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FAQ

Immigrant Visas

American Citizen Services

visas for Persons of extraordinary ability (O)

The O visa classification provides for the admission into the United States of persons with extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, and athletics, or extraordinary achievement in motion picture and television production, and their essential support personnel.

Qualifying for an O Visa

Your sponsor is required to file a petition, Form I-129 O, on your behalf with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Your sponsor or employer should contact USCIS for further information on how to apply. In the case of an alien who is traditionally self-employed or who uses agents to arrange short-term employment with numerous employers, an agent may file the petition with USCIS. An agent may also file a petition on behalf of a foreign employer.

It is the responsibility of USCIS to determine whether the alien qualifies for the O visa category. Any questions concerning eligibility should be addressed to the appropriate USCIS office. Please contact your sponsor or USCIS if you have questions about your petition. Consular officers at U.S. Embassy Tel Aviv have no role in, or access to, the petition process.

USCIS will send you or your attorney and your sponsor a Notice of Action (I-797) when it approves your petition. You may apply for an O visa only after USCIS approves your petition. The Embassy will have no information about the status your petition until it has been approved.

Please remember that while the approval from USCIS grants an applicant legal status to work in the United States, you will still need to apply for an O visa to enter the United States. You should apply for a visa and pay the processing fee for you and your family as you would for any other visa type. However, you must not apply until you have received an approved petition.

Families of O Visa Holders

Spouses and/or children under the age of 21 who wish to accompany or join the principal visa holder in the United States for the duration of his/her stay require derivative O-3 visas. Spouses and/or children who do not intend to reside in the United States with the principal visa holder, but visit for vacations only, may be eligible to apply for visitor (B-2) visas.

Spouses and children of O visa holders may study in private or public schools in the United States on the O-3 visa without obtaining a student F-1 visa. However, spouses on O-3 visas may not work. If a spouse on an O-3 visa is seeking employment, he or she must seek the appropriate work visa to do so. As the principal O applicant, you must prove that you can support your family financially during your stay in the U.S.

Before the Interview

Before you appear at the Embassy to interview for an O visa, be sure that you have completed the following steps and have collected the following documents to bring to the interview:

You have scheduled your visa interview on the Internet at http://visainfo.us-visaservices.com/.
You have filled out and printed the required forms to bring to your interview:

DS-156 application form for all applicants (to be filled out at http://visainfo.us-visaservices.com/ when you schedule your interview)
DS-157 supplemental form for all male applicants age 16 to 45, as well as all applicants, male or female, born in Cuba, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Sudan or Syria.

You have paid the processing fee at the post office and have a receipt to bring to your interview.
Your passport is valid and has at least one blank “Visa” page.
You have two photos that meet the photo requirements.
You have the original I-797 form from USCIS showing that the petition has been approved, as well as a copy of the petition and all the supporting documents, such as letters of recommendation, diplomas and transcripts, etc.
If you are applying for O-3 derivative visas for your spouse and/or children, you have all of the documents, fees, and photos listed above, as well as marriage and birth certificates proving your relationship and proof of your ability to financial support your family while in the United States.
If you have lived in the United States, you have previous I-797, I-20, or DS-2019 forms or proof of previous study or work visa status.
You have previous passports with U.S. visas or a list of entries and exits from the Ministry of Interior to bring to your interview.

At the Interview

At the visa interview, the consular officer will ask you to present all your documents and passport and will ask about the work you intend to perform in the United States and your qualifications as a person with extraordinary ability. Please be prepared to answer these questions honestly and thoroughly, and the consular officer in turn will make the decision about your eligibility based on your answers and the documents you present.

Sometimes it may be necessary for the consular officer to take a few days to review the details of your application and supporting documents. If this is the case, the officer will return your passport to you and the Embassy will call you as soon as possible for further questions or to issue your visa.