UNSHACKLED

A Practical Guide For Highly Skilled

Immigrants To Thrive In The United States

SOUNDARYA BALASUBRAMANI

SAMEER KHEDEKAR
Copyright © 2023 by Soundarya Balasubramani and Sameer Khedekar.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or used in

any manner without written permission of the copyright owners except
for the use of quotations in a book review.

The information contained in the book provides general information

related to US immigration law and is meant to be educational and
informative. It is not meant to be legal advice. Some sample case studies
in the book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or
dead, is coincidental.

For queries, email hi@curiousmaverick.com.

Book Designed by Komal Telagavi and Rishabh Singh.

Cover design by Become.

Research team: Ben Merrill and Rishabh Singh.

Edited by Anaik Alcasas.

ISBN: 979-888831471-5

First paperback edition July 2023.

Published by The Curious Maverick, LLC.

To amma, appa, and Rajesh Setty.

- Soundarya Balasubramani

To Rupa, Milan, Deven, Shaggy, and Scooby.

- Sameer Khedekar
 The following is a chapter from the book Unshackled by Soundarya
Balasubramani and Sameer Khedekar. To pre-order the book, and more,
visit readunshackled.com.

Disclaimer: The information provided in this guide does not constitute legal
advice. If you require specific legal advice please contact an immigration
lawyer.
Table of Contents

Introdution
Foreword
Free Resources
Why write this book?
Who is this book for?
How to read this book?
Master Mindmap

Part 1: The Failed Revolution

1 Story of CIR 2013

Part 2: Pathways to Possibilities

2 F-1 OPT: Excelling As A Student

3 H1-B: The Most Popular Gamble

4 O-1: You’re Outstanding Too!

5 IEP: A Substitute For Startup Visa

6 Cap-exempt H-1B: A Lottery Exception

7 Concurrent and Part-Time H-1B: Extending the Runway

8 L-1: Launchpad To Go Global

9 Dependent Visas: Maximizing Your Potential

Part 3: Pathways to Permanence

10 Green Cards: Possibilities to Permanence

11 EB-1A: From Ordinary to Extraordinary

12 EB-1B: Pathway for Exceptional Scholars

13 EB-2 NIW: Scoring A Waiver

Part 4: The Future Horizon

14 The Immigrant Manifesto

Epilogue
Further Reading

Acknowledgments

Glossary of Terms

Infographics at a Glance

Spread the Joy

 1

04

O-1:
You’re
outstanding
too!

Unshackled
 2

In April 2021, Mayank Bansal did something daring.

He got not one, not two, but three companies to put in an H-1B
application on his behalf. 

His first application was filed by a trucking startup called Convoy, where
he worked as a software engineer. The other two companies were places
he landed job offers and were willing to sponsor his visa. He did this
because it was his last shot at the H-1B lottery since his STEM OPT
was about to run out in a few months. 

He had missed out on applying in his first year after college, and his
application didn’t get picked up the second year. If nothing, he thought
he could increase his odds by submitting three applications.

three verdicts in one day

The first bombshell landed on April 29th, 2021, at 11:30 AM when the
lawyer from Convoy emailed him. 

Hey Mayank, I’m really sorry, but your name wasn’t picked in the lottery.

While this was not what he had hoped for, Mayank knew he still had
two chances. “It’s not over,” he reminded himself calmly. “You still have
two more shots. You got this, Mayank!”

The next blow landed within an hour.

Hi Mayank, I know you don’t want to hear this, but…

O-1: You’re Outstanding Too!

 3

“Okay, okay. We still have one attempt. It’ll be fine,” he told himself, this
time with faulty reassurance. 

The third and most official email came in at 4:50 PM. 

Dear Mayank, 

We hope this email finds you well.

We are reaching out because USCIS has now released results for the FY2022
H-1B lottery. At this time, it appears that your application was not selected
in the initial FY2022 H-B lottery.

He stared at it in disbelief, thinking, “No, this email does not find me

well.”

Overcome with
helplessness,
head in his
hands, he began
to cry.

“What do I need to do to stay in this country?” the thoughts began

racing. “How often do I need to prove I am worthy of it? I did
everything I could. I put in three applications. What else could I
possibly have done?” Once he was able to quiet his mind, he called his
parents. He needed to hear their voice.

“I feel like a failure, mumma. I feel I could have done more. I feel I
should have done more,” he shared tearfully.

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His mother, overcome with worry, responded, “Beta, come back. There is
no need to go through this burden just to live there. Come back,
please.” 

He was tempted to do that. He felt like he was no more in control of his

life in America. But before he could succumb, his dad pitched in. “Beta,
you did do everything you could. And this is not your moment to falter,”
he said firmly. “You still have four months to figure something out.
Knowing you, I know you will.” 

“Until that call, I was so mad,” shares Mayank. “Gosh, I was so mad. But
then, hearing my dad tell me I had four months was all I needed to
realize: I still had time. I had four months, and I wasn’t going to give up.
So, I began to look at my options.”

Enter the O-1A

Mayank had known about the O-1A visa for a while. Before Convoy, he
worked at Legalpad, an immigration-tech startup that helped founders
with their O-1s. The CEO would urge him every now and then to
pursue it. “But I never applied because it felt out of reach,” he shares. “I
didn’t think I had the profile for it.”

Yet, he was once again reminded about the O-1A by a friend during a
call in early May. This time, he didn’t dismiss it immediately. His back
was pressed against the wall, so he was willing to try anything. He
decided to give it a shot, but he knew his employer would never agree to
file, given the cost and paperwork involved. He had to convince them by
doing his own research, talking to a few lawyers, understanding the cost,
and presenting them with a game plan to reduce their effort. The next
day, he got an email from his lawyer at Convoy.  

Hey Mayank, I was thinking that you should apply for the O-1A visa. It
costs a lot, but we’re willing to take that chance on you. What do you

O-1: You’re Outstanding Too!

 5

think? Can you fill out the paperwork in the next few weeks? 

“I couldn’t believe it,” Mayank shares, smiling. “That’s all it took to get
the ball rolling.”

With a new sense

of determination,
Mayank was
ready to fight
again.

Mayank had one month to put together his O-1A application since his
STEM OPT employment at Convoy was ending in late June 2021. 

He had one month to gather hundreds of pages of evidence, including

press clippings, recommendation letters, email proofs, legal documents,
and visa records. One month to wrap up his work at Convoy before he
went off the payroll and lost access to all his work there. One month to
file the paperwork for a transfer to Canada through an intra-company
visa, in case his O-1A fell through, which he most certainly thought
would. He had one month to get an offer from a company in Ireland in
case Convoy decided to pause the Canadian transfer. One month to sell
all of his belongings in Seattle in case nothing worked, and he had to
return to India.  

