The O-1 visa for individuals with “extraordinary ability” in fields such as STEM, Business, Arts and Athletics, quickly gains traction between Indian professionals as a reliable alternative to H-1B visa.
What is the O-1 visa about?
The visa, which was based on the 1990 Immigration Act, requires applicants to meet at least three of eight strict criteria, such as the main awards, scientific publications or original contributions to their field, but offer significant advantages: no annual lottery or cap, 93% of approval and initial validity for up to three years.
Unlike H-1B, which faces intensive control and rate of approval 37%, the O-1 allows highly qualified talent to circumvent system insecurity and supports its attractiveness. Data of the Ministry of the US Ministry of State Unveiling O-1A has increased from 8,838 in FY2020 to 18,994 in FY2023, while the Indians managed a large part of this growth.
Indian nationals are now the third largest cohort of O-1A visa recipients around the world and only follow the United Kingdom and Brazil. In FY2023, the Indians secured 1,418 O-1as-accumulations of 191% of 487 in FY2020-like graduates, scientists AI, entrepreneurs and artists use this way.
Tesla, Google among the best sponsors
The main American companies such as Google, Tesla and McKinsey actively sponsor the talent of the O-1, while universities like Harvard and Yale hire the Indian faculty. Boom AI has intensified demand, with companies funding initiatives for building credentials: candidates are invited to publish research, speak at conferences or patents to strengthen applications. For example, the Soundarya Balasubrans, the 28-year-old founder of the Educational Company The Curious Maverick, provided an O-1A as a solo entrepreneur and emphasized his availability over a traditional job.
Costs, Calls and Strategic Shifts
Despite the costs ranging from 10,000 to 30,000-10 times higher than H-1B-Employees and applicants are increasingly investing in the O-1 for its predictability. Immigration companies like other Green Card Report Lists of clients are expanding from 60 to 300 with increasing demand, especially from the Indians, they refused in multiple H-1B lottery.
While the O-1A emissions (22,669 in FY2024) remain dwarves by approval by H-1B (225 957), they grow almost 10% per year. Experts attribute this to the flexibility of visa: it requires no minimum salary or formal title, accepts evidence such as international awards or media coverage, and processes some petitions in just 10 days. As the American Technology Talent Wars increase, the O-1 represents both the life rope for elite Indian professionals and a strategic tool for companies providing “extraordinary” global talent.
(Tagstotranslate) O-1 Visa
