Preview: The VisaBuilder Tech Toolbox!

Private Preview: The VisaBuilder Tech Toolbox!

I’m excited to share with you, a preview of the VisaBuilder Tech Toolbox: The Complete Guide to Engineering a Winning Extraordinary-Ability Case! This is VisaBuilder’s first paid product. It’s designed as the instruction sheet, “the missing manual,” for O-1 or EB-1A extraordinary-ability visa petitions filed by tech industry professionals.

The Tech Toolbox answers the most pressing questions I get about extraordinary ability, from makers and engineers at every stage of their careers.

Do I have a chance at O-1 / EB-1A?
Do I need a PhD, or some peer-reviewed papers with multiple citations?
How close am I?
How do my existing accomplishments qualify?
How many categories do I need?
How much evidence per category?
What counts, and what doesn’t?
What extra accomplishments can I build to optimize my chances of success?

The VisaBuilder Tech Toolbox is the framework I use to answer these questions. It’s a compilation of all the advice I give in individual consults, gathered up and put in one place, so it’s like a super-consult.

It’s comprehensive, it’s organized, you don’t have to remember it or take notes, and you can work through it at your own pace. The basic structure looks like this:

Tech Toolbox Snapshot

You can see the detailed table of contents below at the bottom of the page.

Is the Tech Toolbox the Right Model for You?

The Tech Toolbox takes a specialized approach to extraordinary-ability petitions, and it’s not for everyone. The Tech Toolbox is –

Structured for the Tech Industry, Not for Academia.

This framework is specifically designed for the engineers, founders, and tech professionals building all the amazing things we enjoy in the 21st century. It’s customized to showcase your incredible work – yes, yours – in a way that delights your USCIS examiner and earns a quick approval.

It tackles tech-specific challenges, like gaining acclaim for projects without your name on them; explaining highly technical evidence to a lay examiner; and gathering evidence of the public impact of your work.

Equally important, it frees you forever from PhD-paper-citation hell. You don’t need to get another degree, author a bunch of academic papers, or get 100 citations!

An O-1 / EB-1A petition for private industry, is structured completely differently than an academic or researcher petition. The only reason high achievers gravitate toward that template, is because it’s the only information available online, about the extraordinary-ability process. The Tech Toolbox offers a much better structure that’s optimized for YOUR real-world accomplishments, not theoretical academic ones.

Achievable.

There’s a lot of hype about this being the “Einstein visa” or the “genius visa” that’s reserved for Olympians and Nobel prize winners. This is a cute hook for a news story, but it’s silly.

There’s a straighforward formula for tech professionals who are in (or aiming for), say, the top 20% of a particular discipline. It requires high-quality evidence in at least 5 categories; precise compliance with the rigid required elements; and a compelling presentation and narrative. It’s not exactly “easy,” but for a motivated, initiative-taking maker or engineer, it’s not really that hard either.

High-Integrity.

This isn’t some sketchy AI app to auto-build your visa. You won’t make anything fake, shoddy, skimpy, evasive, fraudulent, or small. That’s a waste of time, and it doesn’t work.

The VisaBuilder framework produces a premium-quality, custom-built portfolio, based on real evidence. It aims for the maximum, not the minimum. You will in fact become extraordinary, and you’ll prove it with a solid track record of accomplishments and acclaim.

Self-Initiating.

The VisaBuilder model puts YOU in charge of your evidence portfolio, your odds of success, and your future. For the self-determined applicant with an independent streak and a strong internal locus of control, the power to direct your own outcome is an energizing, inspiring, hope-reviving motivator.

As many tragic stories have shown, your lawyer might or might not structure your case correctly. When you can hand them a well-prepared, persuasive evidence package that you’ve already optimized, it vastly improves the odds that you’ll get a good result.

With the Tech Toolbox, you can personally ensure that everything’s done right. You’ll build your case forward, not just document it backward. You’ll learn to optimize for the moment of decision, delight your adjudicator, tell a great story, and compile a beautiful, incredibly persuasive case proving your extraordinariness.

Portable.

What you’re building here isn’t a completed O-1 or EB-1A visa petition, with all the forms filled out, T’s crossed, I’s dotted. That’s important, but it’s for later. The forms data is ephemeral. It varies depending on your situation. It’s easy for your lawyer to add anytime. So it’s not included yet.

What you’re building here is the permanent, solid foundation of the petition: The evidence package that proves your extraordinary ability. You can start building it at any point in your career. There’s no downside.

This portfolio is evergreen, and it’s yours forever. It’s a permanent record of your achievements. It stays with you when circumstances change.

It’s not subject to the whims of employers, attorneys, investors, or the economy. An extraordinary-ability portfolio is your golden ticket to power, flexibility, and freedom.

Obviously, this immigration solution isn’t for everyone! It self-selects for initiative, perseverance, integrity, and long-range vision – along with the rewards those qualities bring.

Here’s an overview of what you’ll learn.

VisaBuilder Tech Toolbox: Essentials-Level Course Outline

Module 1. Focus.
Optimizing for the moment of decision: A winning case vs. a losing case, as seen through your USCIS examiner’s eyes.

