speed ahead!
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Hi – I am looking to pursue EB1A and consulting with few immigration lawyers. My CTC is ~300k and working as a senior engineer with multi national tech company. I have delivered impactful projects resulting in cost cutting and revenue gain for the company and my director/VP level leadership is happy to support me. I just have these 2 criteria for now and in process to build “reviewing work” and “scholarly articles” category for my case. How does my profile look? Is it worth pursuing EB1A?
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Hi Joe, Yes, you’ve got a solid foundation for an EB-1A there! You’ve got high salary and critical role, and you’re working on publications and judging. Great work! Here are a few suggestions for building out your case.
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Re “critical role,” document how your work contributed to building a successful product or service for your company, or advanced an important public initiative. Standing alone, cost-cutting and revenue-building generally won’t meet the criterion. Find the *projects* where you cut costs and built revenue, and document your contributions to their success.
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If you’ve got “critical role,” can you find and document “original contributions”? Most senior engineers at your level have done some groundbreaking work in their specialty. It’s a question of identifying the project and its end result, then documenting the specific impacts of that product, and your part of it, on your customers, your industry, and the world at large.
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I’d definitely leverage your publications and judging activities, to build a public reputation in your specialty as “the X of Y,” or the go-to person for topic Z. The EB-1A requires proof of “sustained acclaim,” as well as high-quality category evidence, and this is a good way to attract acclaim.
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Thanks Mary for doing this. I have bunch of questions For EB1-A.
Q1: Does contribution (as part of large team) to a highly impactful application built for Govt count? (500 million+ downloads, 1 national award)
Q2: Does Blog/Presentations/Talk about product that I built, but delivered by other team members count?
Q3: Most of my work is not public information (internal software development). Except above awards, blogs, etc. How do one go about collecting independent recommendations?
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Hi Vasani, thanks for your inquiry. Yes, this project is a classic example of a great “original contribution”! It’s high-profile; the impacts are specific and widespread; it’s attracted acclaim of its own. The challenge on large-team projects is identifying and documenting your own specific piece; demonstrating its originality; and isolating the “specific impacts” of that piece, on the final product and on the field overall.
For EB-1A purposes, you can document this with samples of your code or work product; letters from team members confirming the originality of your work; and expert letters, plus other evidence, showing the specific impacts of THAT contribution.
Re presentations “about” your work, yes, I’d absolutely include these in “original contributions” and “critical role” as evidence of impact and sustained acclaim. I wouldn’t necessarily claim it in the “published articles” category without your name on it, but it’s highly probative even without that.
Re non-public contributions, I’d draw a distinction between private or internal contributions, which can still be publicly discussed, written about, explained, acclaimed, etc., vs. proprietary, confidential, or trade-secret contributions. If yours are the former, talk about them, a lot, and have others talk about them too. Write articles as the expert; make some open-source contributions; do a panel or a presentation. Sounds like this is well underway, if your colleagues are giving talks about them already!
And, of course, collect lots of recommendation letters explaining the significance of your work and its impacts.
The confidential / proprietary situation is a much harder challenge. Many employers do understand that USCIS filings are non-public, and that evidence submitted in your EB-1A package will never be disclosed as part of a FOIA request or public case posting. Others still aren’t comfortable authorizing any release of data about your job.
In that situation, one strategy is to work with management and HR to wall off the truly proprietary parts, while allowing you to claim credit for the eventual product or software you contributed to. There’s no easy answer to this question, though, and I’m still figuring out solutions for how applicants might claim credit for their work. It’s often the most top-secret accomplishments that are also the most significant.
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Great inputs and information here. Thank you!!
When it comes to IEEE or some other organizations – You have to pay to become a member. If i understood the definition, USCIS statement says “they don’t consider organizations where someone becomes a member by paying dues”. Is having a membership with IEEE helpful ? if not, what are other organizations where i can become a member via invite only or other organizations that can help me on EB1 process via being a member onboard.-
Hi Mani, Thanks for the kind words. Yes, you’re correct, the base or “member” level of IEEE isn’t prestigious enough for the “exclusive memberships” category. However, many applicants have had success claiming that the Senior IEEE membership level is “exclusive,” because it does involve an elite selection process. Check out the extensive prior discussion on this topic earlier in the AMA, under the PK and RK threads.
Other examples that might sustain an “exclusive memberships” argument include ACM Advanced Grades of Membership; ASME Fellowships; elite leadership groups for large open-source projects; and acceptance into prestigious accelerator programs. Hope this is helpful!
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Hey Mary, I understand why the base/”member” level of IEEE isn’t prestigious enough for EB1A, but what about for EB2 NIW? TIA!
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Hi Alice, thanks for your question. One of the requirements for an EB-2 green card via national interest waiver is an advanced degree or, in the alternative, a showing of “exceptional ability” per the defined criteria. One element of “exceptional ability” is “membership in professional associations.”
I’d say that yes, the base membership level of IEEE satisfies this criterion. I’d include it, but I wouldn’t rely heavily on it. It’s best used to strengthen an already strong evidence package meeting other elements of “exceptional ability.”
A USCIS appeals case, Matter of [Sustainable Printer Toner Technologist] (AAO 2015), page 8, clarified USCIS’s position on this criterion: “If some classes of membership are more exclusive than others, then one’s membership under such an exclusive class would help to establish a claim of exceptional ability, while ineligibility for that class of membership would tend to undermine it.”
So in the case of IEEE, the existence of higher membership levels is kind of a disadvantage.
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Hi Mary, first of all – Thank you so much for this! This has been very helpful as I’ve just started considering applying for an EB-1A without having a PhD. I have questions about the 3 criteria I’m considering:
1. “Published material in professional or major trade publications, or in other major media, relating to the alien’s work”: My research work has been featured as articles in Newsweek, Mercury News, Philly Inquirer, and some other news organizations. Two questions: Are they considered prestigious enough to qualify for this criteria? And is it okay if my name doesn’t appear in all of them, although the articles are fully based on my published manuscript (and contains links to the same)?
2. “Authorship of scholarly articles in professional or major trade publications, or in other major media, in the field.”: I have 11 publications since 2018 with a total of 110 citations, but I haven’t published anything in the last 1.5 years (because of the nature of my current job). Two questions: I know the qualitative aspect of my work is as important as the quantitative, but does the volume of publications/citations I currently have generally suffice for this criteria? Also, is it a problem that I haven’t published anything recently?