“I don’t even know how I got through that month in 2021,” he reflects,
exhaling slowly. “It felt like running several marathons at once while
never getting a chance to rest, even for a moment.”

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He continued, after a pause, “I’m truly amazed at what we immigrants

are capable of doing under pressure.”

Papers, papers… and more papers

To apply for the O-1A, Mayank essentially had to do a research project

on himself. He had to gather evidence for anything he had done in his
life that might be considered remotely extraordinary. 

He scoured Google Drive, his computer, emails, and even dusty old
binders back in his parent’s house with newspaper clippings of high
school awards. When he searched YouTube to use a TV interview he
had done for a startup he co-founded as evidence, he found it had been
taken down. Mayank emailed the reporter, pleading with him to retrieve
the video from his archives so Mayank could use this proof. Luckily, the
reporter was sympathetic and sent him the video.

Gathering the documents for so many concurrent requirements also

meant he was shifting contexts constantly, from joining a daily standup
meeting at work to scouring Google Drives for a press clipping from
seven years ago.

When he was
done, his studio
apartment was
full of papers,
papers… and
more papers.

O-1: You’re Outstanding Too!

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Aside from doing the research project on himself, Mayank also needed
to get recommendation letters from experts in his field. He emailed
professors, ex-company founders, and as many mentors as he could, with
emails titled, “URGENT: Need Recommendation Letter for O-1A.”
Luckily, most of them were able to work with his tight timeline,
stepping in to do whatever they could to keep him in the country. 

“You know, the most painful part of that month was not the paperwork,
however,” he reflects. “It was the monologue that took place in my
mind.”  

He didn’t have time to reach out and talk to other O-1A recipients. He
had no community to guide him and allay his concerns. So he didn’t
know when to stop. Every time he felt like he had enough proof, a
critical voice would question him, “Are you sure? I think you can find
more.” So he would spend a few more hours going over old records,
emailing people, and sending a new document to his lawyer. He kept
second-guessing himself all the way until he finally submitted his
application. 

On July 1st, 2021, less than five weeks since he began his O-1A process,
his lawyer was ready with his 6-pound application. It weighed as much
as a newborn baby, full of hope and promise. The lawyer sent it by
priority registered mail to the USCIS service center in California. 

But if Mayank thought the marathon was over, he was wrong.

anxious days and sleepless nights

Mayank applied through premium processing, given his looming

deadline. This meant he could get the result any day within the next two
weeks.

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“At least with college applications, you know that the result isn’t gonna
come for a few months,” he shares. “Here, I know it can be anytime
starting tomorrow until the end of the next two weeks. So I was
checking my phone every five minutes.”

Every morning, he would wake up from a practically sleepless night and

open the Lawfully app to check for an update. No news on day one, day
two, day three…. day ten. 

Ten days had passed since he applied. On the eleventh day, Mayank’s
brother, who was a student at the University of Washington, was flying
back to India for a visit. Mayank dropped him off at the airport and
hugged him goodbye. “Listen, Aakash,” he said hesitantly. “When you
return after your trip, I may not be here. You’ll have to find another
apartment to move into. I’m sorry.” 

Aakash hugged him with as much reassurance as he could and left. 

On the way back home, Mayank heard a ding! on his phone and
immediately knew it was a notification from the Lawfully app. 

“A decision has been made.”

That’s all he could see on the notification menu. “It was the worst
notification ever,” he shares, laughing. “I had no idea what was in it, and
I couldn’t afford to stop on the highway just then.” 

So he gripped the steering wheel and looked straight ahead until he

reached home. He wanted to check the result when he was in the
comfort of home. He knew that his fate in America would be decided in
a few minutes. And he was pretty sure that it was an unhappy ending.
Let the bad news wait for some time. 

“Never have I been happier about being wrong,” he shares with a smile.
“Turns out, against all the damn odds in the world, my case was
approved!”

O-1: You’re Outstanding Too!

 9

Funny enough, the first person he decided to call was his brother, whose
flight had already departed. “Oh well,” Mayank thought. At least now,
he’ll be able to pick up his brother at the airport when he returns.

Finally, deep sleep

“The first night in 2021 that I remember sleeping well,” shares Mayank,
“was the day I got my O-1A approval notice. Until then, I was a zombie
on a mission, completely unaware of the toll this process took on my
body. That night, I could feel the years of stress leave my body as I lay in
bed, drifting into a deep sleep.” 

“Some people have asked me if I would still have applied for the O-1A,
knowing what I know now. It’s hard to say. I was pretty ready to leave
America when I applied and even planned out an elaborate future in
Europe which I was excited about. So if I hadn’t gotten the O-1A, it
would have been okay. But having come out the other side, I can say
that this process has given me a new level of confidence to solve
problems that otherwise seemed impossible. That in itself is extremely
rewarding and makes the whole process worth it.”

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Overview of the O-1

The O-1 Extraordinary Ability Visa is a non-immigrant visa for people

who have extraordinary ability and skill either in the sciences, education,
business, athletics, arts, television, or the motion picture industry. Like
the OPT and the H-1B, the O-1 was also introduced in 1990 as part of
the Immigration and Nationality Act signed by President Bush.

When most people initially think about the O-1 visa, they think of it as
a single entity. However, the O-1 is supposed to encompass immigrants
from many different backgrounds and careers. For instance, an
extraordinary five-star chef cannot be evaluated along the same
parameters as a prodigious programmer. To account for these
differences, the government introduced two sub-categories: the O-1A,
and the O-1B.

The O-1A is
meant for
superstars in the
areas of science,
education,
business, and
athletics.

O-1B is meant for

superstars in the
areas of arts,
motion pictures,
and the television
industry.

O-1: You’re Outstanding Too!

 11

Table: Typical roles sorted under O-1A and O-1B

O-1A Bucket O-1B Bucket

Researcher 
Singer

Scientist 
Dancer 

Manager 
Actor / Actress

Founder
Chef

Software Engineer
Theater performer

Product Manager
Multimedia artist

Athlete
UI/UX Designer

Work on merit, not on chance

Until Mayank decided to apply for the O-1A, he was at the mercy of a

faceless lottery. He was not in control. His future in the country was

decided by chance. Conversely, when he decided to apply for the O-1A,

he took control. He got the visa based on his merit without needing to

pray for luck. 

That’s the difference between the O-1A and the H-1B: the former lets

you work on merit, while the latter lets you work on chance, regardless

of merit.

Further, they also differ on many more counts, as shown in the table

below.

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Table: The O-1 visa versus H-1B cap visa

O-1 Visas H-1B Cap Visa

Annual cap No annual cap. Annual cap of 85,000.

Minimum No minimum wage Must be paid minimum

salary required. But, it’s helpful wage based on data
to have one. published by the U.S.
Department of Labor.