Introduction: Reverse-engineering your case from the moment of decision.

A winning case vs. a losing case: What that looks like to your USCIS adjudicator.

A winning case: Presentation, narrative, and content.

A losing case: Presentation, narrative, and content.

Optimizing for the decision window: Organizing your presentation for the most important 30 minutes of your life.

Module 2. Category Evidence.
Extraordinary-ability category guide: The required elements of proof for the 8 evidence categories.

Introduction: USCIS examiner’s approach to category evidence.

The 3 substance categories: Original contributions, critical role, high salary.

1. Original contributions of major significance. Why this is the foundational category for a tech industry case. 2 legal elements:
   Originality of contribution.
   Specific impacts on the industry as a whole.
2. Critical role for distinguished organization. 2 legal elements:
   Criticality of role.
   Distinction of organization.
3. High salary. 2 legal elements:
   Proof of compensation.
   Comparison evidence showing you in the top percentile.

The 2 must-have categories: published articles and judging the work of others.

1. Published articles. 3 legal elements:
   Actual publication or presentation.
   Audience of tech professionals or peers.
   Prestige and reach of publication or venue.
2. Judging the work of others. 2 legal elements:
   Invitation to serve as independent judge of work of peers.
   Proof of actual judging and its outcome.

The 3 acclaim categories: Exclusive memberships, prizes / awards, and major media coverage.

1. Exclusive memberships. 4 legal elements:
   Proof of membership.
   Organization as a free-standing entity.
   Elite selection criteria.
   Prestige of individual selectors.
2. Prizes and awards. 3 legal elements:
   Individual receipt of specific award.
   Purpose of award as recognition of excellence.
   High prestige of award in your field.
3. Major media coverage. 3 legal elements:
   Articles “about” you.
   Prestige of publication.
   Title, date, and author of article.

Putting it all together. Examples of good category combinations.

Module 3. Persuasive Impact.
The factors that win or lose your case in the first 60 seconds: Presentation, narrative, and content.

Introduction: Persuasive elements for the win!

1. Focus: Laser concentration on the moment of decision.

1. A winning case: Presentation, narrative, and content.
2. A losing case: Presentation, narrative, and content.

2. Structure: An authoritative content framework.

3. Niche: A narrow, specialized field of endeavor.

4. Story: A simple, compelling narrative of greatness.

5. Design: A striking visual impression.

Putting it all together. Inspiring case studies of O-1 and EB-1A winners.

Module 4. Instructions and Consultations.
Outlining your case and preparing for a consult.

1. Recap and review: Modules 1-3 and case studies.

2. Outline your case: Category outline, project review, brainstorming your niche, and explaining your job.

3. Book your (optional) consultation to supercharge your case! Includes a thorough review of your emailed O-1 / EB-1A outline; a one-hour Zoom call to discuss it and answer your questions; and a recap email with recommendations for moving forward.
$500 per consultation. Exclusive private link inside course. Repeat as many times as you like!

Pricing

The Tech Toolbox Essentials course is specially priced for early adopters at $450, discounted from the final Essentials-level price of $500. It’s less than your lowest USCIS filing fee!

I know this is ridiculously cheap for the level of detail in the modules. Here’s what happened: I set out to create the lowest course tier first — a quick-guide, outline-level, truly “minimum” viable product. But the course kept growing and growing. As it turned out, I needed to make the real product, before I could summarize it into the starter product.

But this Essentials tier is still a first-time offering. So I can’t price it at its true value yet, because no one would buy it! In the meantime, VisaBuilder’s lucky beta testers and early adopters get the big-course content, at the little-course price.

The format’s a private website, with a membership login and profile, containing the full Essentials course as outlined above. The price includes complete lifetime access to all Essentials-level content, including updates, additions, and lower-tier content, with no expiration date or monthly subscription charges.

Long story short, for the serious O-1 / EB-1A applicant, seeking a solid, detailed roadmap to a winning evidence package, this is a GREAT time to join.

Purpose

An extraordinary-ability petition is an investment in your future. For the well-prepared applicant, it’s a great bet. But financially, it’s a pretty big outlay: About $15K to $30K for the entire process, not including renewals, RFEs, denials, re-filing, and other extras. The purpose of the Tech Toolbox is to raise the odds that you’ll get a good return on your investment.

My passionate mission here is to end the tragic story I’ve heard hundreds of times over 25+ years: A well-qualified applicant comes to me with a denied extraordinary-ability petition. Their lawyer sent them off with the list of 8 categories to go collect evidence.

Despite diligent research, they couldn’t find out, either online or from the lawyer, what kinds of evidence worked best. They did the best they could. When the petition was denied, the lawyer told them they weren’t extraordinary enough.

This makes me really mad. A highly qualified person just spent a big chunk of their life, compiling the wrong thing, when they could just as easily have compiled the right thing! This ends here, with the Tech Toolbox. I want to ensure that no applicant has to experience this, ever again.

And more importantly, I DO want you to experience a quick, smooth O-1 / EB-1A approval, so you can finally begin to live the life you’ve imagined.