3. “Commanding and holding a high salary, or significantly high remuneration for services, relative to others in the field.”: I’m wondering what exactly “others in the field” refers to. I’m applying as an expert in the field of biomedical data science. I was previously a data scientist in a pharma company in San Francisco. Are my “peers” other data scientists in the US? Or data scientists in California? Or data scientists in pharma companies? And does it suffice to be on the 90th percentile for all my jobs so far? Or 95th maybe?
Thanks again 🙂
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Hi Sriram, Thanks and I’m glad this is helpful! Wow, yes, having your work featured in publications of this caliber is definitely evidence of “sustained acclaim.” Very nice!
These are all highly probative, whether they mention your name or not. I’d include them all in the “original contributions” and-or “critical role” categories, because they explain the significance of your work and its impact on the field. I’d also include them under your “published articles” category, as evidence of buzz or “widespread commentary” on your manuscript.
Then, for the ones that DO mention you by name, I’d also list them in the “major media coverage” category, where “your name” is pretty much a required legal element. It’s the overall impression of “sustained acclaim” that’s the real case-winner here.
Re published articles, I’m assuming that you’re presently in industry, not academia? Yes, your publications are more than ample, that’s super impressive. USCIS applies a much more lenient and generous standard to the “publications” category for private-industry cases, than it does for pure academic-researcher cases. This causes a lot of confusion!
In academia, “publications” and “judging” are usually the core categories for proving extraordinary ability, so USCIS measures them by a rigorous standard.
But in private industry, for founders and engineers, the core categories are different: they’re likely “original contributions” and “critical role,” with “publications” playing a supporting role. So with this framing, yes, your publications are highly prestigious and will make you “look big.”
Re high salary, first of all, this is a great, narrowly defined niche or “field of endeavor.” If you can niche it down further, into a particular specialty of pharma drug or device categories, even better.
In terms of salary surveys, who are your “peers”? I’ve found the best strategy is to narrow it to positions in your specialty, at your level of seniority, in your geographical area. The more granular the data, the more impressive it looks: Even within this small rarefied group, you’re STILL above the 90th percentile.
You can run a number of salary surveys while playing with these variables, widening or narrowing the specialty, the region, the seniority level, and the compensation package, until you hit the most impressive numbers. Use those surveys, and discard the rest. Yes, you’re definitely aiming for above the 90th percentile, so I’d certainly include all your past positions.
Overall it sounds like you’re well on your way to a successful EB-1A package. Good luck with everything!
Hi Mary,
Thank you so much for taking the time to answer these questions. I’m in IT professional working at Big-Tech as a Product Manager and considering applying for the EB1-A. I have 2 questions for you:
1. It’s a bit unclear to me which competitions would USCIS would consider to be prestigious? Is there a a list of competitions that you’d recommend I apply to be a judge? For example, I’m wondering if judging a tech event / hackathon at universities count?
2. Could I move cities within the US while my application is being processed given it takes about 1-2 years for a Green Card for Indian born residents?
Thank you!
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Hi there Arjun, For the “judging” category, there are several types of events that qualify. “Awards” events are at the level of the Codie Awards, the Stevie Awards, and the Edison Awards. The best choices are annual industry events like these, where the winners are celebrated at a public ceremony. Other good choices are judging hackathons like Startup Weekend or DeveloperWeek Hackathon.
Serving on a membership committee also counts as judging. For example, some applicants who have earned IEEE Senior Member status, for the “membership” category, will then volunteer with IEEE to review applications for Senior Member. This counts in the “judging” category. Reviewing submissions for industry publications like Gartner also counts, and so does volunteering at industry conferences to evaluate and choose presentation submissions.
An often-overlooked judging activity is serving at the Committer level or above on large open-source projects, where you’re reviewing others’ code and determining which entries become commits.
What does not count as “judging”: Any in-house employment activity, like employee performance reviews, product evaluations, and service on internal committees. Judging of student competitions doesn’t count, and in general, I’d omit academic judging activities of all kinds, as they can dilute your evidence and make you look small. However, industry events that take place on a university campus can work well, if there’s a high industry-to-student ratio, and the focus is on industry developments rather than student performance.
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Hi Arjun, As to relocating during your green card process, there are two considerations: a legal question re jurisdiction, and a practical question re receiving mail from USCIS.
Your I-140 is filed at either Texas or Nebraska Service Center, depending on the location of your employer. So the jurisdiction over the I-140 wouldn’t vary if you changed your personal residence. However, jurisdiction over your I-485 DOES depend on your place of residence, as it will eventually make its way to your local field office.
So what if you file the I-140 and the I-485 concurrently? The entire package goes to the I-140 employer jurisdiction, either TSC or NSC, with all the petitions bundled together. USCIS will sort out your I-485 later, and send it to the field office of your place of residence. If concurrent-filing, it would be best not to move during this time, as USCIS is really, really bad at changes of address, particularly when they involve a change of field office.
On the other hand, if your I-140 is filed as a stand-alone, for example, if you wanted consular processing abroad of your green card Stage 2, then there’s no legal consequence to relocating.
The practical consequences are something else again. As noted, USCIS is really REALLY bad at changes of address. They have an online form for it, but it’s probably their lowest-priority form ever. If relocation is necessary, I’d pick a permanent residential mailing address, like a relative’s house, where you can reliably receive official USCIS notices for a couple of years.
Is a membership in Beta Gamma Sigma(BGS) through invite only for academic excellence count?
[Below is an excerpt form BGS website https://www.betagammasigma.org/about/what-is-bgs%5D
Founded in 1913, Beta Gamma Sigma is the international business honor society for AACSB-accredited schools, which are the top 5% of business school programs around the world. Top 10% of undergrad and 20% of graduate students in highly accredited institutions are the members.
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Hi Anusha, Thanks for your question! BGS is unquestionably prestigious, and yet it’s not the type of “exclusive membership” contemplated by the O-1 / EB-1A regulations. Like Phi Beta Kappa, Order of the Coif, and other honor societies, BGS as an academic society is considered by USCIS to be “preparatory” for the field, not “in” the field. Doesn’t mean it’s a minor honor, just that it’s not what they’re looking for in this particular situation.