Education & No need for direct There must be a direct

Job relationship between relationship between
education and job role. education and job role.

Application File anytime. Register

in the lottery in
window March,and file if your
name gets picked.

Change of If approved, change of If approved, the earliest

status status can be immediate. H-1B becomes effective is
October 1st (if it’s an
initial filing).

Duration No limitation. Extend Limited to 6 years, unless

indefinitely after 3 years, you’ve started your green
in 1-year increments (and card process (ideally by
in rare cases, 3-year 4th year).

increments).

EB-1A green Similarities in No similarities in

card requirements might pave requirements between
easier path to future the H-1B and EB-1A.
EB-1A application.

O-1: You’re Outstanding Too!

 13

*We’re specifically talking about the “cap-subject” H-1B in the table, not the
“cap-exempt” one which you’ll read about in Chapter 03. 

It’s worth repeating: the O-1 does not need you to go through the
lottery, earn a minimum salary, or cap your time in the country by six
years. 

Yet, despite its clear advantage, only about 25,000 O-1 applications were
received by USCIS in 2022.

Chart: Number of O-1 applications in a five-year span

30,000
25,690 25,420
24,503
22,179
21,154
20,000

10,000

0
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021

FISCAL YEAR

Of the 25,000 applications, less than 5,000 came from graduates in

STEM (as shared by a source at the USCIS). Less than 5,000. Does that
mean there are only 5,000 STEM graduates talented enough to get the
visa out of the hundreds of thousands? 

Heck, no.

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 14

It’s because immigrants get stuck at one of the points in the following
funnel:

They don’t know the

visa exists

They think it’s out of

reach

They don’t know how to

build their profile

The lawyers they meet

aren’t helpful

Despite the many advantages of the O-1, it’s not an option generally
recommended by big corporations. This is because it’s more expensive,
labor-intensive, and less straightforward than the H-1B. Further, some
law firms are limited in who they think is qualified for the O-1 (“We
only work with Ph.D. candidates”) and might not be willing to find
creative solutions for a non-traditional candidate.

Mayank’s lawyer proved to be an outlier when she recommended it as an

option, but that isn’t the case generally. Further, even if your company’s
lawyers recommend it for you, they might not be able to guide you in
building your profile if you don’t already meet the criteria. This can add
more stress and friction to the whole process.

The good news is you’ve already passed the first hurdle. You know the
O-1 visa exists now. It’s on us to help you pass stages two and three by
the end of this chapter by arming you with information to show you
how the O-1 is attainable. To do that, first we’ll first talk about the
O-1A and its criteria in depth in the next section. Then, we’ll share
insights for founders who want to build their startups on the O-1A.

O-1: You’re Outstanding Too!

 15

Finally, we’ll briefly touch upon the O-1B and how it can be used by
someone in STEM.

If you feel ready to go all the way and file your O-1 visa,
come join the Unshackled community. You’ll be guided on
how to build your profile and be matched with a competent
lawyer who is ready to help you.

O-1A: The Eight Pillars

You know by now that the O-1A is meant for those who have
extraordinary ability in the fields of science, education, business, or
athletics and have risen to the top of their field. 

When you don’t have obvious international acclaims, such as a Nobel

Prize or an Olympic medal, USCIS measures your “extraordinary
ability” by checking if you meet three out of eight criteria.

Original contribution: You have contributed original scientific,

scholarly, or business-related works that have had major significance
in your field.
Critical capacity: You have been employed in a critical or essential
capacity at an organization that has a distinguished reputation in
your field.
Judging: You have participated on a panel as a judge of the work of
others in your field.
r : You and your work have been featured in professional
P ess

publications, major trade publications, or major media.

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Authorship: You have authored scholarly articles that are published

in professional journals, major trade publications, or other major
media in your field.
High salary: You have commanded or will command a high salary or
other payments that come from the services you contribute to your
field.
Awards: You have received nationally or internationally recognized
awards or prizes for excellence in your field of expertise.
Membership: You are a member of an association that requires
outstanding achievements in your field as determined by recognized
national or international experts.

O-1: You’re Outstanding Too!

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O-1A: The Eight Pillars

01
Original

Contribution:

You have
02
Membership:
contributed
You are a member
original scientific,
of an association
scholarly, or
that requires
business-related

03
outstanding
works that have
achievements in
had major
your field as

04
significance in your
determined by
field. Judging:
recognized
national or You have
international participated on a Press:
experts.
panel as a judge of
You and your work
the work of others
have been featured
in your field.

in professional
publications, major
trade publications,
or major media.

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 18

When you don’t have obvious international

acclaims, such as a Nobel Prize or an Olympic
medal, USCIS measures your “extraordinary
ability” by checking if you meet three out of
eight criteria.

08
07 Critical capacity:

06 National or
You have been
employed in a

05 International critical or essential

recognition: capacity at an
High

organization that
Salary: You have received has a
Authorship: nationally or distinguished
You have
commanded or internationally reputation in your
You have
will command a recognized awards field.
authored scholarly
articles that are high salary or or prizes for
published in other payments excellence in your
professional that come from field of expertise.
journals, major the services you
trade publications, give in your field.
or other major
media in your
field.

O-1: You’re Outstanding Too!

 19

Now you see why even bright contenders might feel a tad intimidated.
The verbiage of these eight pillars seems so out of reach (and, may we
say, elitist) that most people count themselves out before they even
begin. 

But, before you give up on the O-1A, check out the following graph.

Chart: O-1 approval rates over five years

100.00 %

95.00 %

90.00 %

85.00 %

80.00 %
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022

FISCAL YEAR

As you see in the graph, the approval rate has consistently stayed above
90% (except for 2020, with a slight dip). This doesn’t suggest that the
O-1 is easy to get, or that the approval rate will always remain greater
than 90%. The O-1 does have an incredibly high bar that you need to
meet. But, this graph shows that at least the USCIS has been favorable
to O-1 petitions. 

Despite the pompous definition given to the O-1 visa – that it’s for
“aliens of extraordinary ability” – these numbers (and its growth rate
over the decades) are proof of its growing attainability.

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In the current environment, where many F-1 students are not

able to get H-1B visas due to the H-1B cap, there are more and
more reasons for employers (and foreign nationals) to explore
O-1 as alternatives to the H-1Bs,” writes Robert Webber, an
immigration lawyer. “Too many people assume O-1s are only for
famous movie stars or internationally recognized athletes. That is
not true and in fact, the Biden Administration has issued policy
guidance to make O-1s increasingly available to STEM
graduates.”
As Mayank’s story demonstrates, highly skilled individuals can and
should seriously consider this route. Over the rest of this chapter, we’ll
dive deep into each of the eight pillars under the O-1A to help you
overcome the “thinking it’s out of reach” bottleneck. As you review the
pillars, begin to do a research project on yourself to see which three (or
more) you best qualify for.

