What's the likelihood of getting O-1 and EB-1A visa?

[TylerR 0]

I came across the O‑1 and EB‑1A visas a few months ago and figured I might have a shot at obtaining them. I also did a ton of research on the topic, especially from people in my industry (software engineers and other tech workers).

I'm posting here because I know some of you have already been through this process, and I'd love to hear any tips or opinions you might have.

 

I'm speaking hypothetically, since I haven’t achieved all these accomplishments so far. 

 

A little about me: I’m a 22-year-old German citizen majoring in computer science. I co-founded my tech startup with a buddy when I was 20, and we're focused on modernizing the government sector in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria. We've also partnered with another company that's a major player in our regional market. It's a win-win for both of us, and we expect huge growth this year and next.

 

Here’s a breakdown of my accomplishments (some are still hypothetical):

- I co-authored five publications, though my contributions were minor and have nothing to do with my startup.
- 15 letters of recommendation from former college professors, one letter of recommendation from my co-founder and our employee, one letter of recommendation from a someone in Portugal with whom I built a software product remotely, one letter of recommendation from someone in the Bay Area, CA, who I met at a conference, and one letter of recommendation from the person who runs our partner company.
- I'm CTO of my own company, earning an annual salary of €150,000.
- 15 different articles highlight our company's product, and one magazine features it regularly.

- I was on the jury on my college's hackathon.

 

I included the hackathon judging experience because I’ve heard that immigration lawyers can interpret the O‑1 and EB‑1A visa requirements in different ways, meaning the criteria are pretty broadly defined. In other words, serving as a hackathon judge might count toward the requirement/criterion of having reviewed the work of your peers in your field.

 

So, I'm just interested in hearing your opinions and any advice you might have. What I really like about the O‑1 and EB‑1A visas is that they're tied to my personal achievements rather than being based solely on my company, for example, holding a managerial role in my company (like the L‑1A visa requires).

Just to be super clear, my goal is to achieve a green card and eventually US citizenship.

 

Thanks in advance for any insights you can share!

[Boiler 46,219]

What are your qualifications?

[appleblossom 3,256]

I’ve had both. I’d say you’re a bit too young and too early in your career to qualify, but certainly heading in the right direction. 
 

The authoring won’t be relevant if it’s in a different field, salary isn’t likely to qualify just yet, and ideally you’d have more letters of recommendations from US based people (and meeting somebody at a conference won’t be a convincing recommendation - they really need to have worked with you). Our lawyers said at least half of the letters needed to be from the US, to show my expertise was needed there, so I’d work on getting those increased. Being on the jury is a tick, is the magazine national or international? Any awards? 
 

A lawyer will be able to dig a little deeper and tell you for sure, I’d recommend Fragomen who did ours. 
 

Good luck. 

Edited Sunday at 10:55 PM by appleblossom

[TylerR 0]

On 2/9/2025 at 4:20 PM, Boiler said:

What are your qualifications?

Could you be a bit more specific about what you mean?

 

On 2/9/2025 at 11:54 PM, appleblossom said:

I’d say you’re a bit too young and too early in your career to qualify, but certainly heading in the right direction. 

That sounds great. 

 

On 2/9/2025 at 11:54 PM, appleblossom said:

The authoring won’t be relevant if it’s in a different field

Should the authoring be specifically in the field of my startup, or is it enough if it’s generally in the field of computer science?
 

 

On 2/9/2025 at 11:54 PM, appleblossom said:

salary isn’t likely to qualify just yet, and ideally you’d have more letters of recommendations from US based people (and meeting somebody at a conference won’t be a convincing recommendation - they really need to have worked with you). Our lawyers said at least half of the letters needed to be from the US, to show my expertise was needed there, so I’d work on getting those increased.

That’s a really good point, it definitely helps me work toward that goal. Thanks!
I also read somewhere that quality is better than quantity, which obviously makes sense. What would you say is the number of letters of recommendation to comfortably have a shot at getting the visa?

 

On 2/9/2025 at 11:54 PM, appleblossom said:

is the magazine national or international?