Hi, Thanks for helping everyone here.
1. Is 200k package considered as highest salary for software engineer role.
2. Both conferences and publications have equal weightage?
3. I am aiming for best papers and spending a lot of time but I have seen few cases that few people got their eb1 with below average papers and zero CITATIONS. How exactly uscis evaluate and approves it. I am already hating with “luck” factor word.
5. Peer reviews – Is there a minimum count for it?
Thanks
Thanks
Hi! Thank you for this great Q&A session.
I also would like to ask my question. Is QA Engineer able to apply for EB1-A visa as a professional in IT and Computer Science?
Could you also help to identify and google right associations and media resources for this case?
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Hi Kristina, thanks for your question. Yes, QA engineer can definitely qualify, and in fact it’s an advantage to have a narrow specialty within a broad field. You could even narrow it down further, if you specialize in a particular industry, product, or tech stack.
Resources coming soon for researching your own “memberships in associations” and “media coverage” leads. Check back in!
Hi Mary,
For the criteria of “Published material about the alien in professional or major trade publications or other major media, relating to the alien’s work in the field for which classification is sought”. I have articles where I have been interviewed by tech journalist about my field of work in the form of Q&A. Will it satisfy this criteria?
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Hi Naveed, Yes, that absolutely would count. The article must show the publication name, date, title, and author. These can be added to the PDF if necessary. They’re small details that count, which are often overlooked. USCIS also looks for proof of publication in “major media,” which you can show via circulation numbers or traffic rankers like Semrush or Similarweb.
Hi,
My expertise area is Artificial Intelligence, I have a senior membership in IEEE. But as per your previous replies USCIS is not considering IEEE Senior member status for memberships category. Do you have any examples of memberships which USCIS counted as exclusive?
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Hi there, based on the comments in the PK and RK threads below, I’d definitely try the IEEE Senior Member as an “exclusive membership.” Instructions are in the RK thread comments from earlier. Might or might not work, but definitely worth a try.
Hello!…
Thanks for taking the time to help strangers online with their queries =) …. I hope you’re still responding to questions.
I’ve got 5 solely authored publications (4 in IEEE and 1 in UACEE – all these are solely authored papers), and 1 co-authored IEEE paper. I’ve got a total of 132 citations, with one of the solely authored IEEE papers being nominated for being award quality at a reputed IEEE conference, having citations in graduate level textbooks, mentioned in a book on breakthroughs in cryptocurrency, and 3 other books on computer science (if relevant, this was authored in my early 20s). This paper earned 104 citations of the 132 citations in total. I’ve won an international code breaking competition held by the NSA, and have a personally signed letter of commendation (citing “exceptional demonstration of skills of programming, code breaking, problem solving and reverse engineering” from 2 of the directors of the NSA. I’ve also reviewed papers for IEEE, and have been sponsored for paper registration and travel (by the university I had done my master’s in – though I lost access to the email account that has proof of this). A paper also appears as a citation in a patent (unsure if this holds any value).
I was wondering what my chances are, for an EB-1A…
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Hi there, Yes, I’d say you’re exceptionally well qualified for EB-1A. If you’re a software engineer in industry, as opposed to academia, the evidence will be presented differently than a researcher case. It will look even more impressive when combined with your industry accomplishments.
Hi! Thank you for this incredible AMA. I had two questions;
1) what does “specialty” look like and does it have to focus on an industry, a profession, or both? For example, a product manager working in Education Technology could have a speciality of “Ed Tech”, “Product Management” or “Ed Tech Product Management”. Is one preferable over the other? Does choosing the more specific field “Ed Tech Product Management” mean that articles or judging product management that was NOT in Ed tech don’t count?
2) If you’re not a senior executive, how do you build towards playing a “critical role” in a “distinguished organization”? Does choosing to work in smaller orgs help with this? In a large org, even a large and highly important project may only be one part of what’s going on overall. Is it sufficient to have played a leading role in a department or project or does it have to be in the company?
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Hi there, sorry to miss this earlier. These are both great questions.
1. Field of Endeavor. As a general rule, a more specialized occupation can raise your approval odds quite a lot for O-1 / EB-1A. The final merits determination focuses on your recognition as “one of that small percentage who have risen to the very top of the field of endeavor,” It’s much easier to rise to the top of a small, specialized field, like “ed tech product management,” than either ed tech or product management standing alone.
Other advantages of a small, specialized field:
– For “original contributions,” it’s easier to show “impact on the field as a whole.”
– For high salary, salary surveys in small fields are more persuasive than, say, product managers in all industries.
– It helps you build “sustained acclaim” by staking out a position as a thought leader in your niche. Building your persona as “the X of Y” creates buzz and newsworthiness, and defines the “superpower” that’s propelled you to the top of your specialty.“Ed tech product management” is a great example of a narrow, well-defined specialty.
Re your question about evidence from, say, product management outside ed tech: USCIS accepts evidence from related fields as well as your narrowly defined specialty. So yes, I’d definitely include these.
2. Leading / critical role. USCIS views “leading” and “critical” differently. “Leading” roles are defined by the position on the org chart, not by the person and their contributions. If you’re C-suite or just below, “leading” is a good choice. Your primary evidence will be the org chart and job description.
“Critical” role is much easier to attain for most corporate contributions. USCIS defines “critical” as “contributed in a way that is of significant importance to the outcome” of a corporate initiative. This is great for folks on large teams that launched a popular product, for example. Your evidence might include samples of your code or contribution; glossy images and reviews of the product that launched; and letters from your managers explaining why your contribution was critical to the success of the initiative.
The “distinction” of the organization is usually easy to prove. This requires independent, third-party evidence. (The company’s own reports, brochures, press kit, etc. don’t count.) I usually prove “distinction” with (1) rankings and lists, and (2) media articles about the company. USCIS loves rankings and lists, like Forbes, Inc. Magazine, Entrepreneur, Gartner, J.D. Power, etc. You can find these for almost all companies, as well as flattering media articles about their growth, success, or products.
Hi!
Thanks so much for this wonderful AMA!
I have a question: does serving on a board or committee at a reputed organization count in the membership category?
Thank you!