O-1A pillar one: Original Contribution

You have contributed original scientific, scholarly, or business-related works
that have had major significance in your field.

Original contribution is a key pillar we recommend going for when you

prepare your application.

In fact, did you notice above that the shading on the Original
Contribution and Critical Capacity pillars were different from the rest?
This wasn’t a whimsical design choice. Rather, we wanted to highlight
the fact that those are the top two pillars that we recommend you gather
evidence for. Aside from taking two big steps towards being
extraordinary, the evidence you gather for these two pillars can often be
used to qualify in one of the other pillars (such as Press and Authorship).

O-1: You’re Outstanding Too!

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We’ll start with that first pillar. With original contribution, your evidence

needs to be two-fold:

First, you have built or created something that’s unique. It can be

an invention, a tool, a process, or research: If you’re a founder, this

could be a novel mobile or web application that solves an important

problem. You’ve probably pitched your creation to investors dozens of

times by now; this is no different. If you’re a researcher, this could be

a paper you published that shares a novel finding in a specific area.

The government does not care about the area itself so long as you can

prove how your research is original and that it’s not just recycling

existing work. One compelling way to do this is by obtaining a patent

or trademark for what you have created.

Second, your creation has (or had) a material impact in your field

or industry: If you built a mobile application that has been

downloaded 300,000+ times, that’s a great example of showing the

material impact it has had. If your work was essential to a major

acquisition that created 500 new jobs, that’s evidence of a major

impact. If your paper has a high citation count relative to your

discipline, and was prominently featured in a scientific publication,

that’s evidence too. As stated earlier, the government does not care

about the domain so long as you can show how your creation impacts

the lives of people, industry, or the field as a whole.

Below are examples of evidence that can be used to prove that your

work has had an impact in your field:

Patents that clearly state you as an author or co-author.

High citation count for your papers.

Widespread press coverage of your work.

High downloads of your mobile app.

High visitor traffic to your website if your business is primarily

online.

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Large number of purchases of your product.

Contracts with companies that use your products or services.
Contracts with companies that have licensed your idea or process.
Last but not least, letters of recommendation from experts in your
field who consider your creation important.

If the patent you get for your work restricts the usage of your
invention to only your employer, then it might not count.
Why? You need to show that your work has had a major
impact in your field, not just a single institution.

Engineers, managers, and other people in tech might have a

disadvantage here. If you’re working for a tech firm, chances are they
would want your patent to be restrictive. On the other hand, researchers
have an upper hand since innovations in research are generally adopted
widely. But, you can always publish your work open source and push for
that to be adopted within your industry.

Case study

In early 2022, Parikhov decided to take a shot at the O-1A application.

He reached out to Sameer through a referral. At that time, Parikhov was
the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of a Web3 startup, working out of
Europe. His Ph.D. in Economics and 4 research papers with minimal
citations were not enough to qualify as an original contribution;
however, part of his research was used to build a pricing algorithm
aimed at helping small and medium-sized businesses to give them an
upper hand over the big players. 

For this work, he got letters from CEOs of four companies who all

O-1: You’re Outstanding Too!

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attested to the impact his algorithm had on their business's bottom line.
Even though his work was neither patented nor widely cited, the letters
got him this category, and the O-1A.

While Original Contribution is certainly one of the harder pillars to

satisfy, it’s more attainable than you might think, depending on how you
use your (past and future) work.

O-1A pillar two: Critical Capacity

You have been employed in a critical or essential capacity at an organization
that has a distinguished reputation in your field.

As with most O-1A verbiage, the term critical capacity might feel
daunting. It makes you think, “It’s only meant for founders and C-level
executives.”

That’s not true.

As with Original Contribution, your evidence here needs to be two-fold:

First, show that you’re more than a great employee: There are
thousands of employees who are excellent at what they do and get a
5/5 for performance, but that’s not enough to meet this criterion. You
need to show that you’re critical to the organization. If you’re not a
founder or a C-level executive, show that your work had an impact
on the company’s bottom line. Let’s say you’re the Product Manager
at a grocery delivery app. You finished a project that led to a 20%
increase in the number of users. That's evidence of your critical role at
the company, even if you don't have a "C" in your title. It takes a big
perspective shift to look at yourself through the lens of your company.
Sometimes it’s hard to see how truly valuable you are, so reach out to

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those in your organization who can speak to your work’s impact. As

with Original Contribution, getting letters from your founder, an
established expert in your field, or a distinguished investor can go a
long way.
Second, show that your company has a distinguished reputation:
It’s great to play a critical role in a company, but what if the company
itself is just you and two other employees with no funding? To level
the playing field, the USCIS also requires you to prove that your
organization is distinguished. For an organization with 10,000
employees, this is obvious. The size of the organization itself is proof
of its distinguished reputation. But what about a startup with less
than 100 employees? This is where you need to paint as detailed of a
picture as you can with evidence such as: media articles on your
company, letters from experts in the field noting your company’s
impact, funding from prominent Venture Capitalists and investors,
awards won in Hackathons or other pitch competitions, number of
users, etc. These are well-established examples, but you can also be
creative how you prove this. In the end, focus on showing why your
company is distinguished in your field, which is what the officer looks
for.

While company-specific patents might not count for

Original Contribution, they could work here. They show that
you’ve been a core contributor to your company.

Case study

When Mayank applied for his O-1A, he was a software engineer at

Convoy, and one of the founding members of an experimental team

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designing and building a new product crucial to the company’s success.

To show that he played a critical role, he got a support letter from one
of the founding investors attesting to his value, copies of launch
announcements in which his name was mentioned, and press from
notable media outlets about the product’s significance. 

To show his company was distinguished, he then included press articles

that talked about the money raised, the venture capitalists involved, and
the company’s valuation (which back then was $3+ billion). Finally, he
used further evidence from his previous startup, Legalpad, where he
worked on novel immigration-tech products, as well as a startup he had
co-founded back in India. He collected whatever he could find in terms
of press articles, conference invitations, TV interviews, and more.

Mayank’s example is a reminder that the O-1 is not just about the
current state of your life. It also takes into account what you’ve done in
the past. So even if you’re not playing a critical role today, but have
played one in the past, that counts, as long as it was in the same field as
your O-1 application.

O-1A pillar three: Judging

You have participated on a panel as a judge of the work of others in your field.

This is one of the easier-than-you-think pillars in the O-1A.

Here are some examples of what constitutes Judging:

Judging Hackathons and similar competitions

Judging papers at a conference
Being on the committee that determines conference presentations

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Peer-reviewing academic papers

Choosing award winners
Being on the promotion committee at your company
Or really, anytime your subject-matter expertise is sought out to
evaluate the work of others in your field.

