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I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney, who does work for YC and startups. AMA

194 points proberts | 4 comments | 16 May 25 15:05 UTC | HN request time: 0.961s | source

I'll be here for the next 5-6 hours. As usual, there are countless topics given the rapidly changing immigration landscape and I'll be guided by whatever you're concerned with. Please remember that I can't provide legal advice on specific cases because I won't have access to all the facts. Please stick to a factual discussion in your questions and I'll try to do the same in my answers.

Edit: I am taking a break now and will return later this afternoon/evening to respond to any comments and answer any questions. Thank you everyone for a great and engaged AMA so far.

1. aesbetic ◴[16 May 25 20:11 UTC] No.44009384[source]▶
Should I apply for an H1B or an O1 visa if the end goal is to self-petition an EB-1A green card application?
replies(1): >>44009461 #
2. proberts ◴[16 May 25 20:20 UTC] No.44009461[source]▶
Doesn't matter since the EB1A requires a separate assessment that is not tied to the underlying status. But between the two, because of the inability to travel on an O-1 visa while in the last stage of the green card process, the H-1B is slightly better.
replies(1): >>44009568 #
3. aesbetic ◴[16 May 25 20:34 UTC] No.44009568[source]▶
Thank you for responding so quickly.

I asked this question in the first place because I heard/read that an EB1A application is a little more likely to be accepted if you already possess an O-1 visa. The reasoning behind this being the similarity in the eligibility requirements for the O-1 and EB1A applications make them more “compatible”.

What do you think of this?

replies(1): >>44010869 #
4. sjtgraham ◴[16 May 25 23:58 UTC] No.44010869{3}[source]▶
It’s not true. There are two steps to EB-1A: the statutory criteria, functionally identical to the O-1, and a final merits determination where the examiner evaluates the totality of evidence to determine if you belong to the small percentage at the top of your field. This is a far higher bar than O-1. Additionally, each petition before USCIS is evaluated independently, except for subsequent O-1 petitions with substantially similar facts. In such cases, USCIS policy and the APA’s prohibition on arbitrary and capricious action generally require approval absent extraordinary circumstances.