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Hi MDas, Thanks for your question! In general, the “exclusive” entity must be an actual, freestanding professional association, not a department, panel, board, or committee. Panels of judges, even when exclusive, don’t qualify. USCIS will shoot down creative claims that “associations” include university academic departments, corporate subsidiaries, boards of directors, internal committees, and elite internal teams, even if prestigious.
Here’s a short overview of the category requirements for “membership in associations which require outstanding ochievements of their members, as judged by recognized national or international experts.”
The essence of this category is elite selection, induction, invitation, or competition – not “joining.” USCIS is looking for organizations whose main purpose is to honor distinguished industry contributors: Learned societies, professional academies, halls of fame, Olympic or olympiad teams, and the like. Four elements of proof are required.
1. Proof of membership: A current membership card or the like.
2. Proof of existence of freestanding entity in the field: Articles of incorporation, bylaws, and the like.
3. Proof that outstanding achievements are required for membership: Evidence of elite-level criteria for election to membership. Organizations that can be “joined” by paying dues or holding a professional license don’t qualify.
4. Proof that selectors are required to be recognized national or international experts: Rules or bylaws specifying who selects new members; CVs or biographies of current selectors to show that they’re “recognized experts.”
Your USCIS examiner is much more likely to accept an argument for a non-traditional entity, such as a board or commission, if these 4 elements of proof are scrupulously documented. There should be strong evidence that your selection is an elite honor. Otherwise, it’s better to omit evidence of routine service on internal committees and the like, as it dilutes your stronger evidence and makes you look small.
How exactly is one supposed to do all this when they are not allowed to have a job outside the one that granted the H1B in the first place?
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Hi there, this is a GREAT question, thank you, and I’ve been wondering when someone would ask this!
As you know, the H-1B category is quite strict in permitting paid work ONLY for the H-1B employer-petitioner. It prohibits paid freelancing of any kind, including work for an overseas employer. This certainly looks like a serious obstacle to building an extraordinary-ability portfolio, doesn’t it?
And yet thousands of talented H-1B employees win O-1 and EB-1A approvals every year. How do they do it? In my observation of many such success stories, there are two main ways to thread this needle.
1. *LOOK BIG* in your current employment. Leverage your H-1B position to become a thought leader in your chosen extraordinary-ability niche. For example, let’s say you’re a senior software engineer for a Big-5 Silicon Valley employer. You’ve done lots of cool things, but they don’t have your name on them.
So pick your favorite specialty niche from one of these projects, and develop a reputation as an expert. Become a known contributor to open-source projects. Start a blog. Volunteer to judge some competitions. Sign up to help organize conferences and to make presentations. Write “expert” articles for publication. Obviously you can’t discuss the super-proprietary cool things you made for your employer, but there’s a huge community of open-source geeks out there making names for themselves without ever disclosing trade secrets or breaching confidentiality.
Respond to the posts of other thought leaders in your specialty! People love that, and it’s a great future source of reference letters. Shape your online identity as THE go-to person for your own super-geeky little corner of the software engineering world. This is totally consistent with your H-1B occupational duties.
2. Develop a hobby online. Let’s say you’re a successful H-1B software engineer, but your superpower is totally unrelated to your job – vegetarian cooking, or financial planning, or horticulture, or iPhone photography, or Javascript hacks, or mixing electronic music, or GIS mapping.
That’s OK! You can make quite a name for yourself in a “hobby” field you’re passionate about, without ever violating your H-1B status, or earning any income. Many renowned thought leaders have started passion projects unrelated to their day jobs – and turned them into a new career over time, as they gain influence and followers.
With strategic definition of a niche, and meticulous documentation, this route can be used to morph an H-1B into an extraordinary-ability status.
I’ve seen both these strategies used successfully, many times. It’s a lot of work, and yes, they’re hacks, but they’re very effective when you plan ahead and play the long game.
Hope this helps, and good luck. I’d love to hear about other creative solutions others have used to tackle this challenge. Please reply in the comments!
Are we allowed to pursue multiple Eb1a petitions with different lawyers. Since the evidence from my side is more or less same, does it make sense to use expertise of 2 different law firms and file parallel applications?
You have clarified above that it’s allowed in different categories eg Eb1 vs Eb2, but it’s not clear if within Eb1a it’s allowed or not. Thanks!
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Hi there Mudit, Yes, it’s perfectly permissible to have multiple I-140s pending simultaneously in the EB-1A category. Prior filings must be disclosed on the Form I-140s of subsequent filings, but there shouldn’t be a problem with that.
Hi Mary, I have ~9 research and review articles, and have ~590 citations. I also have a book published. My last paper was published in 2010 and a patent in 2013. Although, citations are still coming through. Do you think old papers could pose a challenge in EB1a green card and O1 visa applications? Do papers essentially have to be recent? Regards
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Hi there, No, your papers don’t have to be recent, especially if they’re still being cited. The “long tail” can be used as evidence of sustained acclaim – the work has stood the test of time.
I’m guessing that you have more recent accomplishments, that are perhaps a variation on those older publications, or not directly related to them, that are the primary evidence for your case? If so, you’ll need a narrative that ties them all together in a nice package – it might take some brainstorming.
Older accomplishments, standing alone without newer achievements or impacts, can be a challenge. Unless properly framed, it can look like you have already “peaked” and not built on those accomplishments recently.
Thanks for this blog. I work with a small cybersecurity research lab with critical telecommunications projects impacting all internet traffic.
Couple of questions:
1. Does having more Patent citations count as original scientific contributions besides conference publications, which may have significantly less citations.
2. How do we define “organization that have distinguished reputation.” for beneficiaries critical role.
3. For High wage criteria, we have documented 8 sources of salary surveys – do all sources have to show beneficiary salary is greater than 90th percentile? or 6 out of 8; Or do we take average of all 8 sources ?
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Hi Alan, Glad you’re enjoying the AMA!
1. The concept of citation count is mostly relevant in researcher and academic cases, where the examiner is counting up scholarly articles, etc. By contrast, in entrepreneurship and industry, they look for specific facts showing the practical impact of the work on the industry. Have others used the patents? Has the conference presentation sparked spinoffs or variations, where others built on that concept to create something new? It’s less about citation, more about practical implementation.