Historically, USCIS is more forgiving with this category than others

and is open to accepting a wide range of evidence. For example:

If you’re a researcher, an easy way to judge others in your field is

by peer-reviewing their papers. You can also reach out to
conferences, scholarships, and fellowships in your field and
volunteer to be part of the application committees.

If you’re an engineer or in a related role, join the panel of judges

for Hackathons and similar competitions. A resourceful website to
find out about upcoming Hackathons is mlh.io.

If you’re a manager or in the field of business, reach out to

conferences, pitch competitions, and awards in your field to request
being a judge. You can also use organizations like The Judge Club to
pay a membership fee and be connected to competitions in your
field of business.

Ideally, it’s helpful to have 3 or more pieces of evidence

where you’ve served as a judge. Besides listing your
experiences, show why each of them matters.

For example, if you were the judge of a pitch competition, scrape all the
information you can find on the event itself. This could be press articles,
a list of other judges and their accomplishments, marketing materials,
etc. By showing that you were on the same stage as a famous scientist or

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influential entrepreneur, you give a yardstick to USCIS to measure you

by, so that they don’t need to bring their own.

We know it can feel daunting, in the beginning, to reach out to be a

judge. We suspect you might feel like an imposter, and wonder, “Do I
really have what it takes to judge somebody?” We understand. 

One way to approach this is by starting small. Begin with just reaching
out to your alma mater and offering to be a part of the application
review committee or judging a competition for a club (such as the
Entrepreneurship Cell, Product Management Club, Mechatronics team,
etc). People who organize events and competitions there always look for
good help and would not turn you away without good reason. While the
government will not consider these to be credible evidence, it provides a
starting point after which you can approach larger and more reputed
competition.

Case study

Long before the O-1 came into the picture, Mayank had a penchant for
judging FIRST® robotics competitions. He began searching for
competition to judge as soon as he moved to the U.S. at the age of 18.
Although the world championships had a minimum age of 23, he was
able to get in by showing his previous work mentoring high school
students. He started judging at the district level first, and slowly moved
up to the state, national, and eventually international level competitions.
To show proof of this, he got support letters from the event
coordinators that included the judging invitation, selection criteria, the
judging process, and the economic and social impact of the events.

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O-1A pillar four: Press

You and your work have been featured in professional publications, major
trade publications, or major media.

Here’s the funny thing about this category: when people see someone
they know get featured in a publication, they think, “Wow. It’s amazing
that their work got recognized by that publication.” 

Except, press almost never comes to you. You find your way to it. 

With the number of things happening around the world, it’s unheard of
for a journalist to find you – especially if you don’t publicly share your
accomplishments – and feature you prominently. This is not a bad thing.
This is good news for you! It means there’s a method to the madness.
You just need to understand it. 

Now, think of point A as where you are and point B as where you want
to be, which is getting your work featured in press. There are several
ways to get from point A to B:

You roll up your sleeves and

reach out to publications
You want
to get You get
featured You consistently promote featured
your work on social media

A B
You hire a PR firm to
reach out to publications

There are probably many more ways too, but the point is, there is a
method to the madness. And it beats waiting for the press to come to you,
which is out of your control. If you’re hesitant to reach out to

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publications, or cost is a concern, just start by sharing your work on

social media, consistently. Eventually, it could fall in front of the right
set of eyes, who will want to talk to you about it.

The USCIS looks for two things in articles published by the press:

Is the material about you and your work? For example, let’s say
you’re a Project Manager at Google, developing a feature in Gmail
that improves its recommendation engine, reducing spam messages
by 20%. That’s a significant project affecting billions of people.
Naturally, articles will be written about it in major media. However, if
you were one of 50 members and your name isn’t mentioned in the
article, it won’t count on its own. Your name should either be
mentioned in the article, or you need to provide clear supplementary
evidence through other documents, like a letter from your
department head attesting to your contributions.

Can you show that the publication is relatively significant in the

field? It’s not enough to show that your work was published in
TechCrunch. You also must demonstrate how TechCrunch is a major
publication in your field. You can show this through circulation and
readership (both online and offline). It’s okay if your publication only
has 10,000 monthly readers if all the other ones in your field have
5,000. That still makes yours stand out as a “significant” one.

USCIS is not receptive to press releases and blogs as

evidence of press (or Authorship). They want to see that you
and your work are featured prominently in a publication that
has a decent reputation, solid coverage, and is not self-
serving.

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O-1A pillar five: Authorship

You have authored scholarly articles that are published in professional
journals, major trade publications, or other major media in your field.

If you already have evidence for Original Contribution, then this pillar
might be easier than you think. 

Authorship is about showing that you’ve contributed to your field with

scholarly articles, papers, books, etc.
If you’re a researcher, this is where you talk about all the wonderful
research papers you’ve published in journals and presented at
conferences over the years. You don’t need to be the first or sole
author of the paper, nor do the citations need to be mentioned.
USCIS will place emphasis on whether your paper reports on
original research, is peer-reviewed, and is published in a scholarly
format. You can also include papers that you co-wrote during college
while working at a research lab, as long as they’re relevant to your
field. Since research can get esoteric pretty quickly, it helps if you
write a one-page summary of your paper to explain it in layman’s
terms for both the officer and your lawyer.
If you work in the fields of technology or business, you can still
meet this authorship requirement by writing an opinion or thought-
leadership piece in a publication relevant to your field. This can
include publications like McKinsey Quarterly, Business Weekly,
Forbes, WIRED, etc. Once again, spend some time digging around
to find out which professional publications are relevant to your field.
Writing books also qualify as evidence, if you can show that it’s
published by a prestigious publisher, made the best-seller list, or has
been read by a significant number of people in your field.

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Case study

Sameer worked with a game designer who published an article on

GamesRadar +, a video game news and entertainment forum, which

satisfied the Authorship category, since it was considered a significant

publication in the industry. True story.

Once again, as with Press, blogging does not count! Since USCIS

requires publications to go through peer review or an editorial process,

use your blogging experience to get your foot in the door of a renowned

publication that has this in place.

O-1A pillar six: High Salary

You have commanded or will command a high salary or other payments that

come from the services you contribute to your field.

First, let’s address two questions people often have: What counts as

“salary”? And, what is a high salary? 

The following can all count as salary when you’re gathering evidence,

Base salary

Annual bonus

Commissions and other bonuses

Stocks in a public company

Equity in a private company (which is especially useful for founders,

early employees, and anyone else who holds significant equity)

Funding from venture capitalists, angel investors, and government

entities (this is a very recent and welcome addition for founders)

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As far as proving your salary goes, your W-2 is the first piece
of evidence the USCIS will want to look at. But on top of
that, you can also include documentation of bonuses, offer
letters, stock grants, proof of equity, funding agreements,
etc.

