EB-1A · First preference
A U.S. green card for those whose record speaks for itself
EB-1A is a self-petition for professionals of extraordinary ability. It is the fastest path to a green card: no employer, no labor certification, and for most countries no years-long backlog.
We help you turn a record of achievement into a petition an officer reads as someone at the top of the field — not a stack of diplomas.
What we do
EB-1A is the fastest path to a green card for people whose work already speaks for itself. Having achievements and having an officer see them are not the same thing. We take a case only when we see grounds; we build evidence to USCIS wording, not a polished résumé; and we say so when NIW, O-1, or another year of building is the stronger move. Below — what a strong petition looks like, and where profiles usually break.
Why three criteria are not an approval?
You closed three of ten — and colleagues are already congratulating you. A USCIS officer reads it differently. First: are the criteria closed on the merits, or only by name? Then final merits: are you among the small percentage at the top of the field, or did you simply format a résumé well? We read the profile before filing: what counts, what only looks closed on paper, and whether EB-1A is now — or whether the record still needs to be built.
What an officer sees in twelve minutes?
A petition is not read like a novel. The officer looks for anchors: independent letters, press about you, numbers on the contribution, names of institutions. If an exhibit has to be explained, it is not there. We assemble an index where every exhibit is tied to a criterion, and recommendation letters come from people who can confirm the contribution from the outside — not colleagues writing as a favor. Further down the page: how we build that record, step by step.
Who is ready for EB-1A — and who is not yet?
A software engineer with open source, a researcher with citations, an executive of an international business, an artist with exhibitions — different frames, one mistake: putting everything into the petition. We do not force criteria that do not fit the profession. If NIW or O-1 is stronger, we say so on the call. If EB-1A closes, we take it to a complete filing package. Below: four typical profiles from five hundred petitions.
EB-1A
Ten criteria
The USCIS rule: three of ten — or one major internationally recognized award.
Practice
Typical profiles
Five hundred petitions leave a repeating map: in each field some criteria close almost on their own, others almost never.
Check your chances
IT and engineering
Original contribution, judging and papers — the usual spine of the case
Science
Publications, citations and peer review, without forcing a market salary
Business and management
A leading role, high pay and independent press
Arts and athletics
Awards, exhibitions and a measurable commercial result
Evidence
How we build the record
01
Criteria audit
We read the profile against the ten EB-1A criteria: what is already closed, what only looks closed on paper, and what still has to be built. You get a written case map — not a promise of approval.
02
Closing the weak criteria
Press, judging, memberships — not for show, but mapped to the USCIS wording. We do this through PR services: coverage, expert roles and associations the agency actually counts.
PR services
03
Petition package and index
Petition, recommendation letters and an evidence index — one set where every exhibit is tied to a criterion and an officer can read it without extra work.
Recommendation letters
Letters are not written by “people who know you”. They come from those who can independently confirm the contribution: field experts, editors, leaders of organizations that use your work. A colleague’s letter describes what it is like to work with you. An expert’s letter shows what changed in the field because of you — and why that is visible from the outside.
Team
The team
Send a request
Sergei Voronin
Advocate
PhD in Law, professor
He has led EB-1A, EB-2 NIW and O-1 petitions since 2013 — more than 500 approved cases for clients from eleven countries. A PhD in law, a professor, author of more than forty scholarly publications and a reviewer for an international journal: he knows how USCIS reads papers, citations and recommendation letters because he lives in that system. He leads every case himself — from the audit to the finished package.
Liubov Voronina
Partner
Moscow
Your first contact on the case and the constant link at every stage: consultation, documents, timelines, answers to questions. She hosts video briefings on visa categories and rule changes on the Forward Visa channels.
Amelia Fenwick
Partner
Miami
Client support on the U.S. side: consular and AOS stages, work with U.S. attorneys and petitioners.
Months of preparation
3–6
Business days, I-140
15
From preparation to a green card
Preparation
Audit, evidence, letters and the petition take 3–6 months: we do not rush the file, and we do not file until the criteria are closed on the merits, not by name.
I-140
For EB-1A, premium processing gives a USCIS response in 15 business days. That is the time an officer takes to read a finished record — not a promise of approval.
Status
If you are in the United States in lawful status — adjustment of status, without leaving. If you are abroad — consular processing: an interview, an immigrant visa, and entry already as a resident.
Family
A spouse and children under 21 travel with the principal petition. A separate EB-1A is not required for each of them — they receive status with you.
After approval
The green card arrives by mail, and you continue working in your field. This is not a contract with a single employer and not a tie to one company.
Insights
Articles and cases
Visa-category breakdowns, USCIS criteria, and real cases.
Updates