2. Some ways to document “distinguished reputation”: Lists, lists, lists. “Independent surveys” showing the company’s market share, consumer preference, brand reputation, sales, etc. USCIS also loves rankings, Top 10s, Top 50s, like you find in Forbes and J.D. Power and Accenture reports. Also online rankings, Google Analytics, Alexa, pageviews vs. competitors, stuff like that. I like to include news articles and profiles about the company, especially where they call it the “X of Y” – the “Harvard of A industry,” the “New York Times of B industry,” the “Amazon of C industry,” etc.
3. Cherry-pick those surveys! Absolutely use the best ones, and discard the rest.
Hi
If the company that I am working is ver secretive and doesn’t want to share details of my acalodes and achievements then how would I convert my work that would have made an impact to Universe. Say reduction in power consumption which would impact battery life for customers?
Thanks
K
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This is a really, really tough question, and one that I’m trying to figure out the answer to myself.
One workaround that people have used successfully, is to become contributors to the open-source community through their jobs, while keeping the proprietary parts in-house. That way, they can get some acclaim for their work, without compromising their employers’ trade secrets.
Another possibility might be to develop a “parallel” niche where you make a name for yourself. Maybe sharing your general expertise on reduction in power consumption in your blog, or making a presentation on this topic at a conference.
Certainly, document your accomplishments for your own file, just so you have a personal record of your achievements for the future. Maybe you can’t “share” it without breaching confidentiality … but it’s so important, just to document for your own records, what you’ve created and contributed.
Any thoughts on why EB1 is so oversubscribed all over the world? I’m from India and approved on EB1A. I know from experience that USCIS has not gotten lenient about the standards for extraordinary ability. It seems unbelievable that there are more EB1 applicants world over than Eb2 and EB3.
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Hi, it seems so strange, doesn’t it? In sheer numbers, there definitely aren’t more EB-1As than the other categories. But each broad EB category only gets a limited allotment of visas, and then within each category, as you know, each country gets an allotment or “subscription.”
Every month, the State Department does a ton of complex math behind the scenes, to figure out progression and retrogression. (Hopefully they have an algorithm and it’s automated, but you never know.) Sometimes the crowded categories have a lot of applicants from just a few countries, so they go current for other countries.
It surprised the heck out of the whole immigration bar, when EB-1As went non-current back in 2017. We thought there was a plentiful surplus. It looks like they’re catching up now in 2020 though.
What MEMBERSHIP OF DISTINGUISHED ORGANIZATIONS do I need to show to get a + in this category?
Specifically, if you worked with Russian people that got O1.
I have been as a judge, I participated in 2 high US accelerators and we showed that but USCIS didn’t accept this.
Thank you!
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Hi Anatoly, for a good overview of what is and is not acceptable for the “exclusive memberships” criterion, a review of AAO appeals cases is very helpful. The AAO cases are posted as PDFs and are full-text searchable. You can go to the following link, and insert a Boolean operator such as “membership in associations” in the search box on the page. It returns fairly high-quality results. Hope this helps! https://www.uscis.gov/administrative-appeals/aao-decisions/aao-non-precedent-decisions
I was working in the US on an H1B with Google for 6.5 years and left to come back to India to start my company in April. I have an approved I-140. I need to visit the US for some personal matters and fundraising.
What are the chances that I will be denied a B1/B2 visa to enter the US because of the approved I-140? I can prove intent to come back to India by:
1. I have a home in Delhi
2. I have family (parents and siblings)
3. I’m not married but I have a boyfriend
4. Letter from my Google manager confirming I left my job on my own terms
If B1/B2 are not options I can pursue, can I apply for something like an O1?
For that I have:
1. Publications in a few journals a couple of years ago
2. Speaker at several conferences
3. Speaker at events
4. Winner of international and national scholarships in India
5. Reviewer of international scholarships for several years
6. Patent pending (though I don’t have a link)
7. Currently trying to found my company
8. Book author
Which visa category makes the most sense and which option would be faster?
Thanks!
I work for an engineering services firm where we provide specialized engineering analysis and solutions to different clients, and provide detailed technical reports to the client that explain these studies and summarize results, these are reviewed by senior engineers of both organizations – nine and the client company. Can I provide these technical reports as publication exhibits? I do have 8 peer reviewed journal papers with good citation record but my last published article was 4 years back. Since then I have written 20 technical reports for leading companies. How do I present these as relevant publications?
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Hi Redot, This question of how to “upcycle” these technical reports into exhibits that meet the extraordinary ability criteria, is a very interesting one. On the one hand, there’s probably a lot of very cool original research here. It seems like there should be a creative way to make it “count” toward your petition.
On the other hand, the immigration examiner will be rigid and particular about the exact criteria of the category. If one element is not met, even if it seems arbitrary or stupid, then the evidence will be discarded. This seems unfair, but it can actually work to your advantage, because you know in advance exactly what will be on the checklist.
For example, for the “publications” category, the criterion is “Evidence of the alien’s authorship of scholarly articles in the field, in professional or major trade publications or other major media.” So as things stand, these 20 reports have satisfied one element, authorship, but not the other element, publication.
Certainly you could slip them in behind the other 8 actual publications, but I don’t recommend this. It’s the sort of thing that makes the examiner suspicious, and then start wondering what else is wrong with the petition, and start nit-picking all your evidence with an eye toward denial.
However, I agree that this material should be included, in a way that does satisfy all the elements of a category. Right now I see 2 possibilities, and maybe you can think of more?
First, would it be possible to write up the results of some the reports for a media article, not necessarily in a peer-reviewed journal, but perhaps in a magazine or online publication for engineers? You could anonymize the data if it contains sensitive client information, and present it as a series of case studies, perhaps? Something like that. Anyway it DOES have to be for a professional audience, but it does NOT have to be in an academic journal.
Second, I bet your clients do cool things with these reports. Maybe even industry-changing things, or world-changing things. If you can document specifically, how your clients use your research to make an impact that extends outside their own company, you can use them as “original contributions of major significance” in your field. There are a lot of different ways to define your “field of endeavor.” This strategy could be especially effective if you can identify a small niche where your work is making a big impact.