On what is a high salary, you need to be able to show that you rank in
the 90th percentile for pay in your field. This means looking at the
average total compensation for your job role in your location and
positioning yourself against this. Whenever possible, include evidence
from the Department of Labor directly, along with data from other
websites such as PayScale, LinkedIn, Glassdoor, etc. If you can’t show
that you’ve made a high salary in the past, you can still petition for this
criterion as long as you show that you will command a high salary in the
future, through an offer letter or equity in a startup.

Case study

In 1995, a Canadian professional ice hockey player, Craig Muni, filed a

lawsuit contesting his EB-1A denial. One of the reasons stated for the
denial was the lack of evidence showing a high salary compared to other
NHL players. Back then, Muni earned $400,000, while the average
salary of an NHL player was $387,914. While his salary doesn’t seem
much higher than the average, there’s a crucial fact to remember:
averages can be skewed a lot by a few players earning very high salaries
at the NHL. So the officer needs to compare Muni with everyone who

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plays ice hockey where he’s from. In the end, Muni ended up winning
the lawsuit (go Muni!) as the judge realized the USCIS officer didn't
make a fair comparison.

This story is a helpful reminder that the USCIS officer is supposed to

compare your salary with everyone who works in your role, in your
location. They can’t just compare it with those working at big tech
companies where the pay is very high (as they’ve been known to do). If
you do get an RFE where the officer makes this mistake, be sure to push
back and cite the Muni case.

O-1A pillar seven: Awards

You have received nationally or internationally recognized awards or prizes
for excellence in your field of expertise.

Although the words national or international recognition make this pillar

sound like it only applies to Nobel Laureates and Olympic Athletes, the
good news is that it’s within your reach. 

The following are all examples of what counts as national or international

recognition:

Extramural doctoral dissertation awards and Ph.D. scholarships. E.g.

NSF Dissertation Research Grant, etc.
Prestigious international scholarships. E.g. Rhodes Scholarship,
Fulbright Scholarship, etc.
Awards at top conferences. E.g. Best Paper Award at IEEE, Rising
Product Manager at WomenTechMakers Global.
Being on a published list of distinguished experts in a specific domain.
E.g. Forbes 30 Under 30 in Marketing, 100 Brilliant Women in AI
Ethics, etc.

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It’s not about the award itself, though. Being a Forbes 30 Under 30 will
not on its own get you this category. You still need to prove how
receiving the award makes you extraordinary, as you’ve seen now with all
O-1A criteria. 

To do that, you can show one or more of the following evidence:

Criteria used to grant the prizes or awards.

Significance of the granting organization’s reputation..
Significance of the prizes or awards, including national or
international recognition.
Number of candidates considered.
Number of prizes of awards given out each year, and
Previous winners who enjoy national or international acclaim.

As with the Judging pillar, it can be daunting to stare at the award titles
on this page. But if there’s one thing that everyone who won those
awards has in common, it’s this: it didn’t happen by chance. Just as with
Press, those who won searched for the awards, got themselves nominated
by a friend, understood the requirements, filled out paperwork, and with
some luck, won the award. The awards did not come to them; they went
looking for them. Once they got one award, getting the next one
became 10% easier until the awards eventually started finding them. So
start small, and don’t be intimidated.

Case study

Dr. Martin Zizi, an immigrant founder from Belgiu, filed a lawsuit in

2021 contesting his EB-1A denial. Zizi showed venture capital funding
to his startup as evidence of a “ lesser nationally or internationally

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recognized award” in his application. However, USCIS refused to take

that into account, stating that, “the venture capital funding went to the
startup, and not the Plaintiff (Zizi).” As with the Muni case, the judge
ruled in favor of Zizi who won the lawsuit (and a green card!).

Thanks to Dr. Zizi, if you’re an immigrant founder with a significant

amount of funds raised for your company (over $1 million), you can
definitely argue that venture capital qualifies as an acclaimed award.

We wish this weren’t true, but your university awards don’t

count here. The same goes for “employee of the month”-type
awards. The award has to be on a national, or international,
scale.

O-1A pillar eight: Memberships

You are a member of an association that requires outstanding achievements in
your field as determined by recognized national or international experts.

Many O-1A pillars are easier to satisfy than you initially expect. But,
this last one, Memberships, is harder to satisfy, which is why we put it
last. 

Your evidence needs to be two-fold here:

First, you’re a member of an organization that requires outstanding

achievements.
Second, your achievements are judged to be worthy by recognized
national or international experts.

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Obviously, that begs the question: What kind of organization requires

outstanding achievements? 

One example is the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers

(IEEE), the world’s largest technical professional organization
“dedicated to advancing humanity’s knowledge through conferences,
publications, setting standards, and more.” Even then, it’s not enough to
just be a member of the IEEE, given that they have over half a million
members. You need to hold a position inside the IEEE that is
prestigious and/or belong to a level that has publicly stated requirements
to join. For example, the IEEE has various membership levels. But only
those who hold a Senior Member Grade and above can say with certainty
that their membership requires outstanding achievements. Sometimes,
even that is not enough.

Sadly, the government is quite outdated in what they view as

organizations. In their eyes, unless the organization you’re a
part of has written bylaws, clear criteria for membership, and
a detailed voting process, they might not consider it to be
valid.

Most organizations today don’t meet their high bar, including Y

Combinator (YC). Even though YC is well-regarded within the startup
community and has an acceptance rate of less than 2%, it might still not
be a “prestigious organization” from the government’s lens since they
don’t publicly share their selection process. 

Satisfying a lot of the criteria for the O-1A doesn’t just help you in
getting the visa. It also helps you further your overall career in life. For
example, getting your work published in the press (pillar four) gives you
visibility. Publishing a paper in a renowned journal (pillar five) pushes
your research career along. But Memberships? It’s one criterion where
your efforts to gather evidence might be better spent elsewhere.
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Unless you’re already part of a prestigious organization that has clearly

stated bylaws for membership, we wouldn’t recommend dwelling on this
category too much.

Passing the “Final Merits”

After you’ve identified which of the three pillars you want to focus on
and worked hard to gather the required evidence, there’s one more
hurdle to prepare for: the “final merits” test. USCIS says,

The fact that the petitioner has produced evidence satisfying

at least three evidentiary criteria does not necessarily
establish that the beneficiary is eligible for the O-1
classification. Rather, USCIS must determine eligibility based
on whether the totality of the evidence submitted
demonstrates that the beneficiary meets the relevant
standard. (emphasis added)

What does this mean in plain English?

Well, it’s not enough that the evidence you submit simply checks the
boxes for three of the eight pillars. When an officer looks at your profile
holistically, they need to agree that you have “sustained national or
international acclaim” and that you’re one of the small percentages at the
top of your field. This is the least fun part of the O-1 application for a
lawyer. It’s because the subjective nature of the evaluation in the second
step can lead to RFEs that have unreasonable demands.

