最新ビザ情報!O1ビザについて解説します。
Many people have been asking me about O-1 visas, especially since H-1B visas are becoming more complicated these days, so I will discuss the basics of O-1 visas. First of all, there are two types of O-1 visas; O-1A for people in the fields of business, science or education, and O-1B for people in the arts, including fine artists and performing artists, often known as “Artist Visas”. While these two visas have different standards and requirements, they both have common features.
There are two main common features, which are important to bear in mind. The first is that both O-1A and O-1B visas require a showing of achievement and recognition in the person’s field. They are not visas for people who are at the very beginning of their careers. This is important, because I am often asked by people who have just graduated from music school or acting school, for example, if they are eligible for an Artist O-1 Visa.
Usually someone who has just graduated from college or professional school is not yet ready for an O-1 visa, unless the person has accomplished something quite remarkable while still in school that has been recognized and achieved acclaim in the outside world beyond the school environment.
The second essential common feature of both O-1A and O-1B visas is that they both depend on a comparison with other people in the same field. It is not enough just to be a good actor, musician, scientist or fashion designer, for example; one has to have achieved something that stands out against the achievements of other people in the same field.
For O-1A, one has to show that one is at or near the top of one’s field, though the immigration office is normally fairly flexible about what this means. For O-1B, the standard is somewhat easier; the applicant only has to show “distinction” in the field. It follows from this that carefully defining what the person’s field of activity is, and making it as narrow and precise as possible, is crucially important in any O-1 case.
For example, if a person is sponsored for O-1 as a fashion designer, then the case will be judged on his or her standing compared to all other fashion designers – a very large and talented group of people. But if the person is sponsored as a hat designer, or a jewelry designer; or, better still, as designer of specific kinds of hats or jewelry made from certain types of material, then the number of other people whom the O-1 applicant is comparing himself or herself with becomes much smaller.
In my next article, I will discuss the specific requirements for qualifying for O-1A and O-1B visas in more detail. I am glad to answer questions, so please call me at (212) 724-5643 if you have any.
Roger Algase
Attorney at Law