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Hi Mary, thank you for the advice – you have understood the nature of the problem astutely. And your suggestions are very insightful. While I am in the process of trying to publish results in engineering circulations – this process is taking well over a year or more. The latter advice of original contribution is also relevant – because the client does use the results I provide to make critical engineering decisions. The head scratcher here is what would count as evidence for establishing major significance? Would letters of recommendation (dependent and independent) that state how this was used count? Deeply appreciate your advice.
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Hi Redot, Thanks for the kind words, and I’m glad that this is helpful. For a fuller explanation of the “original contributions” criteria, you might want to subscribe to the email series. There’s a good one in there, that gives a lot of descriptions and examples of what is (and is not) an “original contribution.” Also, there is another one about defining your niche strategically, so that you can show a maximum impact for your contributions.
Briefly, there are 3 elements you must prove.
1. The work must be “original,” that is, something you’ve done, that hasn’t been done before, in quite that way. This is usually the easy part.
2. The work must have “major significance to the field as a whole.” This means documenting a series of very specific, provable outcomes, that have made the world a better place, BEYOND the specific employer, client, or university you are working for. Basically, you have to show that your work made a dent in the universe. And you have to document that dent, with very specific exhibits, showing before / after outcomes in the world at large. This sounds hard, but once you understand what they are looking for, it’s actually kind of a fun challenge.
3. You have to show that it was YOUR work, that made the contribution. This is easier in some situations (patent in your name) than in others (team software development). This is where your letters of recommendation come in – eminent people in your field attesting that yes, it is YOUR work, not someone else’s, that had this big impact.
Here are a couple of examples, taken from random news articles. Example #1 is from 2013, but it’s one of my favorites. These two guys developed a drinking water purification system in a basement at MIT. However, its blockbuster application turned out to be totally different: a product for oil and gas companies to clean the wastewater byproducts from fracking.
Five years later, the company is a huge success. I have no personal knowledge, but I hope and assume they got their EB-1As, by documenting, with contracts and statistics and graphs, how much cleaner the fracking industry became, AFTER companies started using their product.
OK that’s one. Back soon with a couple more.
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Example #2 is an app called Speechify, a text-to-speech translator that increases reading speeds by 5X for dyslexic and auditory learners. Obviously this is a huge game changer for slow readers everywhere – but for USCIS purposes, you still have to document a specific impact on a defined population or industry.
In this situation, I’d brainstorm some use cases where you could show a statewide or nationwide impact, rather than a local impact – for example, a national learning franchise like Kumon or Sylvan, or an SAT or MCAT prep course, or a huge online university system like DeVry or University of Phoenix. Maybe even think up some international use cases. Creativity pays!
For each one, I’d collect statistics and expert letters showing specific improvements in outcome before and after using the app. For example, for US private school students (making this up): Number of students using app nationwide or statewide. Stats showing improvements in reading scores before and after. Expert letters from nationwide / statewide private-school accreditation officials, attributing test score improvements specifically to adoption of the app. (And if statewide, I’d definitely use more than one state.)
Example #3 is about a manufacturing company that uses supercritical fluids, or pressurized carbon dioxide, to separate and extract food-grade and pharmaceutical-grade substances. Did the founder invent this technology, i.e., is it “original”? Not sure – it does look like he created a proprietary product that no one else had invented before.
However, it still counts as original, if you take an existing technology, and use it in new ways, to solve problems for new industries or applications. And this company has done some incredibly innovative things – cooling systems for microelectronics, a purification system for palm oil, a biodiesel energy system, a geothermal air conditioner, and all kinds of cool stuff with pharmaceuticals and food.
Because this is a mature company, the element of impact – “major significance to the field as a whole” – would be easy and fun to document across many industries.
Anyway these are just a few random examples. I hope they give you some ideas for your industry too. Good luck!
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Mary, thank you for taking the time to give the detailed examples – they are helping me think about how to build the evidence for this criterion.
Does the IEEE Senior Member status carry any weight towards membership criteria for a EB1?
If i received an award(not nobel level, but significant in my industry) after filing my I140, could i submit that in the event of an RFE?? and will it be taken into consideration?
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Hi PK, this is an interesting question that illuminates the difficulty of the “exclusive memberships” criterion. The Senior Member status looks quite exclusive, but USCIS does not consider it quite prestigious enough.
I looked up the membership levels for the IEEE here:
https://www.ieee.org/membership/grade-elevation.htmlThe Senior Member is the highest level to which one can *apply.* To qualify, the applicant must be “an engineer, scientist, educator, technical executive, or originator in IEEE-designated fields for a total of 10 years and have demonstrated 5 years of significant performance.”
Sounds pretty distinguished, right? However, there’s an *invitation-only* level of “Fellow,” ABOVE the Senior level, that’s even more exclusive.
The criteria are as follows: “The grade of Fellow recognizes unusual distinction in the profession and shall be conferred only by invitation of the Board of Directors upon a person of outstanding and extraordinary qualifications and experience in IEEE-designated fields, and who has made important individual contributions to one or more of these fields.”
What does USCIS think about this? There is at least one AAO (Administrative Appeals Office) case that addresses this very issue. In the case “In Re [Postdoctoral Researcher], LIN-08-228-50236,” 06 Oct 2009, https://bit.ly/2vCilJc, the applicant argued that IEEE Senior Membership was an “exclusive membership.”
The AAO disagreed: “Experience, maturity, [and] … significant professional achievements … are not outstanding achievements.” There was definitely an implication that the Fellow level WOULD qualify as an “exclusive membership.”
Sadly, I would not include the IEEE Senior Membership in an “extraordinary ability” portfolio. While prestigious in the real world, it’s probably not helpful in USCIS-world.
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As to your second question, re a prize won after your I-140 filing, the law is tiresomely clear that “eligibility must be established at the time of filing.” In other words, evidence that comes into being AFTER the moment of filing won’t be considered.
See “Matter of H- T-,” AAO Decision 18 April 2016, https://bit.ly/2AE2pfz, citing the hoary and ancient case Matter of Katigbak, 14 I&N Dec 45 (1971), https://bit.ly/2MhdNzd, and hundreds of other cases to the same effect.
However, it definitely sounds like the award is worth waiting for. Get everything ready, including all the documentation about the prestige and exclusivity of the award. Then file your case the day after you win!