National. What exactly qualifies as “international”? Does it have to be a major magazine with a global audience like TechCrunch, or does “international” also apply if the magazine is based in another country, even if it most likely doesn’t reach a worldwide audience?

 

On 2/9/2025 at 11:54 PM, appleblossom said:

Any awards? 

Not yet, but I’m optimistic that we’ll get some kind of award in the coming years.

I have one final question. While I was researching the O-1 and EB-1A visa requirements, I noticed that some sources say you need stronger, more compelling evidence for the EB-1A. How much harder is it really to secure the EB-1A visa? Is the difference huge, or is it just more a formal extra hurdle?

[OldUser 7,772]

1 hour ago, TylerR said:

While I was researching the O-1 and EB-1A visa requirements, I noticed that some sources say you need stronger, more compelling evidence for the EB-1A. How much harder is it really to secure the EB-1A visa? Is the difference huge, or is it just more a formal extra hurdle?

That's true. If EB-1A and O-1 required same evidence, majority would do EB-1A since it's a path to citizenship. But O-1 doesn't provide path to citizenship or residency and is easier to get.

Edited Tuesday at 03:59 PM by OldUser

[appleblossom 3,256]

1 hour ago, TylerR said:

Should the authoring be specifically in the field of my startup, or is it enough if it’s generally in the field of computer science?

 

That would be a question for your lawyer.

 

1 hour ago, TylerR said:

What would you say is the number of letters of recommendation to comfortably have a shot at getting the visa?

 

Our lawyers said 5, at least 3 of which needed to be from US based people. They had to be from very good quality people though i.e. industry experts, somebody random that isn’t well regarded themselves wouldn’t suffice. 

 

1 hour ago, TylerR said:

National. What exactly qualifies as “international”? Does it have to be a major magazine with a global audience like TechCrunch, or does “international” also apply if the magazine is based in another country, even if it most likely doesn’t reach a worldwide audience?

 

Should be fine, but again double check with the lawyer. 

 

1 hour ago, TylerR said:

While I was researching the O-1 and EB-1A visa requirements, I noticed that some sources say you need stronger, more compelling evidence for the EB-1A. How much harder is it really to secure the EB-1A visa? Is the difference huge, or is it just more a formal extra hurdle?

 

Definitely a higher bar (as @OldUser said, it’s going to be tougher as it’s for a green card), but it depends on what you have to submit for the O-1. My evidence didn’t differ between the two, the same package was submitted for my EB1A as soon as the O-1 was approved (lawyers said to wait until that had happened just to be sure that it was good enough, they literally submitted the I-140 the day following the O-1 approval). But I had a very strong O-1 case, so it worked for both. 

 

Another company that are supposed to be very good for EB’s is https://www.wegreened.com/. Might be worth a consult with them, they’ll soon tell you if you’ve got a chance or not.

 

Best of luck. 

[TylerR 0]

2 hours ago, appleblossom said:

Our lawyers said 5, at least 3 of which needed to be from US based people. They had to be from very good quality people though i.e. industry experts, somebody random that isn’t well regarded themselves wouldn’t suffice. 

That’s good to know! I always thought it would take recommendations from 15 or so from quality people, so this really puts my mind at ease. Thanks!

 

2 hours ago, appleblossom said:

My evidence didn’t differ between the two, the same package was submitted for my EB1A as soon as the O-1 was approved (lawyers said to wait until that had happened just to be sure that it was good enough, they literally submitted the I-140 the day following the O-1 approval). But I had a very strong O-1 case, so it worked for both. 

That’s good to know. I think I also heard somewhere else that it’s kind of common to file for EB-1A directly after the O-1 is approved. That’s the goal I’m aiming for, to have my case so rock-solid that it’s practically a done deal for EB-1A.

 

2 hours ago, appleblossom said:

 

Another company that are supposed to be very good for EB’s is https://www.wegreened.com/. Might be worth a consult with them, they’ll soon tell you if you’ve got a chance or not.

Thanks for the two recommendations! 

Thanks, you helped a lot!