Now, instead of assessing whether you have sustained national or

international acclaim in the second step, an officer might start evaluating
each piece of evidence in the first step itself. “Judge of a state-level
hackathon? That doesn’t look like national acclaim to me,” an officer
might think. Even though they are only supposed to check if you’ve
been the judge of others in your field in the first step.

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While not right, this is the status quo. So to pre-emptively avoid an

RFE, we recommend the following,
Wherever you can, provide “meta” evidence: Let’s say you’ve
published three papers in a tier 1 journal in your field. Besides
showing evidence that you’ve published three papers, also show why
the journal is considered one of the top ones in your field. Wherever
you can, provide evidence to contextualize why your evidence is
extraordinary.
Include evidence that doesn’t fit under any of the criteria: Most
O-1 candidates have evidence that go beyond the 8 criteria. This
could be speaking at a conference, getting university awards,
publishing blog posts that have reached a large audience, etc. While
they’re not enough to meet the bar for a criterion, they help in the
second step evaluation.
Build a consistent “narrative” to the application: The officer who
looks at your application is most probably not an expert in your field.
So it’s on you (and your lawyer) to explain how all the evidence in
your application connects together to build a compelling narrative.
As Ron Matten, an immigration lawyer, says, “If you don’t have a
consistent narrative, it’s like saying here’s the flour, sugar, eggs, and
milk, without explaining that the person makes an amazing cake.”
If you do receive an RFE after all this, it’s okay. One in four applications
get it anyway, most of which are later approved. The good news is, you
can push back easily if the RFE seems to pose an unreasonable burden
of proof on you by conflating steps one and two.

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Being An Entrepreneur on O-1A

When you google “startup visa USA”, there’s a good chance you’ll see
the O-1A as a contender on top. 

Over the decades, the lack of a startup visa has pushed lawyers to use
the O-1A creatively, even though the USCIS didn’t originally intend for
the O-1A to serve that purpose. And while lawyers have had really good
success with it, we have both good news and bad news.

The bad news: self-employment on an O-1A is not possible (unlike with

the OPT). 

The good news: you can apply for an O-1A as a founder (even if you’re a
solo founder). 

Since we already talked about building your startup on an H-1B in

depth in Chapter 03, we’ll use that as a reference to show how it’s
different (and much easier) to build your startup on an O-1A.

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Table: H-1B versus O-1A for founders

H-1B O-1A

Self- Not possible. Not possible.

employment

Minimum Must be paid minimum No minimum wage

salary wage based on data required. But, it’s helpful
published by the U.S. to have one.
Department of Labor.

Employer- Necessary and strictly Helpful, but not always

employee enforced. strictly enforced.
relationship

Company’s More emphasis placed on Very little emphasis

viability checking whether the placed on this. They care
company can support a more about whether you
specialty worker’s are of extraordinary
prevailing wage. You must ability. But, ensure your
show it through funding, company has all the
pitch deck, revenue, necessary licenses.
customers, etc.

Job description Must be detailed and Just show that your job
complex enough that it duties will utilize your
requires a bachelor’s extraordinary abilities.
degree.

Let’s talk about the “employer-employee relationship” point since it’s the
one that stumps most entrepreneurs: You do need to show an employer-
employee relationship when you file your O-1A as an entrepreneur. But,
you get a lot more leeway than on an H-1B to show this.

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Case study

Let’s look at Harshita Arora from India. She was just 16 years old when

she established an LLC under her name and filed an O-1A through her

company to immigrate. Quite likely the youngest person to get the

O-1A ever, she did something simple. She set up Harshita Apps LLC

through Stripe Atlas (a ten-minute task), and gave 51% ownership of it

to her Aunt. By doing so, she established an employer-employee

relationship since her Aunt could technically hire, fire, and outvote her.

She got her O-1A approved within four days.

This story doesn’t mean you have to give up 51% equity. Alternatively,

you could hire a board of directors with the right to hire, fire, and

outvote you. The point is: USCIS is more welcoming of solo founders

on an O-1A than an H-1B, since the O-1A tests you for your

extraordinary ability, not your company’s.

Lawyer Up: Applying for an O-1A as a solo founder is less

straightforward than with an established company, so ensure

to find a lawyer who has done this before successfully.

O-1B: The Six Pillars

The O-1B is meant for those who have extraordinary ability in the fields

of arts, motion picture, or television production and have sustained

national or international acclaim. 

Similar to the O-1A (and in lieu of a Grammy award or an Oscar),

USCIS measures your “extraordinary ability” by checking if you meet

three out of the six criteria.

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Critical Capacity: You have performed, or will perform, a lead or

critical role for organizations and establishments that have a
distinguished reputation (proven via articles in newspapers, trade
journals, publications, or testimonials).
Lead or Starring Role: You have performed, or will perform, in a
lead or starring role in productions or events that have a
distinguished reputation (proven via critical reviews, advertisements,
press releases, contracts, etc).
National or International recognition: You have achieved national
or international recognition which is proven by critical reviews and
published materials in major newspapers, trade publications, or
magazines.
Commercial success: You have a record of commercial or critically
acclaimed successes evidenced through ratings, box office receipts,
title, standing in a field, or other achievements reported in trade
journals, major newspapers, & other publications.
Testimonials: You have received significant recognition from
organizations, critics, government agencies, or other recognized
experts in the field. Such testimonials must clearly state your
authority and expertise.
High Salary: You have commanded or will command a high salary or
other payments for services relative to others in the field (proven by
contracts or other reliable evidence).

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O-1B. The Six Pillars

01
Critical

02
Capacity

You have
performed, or will
perform, a lead or
critical role for
Lead or
Starring Role:
03
National or
organizations and
establishments that International
You have
have a performed, or will recognition
distinguished perform, in a lead
reputation (proven You have achieved
or starring role in
via articles in national or
productions or
newspapers, trade international
events that have a
journals, recognition which
distinguished
publications, or is proven by critical
reputation (proven
testimonials). reviews and
via critical reviews,
published materials
advertisements,
in major
press releases,
newspapers, trade
contracts, etc).
publications, or
magazines.

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Similar to the O-1A (and in lieu of a Grammy

award or an Oscar), USCIS measures your
“extraordinary ability” by checking if you meet
three out of the six criteria.

04 05 06 High Salary
Testimonials
Commercial
success You have received You have
significant commanded or will
You have a record recognition from command a high
of commercial or organizations, salary or other
critically acclaimed critics, government payments for
successes evidenced agencies, or other services relative to
through ratings, recognized experts others in the field
box office receipts, in the field. Such (proven by
title, standing in a testimonials must contracts or other
field, or other clearly state your reliable evidence).
achievements authority and
reported in trade expertise.
journals, major
newspapers, &
other publications.