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Thanks for responding. Interesting, it is true that one can apply to become a senior member, but still needs to be nominated/endorsed by 3 other senior members. In my case, i was nominated first and then filed the application. No question that the fellow level is extraordinary since < 0.1% members become fellows per year, but <2% of the overall membership is elevated to senior member status per year. They accepted this for my O1 app and my EB1A is still pending – so will see if they accept.
Also, the award i asked about is different. I received one ater i submitted my EB1- its pending for about 8 months now, so ive done a few things in the mean time. If i get a RFE now, would those accomplishments be considered??
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Hi PK, the fact that your case is already filed would definitely change my analysis. If you’ve made a good case for the Senior Member, and it’s already passed muster at the O-1 stage, then it certainly might work. There’s no hard and fast rule here – it depends on how well you document it. Fingers crossed!
If you get an RFE, you can submit your new evidence, but they don’t have to consider it. If the case gets approved, you’ll never know what tipped the scale. If it gets denied. you can bet they’ll cite that “time of filing” rule. At this point there’s absolutely no downside to submitting it.
Good luck!
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Just an update – my I 140 got approved. So, assuming they accepted the senior member explanation. I did get an RFE stating there was no cover letter. we resubmitted the original cover letter and added all the awards, reviews and grants since original app date, they might not have considered it, but my lawyer advised it shows I’m continuing to do extraordinary work.
This was all relieving for 2 mins until i was explained the retrogression nonsense which means i still wont have a gc for another year or better. Bummed..
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OMG that’s just awesome, congratulations! I was just looking at your post this afternoon, and wondering what happened. Thanks so much for the update, most appreciated.
And thanks again for the great argument about the senior membership. It’s a great case study in how to structure your evidence, and the Service obviously agrees.
I’m also quite impressed with the strategic submission of post-priority-date achievements as evidence of continuing work in the field. Cool. I love this approach.
Both these strategies make abundantly clear, that what they *say* in denials, and what they *do* in approvals, are 2 different things, with a lot of scope for creativity in between.
Sorry about the retrogression, it sucks, but honestly, the hard part is done. Very happy for you, and thanks for sharing these strategies.
Just curious, did you file at TSC?
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Also, thank you most kindly, for the tutorial on how to structure the argument for the IEEE Senior Member status as an exclusive membership. That was very good!
The AAO appeals case that I mentioned, that rejected it, also noted that only 8% of IEEE members held that status. I thought that was persuasive, but I found your stats even more persuasive (3 nominees before applying, 2% per year, O-1 approval with this argument).
These AAO appeals cases, while quoted often, and helpful for guidance, are NOT representative of the real world of USCIS adjudications. Because only denials get appealed, only denials get explained in the AAO cases. And the AAO upholds 95% of the denials.
Because approvals never get appealed, approvals NEVER get explained. Thus, we know a lot about what doesn’t work, but very little about what works.
So you just have to guess, about what gets approved. Get creative with your evidence, document it very meticulously and accurately, and see what happens.
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Hello, I’m wondering if there is any evidence on the IEEE member grade website regarding < 2% being elevated to senior member grade level? What does one cite in support of this argument?
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Hi there RK, these stats can be found on the IEEE website.
STATISTICS
For example, on the Senior Member Volunteer Resources page, there’s a chart for 2019-2020 at the bottom of the page. The last row of the chart shows that of the 211,641 IEEE members holding the lower “member” grade, only 3,638, or 1.72%, were elevated to Senior membership this year.
These 3,638 honorees are only 0.86% of the total IEEE membership of 419,000+, a number cited on the “About” page.
Only about 8% of IEEE members are Senior Members. Senior Member Report, page 7. I also found this statistic here and via a search “ieee” “elevated to senior member” “8%”.
SELECTORS
Note that in addition to this evidence of exclusivity, USCIS also requires evidence that the selectors are “recognized national or international experts in their disciplines or fields.” Many denials arise from under-documenting this important evidence prong.
In this case, IEEE Senior Members are selected by the Admission & Advancement Committee of the IEEE Member and Geographic Activities Board.
The MGA Operations Manual sets out the composition of the A&A Committee in section 4.15, page 46:
- All A&A Committee members must be Fellows or Senior Members.
- The A&A Committee comprises 12 voting members: The Chair, the past Chair, and one representative from each of the 10 IEEE worldwide Regions, selected by the Region Director and approved by the MGA Board of Directors.
I’d include the above section of the MGA Operations Manual, as well as the IEEE Bylaws section relating to the MGA, page 300.7. USCIS loves official documents like bylaws.
To really nail this issue, I’d ask the IEEE for a list of the 12 A&A Committee members, and include their CVs or bios in this evidence, to show that they’re “recognized national or international experts.”
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That is a very helpful reply! thank you!
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For conference presentations, which EB1A category would you consider these to be most useful for? If they are industry events, would they ever be considered as equal to ‘trade publications’?
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I’d put them in the scholarly articles category, and equate the events to trade publications. Here are a couple of cases acknowledging presentations as evidence in that category –
In Re [IT Consultant], Administrative Appeals Office 27 Mar 2009, https://bit.ly/2OKBSjq
In Re [Biomedical Researcher], Administrative Appeals Office 12 Sep 2011, https://bit.ly/2vkahgP
Have you often seen adjudicators be sticklers for the ‘plural s’ in ‘critical roles’ and ‘distinguished organizations’?
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Another great question, and the answer is, yes, they do that, but they’re not supposed to. This “plural” issue has been a thorn in the side of the immigration bar for YEARS, because it’s ridiculous.
I mean, what if you only have one “critical role,” but you’re the CTO of Facebook? What if you only have one “media article,” but your photo’s on the front page of the New York Times?
The Adjudicator’s Field Manual, https://bit.ly/2odu0dj, which is the handbook that Immigration Service Officers (adjudicators) refer to in making decisions, specifically says that one is enough. (It’s also fascinating reading on its own.)
Chapter 22.2, “Employment-Based Visa Petitions,” https://bit.ly/2vC2pXz, states (about 2/3 of the way down the page): “although some items in the [extraordinary ability] regulatory lists occasionally use plurals …, it is entirely possible that the presentation of a single piece of evidence in that category may be sufficient. On the other hand, the submission of voluminous documentation may not contain sufficient persuasive evidence to establish the alien beneficiary’s eligibility.”
