Insights

Articles and cases

Breakdowns of visa categories, USCIS criteria, and real cases — from the advocate who files the petitions.

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O-1

O-1 or EB-1A: which to file first, and how to connect the visa to a green card?

O-1 and EB-1A are usually set against each other — “a visa or a green card.” In practice it is more often not a choice but a sequence: the same folder of evidence first opens entry, then permanent status. We set out how the categories differ in substance, four situations in which the order changes, and a calendar for a year and a half — with one trap people fall into only after approval. Current as of 23 September 2026.

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Talent visa Green card EB-1A EB-2 NIW O-1 PR Process For citizens of Russia and the CIS Updates

O-1

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September 20, 2026

The O-1 visa to the United States: what is it, who gets it, and how do you get one?

O-1 is the only U.S. work visa with no lottery, no quotas and no filing season, and you can prepare a green card in parallel. The price of that freedom is one — a petitioner: without a U.S. employer or agent you cannot get it, and that is where half the cases break. We set out who gets an O-1, how the petition is built and how many weeks the path from the first call to starting work takes. Current as of 20 September 2026.