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Here’s a secret for you: the O-1B criteria are, on average,

easier to satisfy than the O-1A.

If you look at the USCIS language for the two visas, the O-1A requires
you to be “one of the small percentages who have risen to the very top”
while the O-1B requires you to be “recognized as being prominent in
his or her field.”

While both the O-1A and O-1B require you to submit hundreds of
pages of evidence, the nature of the O-1B gives you more wiggle room
to build a better case with the same evidence. For example, the O-1B
does not have an Original Contribution criterion, meaning you don’t
need to prove that your work has impacted your field. On the other
hand, Testimonials is an actual criterion here. While testimonials
supplement your main evidence in an O-1A, you can use that to satisfy
a whole criterion here.

However, while the O-1B may be easier to obtain than the

O-1A, only those who qualify for the O-1B category can
apply.

This is not possible for a cancer researcher or software developer. But it

is possible for somebody who sits at the intersection of technology and
art, such as:

Multimedia artists
Graphic designers
UI designers
UX designers

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Game designers
Brand designers

Lawyer Up: If you fall under any of these intersecting roles,

discuss the possibility of pursuing an O-1B with your lawyer.

Working for Multiple Employers

We’re going to share another secret now: you can work for
more than one employer on an O-1.

That’s right. 

The USCIS gives you two options to choose from for your employment:
you can either work with a single employer or you can work with an
agent, who in turn can represent you on behalf of one or more
employers. An agent can be:

An employer: That’s right, the agent can also be your actual

employer. This scenario happens when you want to work for multiple
employers with one agreeing to be your agent.
A representative of both the employer and you: Here the agent is a
third party acting on behalf of you and your employer (this could be
in exchange for a percentage commission of your salary).
A person or entity authorized to act on behalf of your employers:
Similar to the second case, the agent is once again a third party
acting on behalf of all of your employers to streamline the process,
once again in exchange for a percentage commission of your total
salary.
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The advantage of an agent O-1 is that you have greater flexibility to

rotate between or even drop certain employers during the course of your
stay in the U.S. This is unlike the employer route, where any change in
your employment requires you submit a new, amended O-1 application
to USCIS for approval.

O-1B Agent vs. O-1A Agent

Technically, you can choose to work with an agent for both the O-1A
and O-1B, and secure contracts from multiple employers. But (and
that’s a big but), it’s very rare for an O-1A candidate to go through an
agent to get that visa. 

The reason? Institutional inertia.

When the O-1 was written into law in the late 1980s, it was much more
common for an actress to work with multiple employers than for a
software engineer to do the same. While the nature of work has
changed for engineers (and other workers in tech), the perception of an
average immigration officer has not. You can, however, get what you
want within the system through the O-1A employer model if you get a
little creative.

Case study

Dhivya was working as a software engineer for a large company that

made 3D design software, but her passion extended beyond her role
with the company. She wanted to create and display her artwork at local
galleries, events, and fairs (which had nothing to do with the company).
The company recognized she was a great asset, so they pondered, “How
do we give her what she wants?” Sameer and his team figured out a
solution by including her passion for creating artwork as one of the
O-1A job responsibilities. It went something like this:

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“Dhivya, aside from being an extraordinary engineer, is also a gifted artist.

Given that [the company] has a division focused on disseminating art to the
public through their non-profit art studio, a part of Dhivya’s responsibilities
will also include creating and showing her artwork at local galleries. This, in
turn, is good for [the company] (which happened to sit at the intersection of
engineering and design).”

Work with your employer to customize the responsibilities

of your role to keep them slightly open-ended, should you
wish to dabble in some of your passions.

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Steps, Timeline, Cost (O-1)

n/a 3-18 months

Step 01 Prepare your O-1 application based on the criteria laid out.

Form fee: $460, Premium processing: $2500

Step 02 Work with a lawyer to file your O-1 application. You can
pay an optional $2500 to get a decision within two weeks.

n/a up to 30 days
Step 03 Receive your I-797 receipt notice. Don’t lose this!

n/a up to 3 months
Step 04
If you receive a Request for Evidence (RFE) or Notice of
(Optional) Intent to Deny (NOID), you get 89 days to respond, unless
USCIS says otherwise.

n/a 15 days to 2 months

Step 05 Receive your I-797 approval notice and your “priority
date.” If you filed under premium processing, you should
get a decision within 15 days.

varies by country n/a

Step 06
If you filed under “Change of Status,” then you can
(Optional) immediately start working on the O-1. If you filed under
“Consular Processing,” you need to file a DS-160 and
attend an interview in your home country.

For consular processing, many consulates now require proof

that you will return to your home country after your work
ends. Prove your ties to your home country through assets,
real estate, or family. It also helps if you explain why it makes
sense professionally to return after 3 years.

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We didn’t account for the lawyer fee in the steps above, which can range
between $5000 to $15,000. Some lawyers take more money if your case
gets approved. E.g. They’ll tell you, “My filing fee is $7,500. And if your
case gets approved, you’ll have to pay another $2500. If it doesn’t, then
you don’t need to pay anymore.” 

So in total, it can cost anywhere between ~$5500 to ~$18,000 to file

your O-1. But generally, you don’t need to worry about the expense since
it’s your employer or agent’s responsibility.

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Where is Mayank today?

After getting his O-1A approved in the nick of time in July 2021, Mayank was

able to stay in Seattle and continue his work at Convoy. He moved to a fintech

startup, Outgo, at the beginning of 2022, where he works today. He’s actively

building his EB-1A portfolio and hopes to apply within the next year. Since

getting his O-1A, he has also appeared on several podcasts and interviews to

share his story in the hopes of inspiring other employees in tech to use the O-1

as an alternative to the lottery’s uncertainty.

He still lives in Seattle with his brother, Aakash. The brothers frequently take

road trips over the border to Canada to eat the best parathas that they’ve

found in North America!

The immigration system in this country can sometimes make you feel helpless,”

he shares, reflecting on his ordeal. “It can make you feel like you’re the one who

didn’t do enough. It can break your confidence. I know it because that’s how I

felt for a while after the fateful H-1B lottery when I didn’t get picked. It took me a

long time to let go of the false belief that I hadn’t done enough. 

The truth is, it’s not your fault if you’re not selected in the lottery. Very few things

are in your control, but within those boundaries, you can preserve your agency

by understanding how the system works. For example, with the O-1A you can

slowly and intentionally build up your profile: judge competitions, get featured

in the press, and work on something innovative and exciting. In a way, the O-1A

acts as a catalyst to advance in your career, fast. Whether or not you get it, it will

still put you in a much better position than someone who is not thinking of

applying for it.”

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