You’d think that would nail it, right? Yet practitioners still see these “one isn’t enough” Requests for Evidence all the time – especially in our present harsh immigration environment.
The best response to such a silly RFE is to quote the Field Manual exactly. We also have a favorite appeals case that just takes this apart, and it’s worth quoting. In Re [Avian Brood Researcher], Administrative Appeals Office, 27 Mar 2015, https://bit.ly/2vmiRM5.
“While [the regulation] expressly references a plurality of ‘associations,’ we
construe this criterion broadly as inclusive of a singular ‘association.’… FN6“FN6 / By way of analogy, were we to ask if one has children, we’d reasonably expect a parent of one child to answer affirmatively.”
Geeky lawyer stuff I know, but we take our fun where we can get it. 🙂
For the EB1A requirement around ‘scholarly articles’, what would an adjudicator usually consider to be ‘scholarly’? Would a business-focused article (i.e. not a strict ‘academic’-style paper, but something that is in-depth and original) be considered ‘scholarly’ for this requirement?
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Hi James, Sorry to miss your 3 very good questions for so long! This is a great question that illustrates how the 8 categories aren’t just a rote list you go down. They’re used strategically with different weightings, depending on your occupation and your accomplishments.
For example, the “core” category for an academic or a researcher would be “scholarly articles,” front and center, because that’s what academics do – they publish. Their articles are often used to show “original contributions of major significance” in their specialty. These publications are evaluated quite rigorously by USCIS.
However, the “core” category for an entrepreneur will be quite different. It will showcase a business innovation. Thus, it will usually be “original contributions of major significance” or “leading role for distinguished organization,” or both.
In this situation, the “scholarly articles” category is more of a supplementary category, and it can be a little more flexible. I’d say that yes, published articles that you describe so well as “in-depth and original,” especially if aimed at a professional audience in your field, would qualify in this category.
Q: I’ve been working in the United States in O-1 status for 5 years. Have I accrued any “time” or “points” toward an EB-1A green card?
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No. The “process streams” for the O-1 and the EB-1A are completely different and separate from each other. USCIS calls these “product lines.”
There’s a distinct set of product lines for nonimmigrant, or temporary, work visas, like O-1s, H-1Bs, L-1s, and TNs.
There’s a totally different set of product lines for immigrant visas, or green cards, like EB-1A extraordinary ability, EB-1C multinational manager, and EB-2 specialty worker.
These lines don’t cross. There’s no procedure for accruing “credits” toward a green card, by holding any nonimmigrant status for any period of time.
That said, the accomplishments that got you the O-1 visa, and that you continue to achieve in O-1 status, can be used as evidence for your EB-1A green card petition. It’s just a completely separate filing procedure.
Q: Aren’t these O-1 and EB-1A categories reserved for geniuses and Nobel Prize winners? I don’t think I qualify.
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No, these visas are not just for the “1%.” There’s a lot of understandable confusion about the standards for “extraordinary ability.” There’s no resource that really lays this out in a practical way.
OK, the super-top people in their fields definitely qualify. But LOTS of other talented folks do too! It’s a question of understanding how the adjudication process works, below the 1% level, and how examiners decide these cases.
Look at it this way. Below the Nobel-Prize level, applicants must meet a minimum of 3, out of 8 categories showing “extraordinary ability.” So in any given field, from the top 2% to, say, the top 20%, the adjudicator will be checking off boxes.
Original contributions, check. Awards, check. Media, check. Publications, check. Judging, check. Salary, check. There’s high-quality evidence in all these categories. Hey, this person must be extraordinary. Approved!
Maybe you’ve noticed that the 8 categories are kind of arbitrary and rigid. You’d be right. They are. And that can work to your advantage. Understanding the template, and helping the adjudicator check off as many boxes as possible, is WAY more important than being a “genius.”
For more on this topic, check out the “O-1 VisaBuilder Quick-Start Guide” in the sidebar. It goes into more detail about the strategies for structuring a winning case.
Q: I’m from India. I’m here in H-1B status. My employer sponsored me for an EB-2 green card and it got approved in 2016. But the EB-2 category has an 8-year wait, minimum, for my priority date to become current. If I file a new petition for the green card in EB-1A status, which has no wait, will it jeopardize my approved EB-2?
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No, it won’t. Your EB-2 green card petition approval stands on its own. It won’t be revoked or jeopardized by a later green card petition in the higher EB-1A category. If your EB-1A is approved, congratulations! Your priority date is now [closer to] current, and you can get your green card
right awaysooner.Even if your EB-1A is denied, though, it won’t affect your EB-2 approval, or change your place in line.
In some situations, it’s actually routine to file multiple green card petitions simultaneously in different categories, then use the approval that’s most beneficial. You just have to let the Service know which one you’re using.
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Yes. O-1 is one of the few categories that can be structured so that your startup company can sponsor you for a work visa. The “bigger” your company looks, the more smoothly this process goes. For example, a standard Delaware C-corporation, with multiple founders and investors, is a better structure than a single-member LLC.
The O-1 does require a separate entity as the petitioner. Self-sponsorship isn’t permitted.
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The O-1 and the EB-1A look similar, in that they both require evidence of achievement in 3 of the same 8 categories: original contributions to your field, prestigious leadership jobs, media coverage, awards, publications, judging, high salary, and exclusive memberships. But “what you get” in each status is different.
The O-1 visa is a temporary work visa, like the H-1B, the L-1, and the TN. Your first O-1 visa can be valid for up to 3 years initially. You can renew it indefinitely in 1-year increments. There’s no limit to the number of renewals, and there’s no cap, but the O-1 is always a temporary status.
The EB-1A is an “immigrant visa,” AKA a green card. You can apply for it while you’re in the United States in a temporary status, like F-1 or O-1, or you can apply from overseas. Green card holders can live here forever, travel freely, work at any job or no job, start businesses, and sponsor relatives for green cards. Green card holders can also apply for US citizenship after 3 to 5 years.
The O-1 and the EB-1A both have the same 8 categories of proof, but O-1s are often approved on lower volumes of evidence, while EB-1As are usually held to a higher standard. The O-1 visa can be used as a trial case for the EB-1A. You can work in O-1 status, while building up your O-1 evidence package to EB-1A quality.
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