Countless artists have immigrated from countries around the world to the U.S., enriching the American cultural landscape immeasurably. But the process of applying for an O-1B visa, for those with extraordinary ability in sciences, arts, education, business, athletics, or the motion picture/television industry, is a notoriously difficult and expensive process.
Lately, some applicants for these visas are able to make a convincing case to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services—those who can increasingly offer concrete online metrics of achievement, including social media influencers and even OnlyFans models, immigration lawyers tell the Financial Times.
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To acquire an O-1B in the artistic field, applicants must demonstrate that they have achieved “distinction” in their field. Visual artists seeking the visa might list an exhibition history, but, according to a 2020 Hyperallergicarticle, applicants must also provide a dozen recommendation letters, future work contracts that demonstrate that the artist will earn a living wage, and press clips that indicate their distinction. Hyperallergic noted at the time that the Trump administration had imposed stricter controls on these visas, making the application process yet more difficult.
Attorneys tell the FT that the criteria have been adapted to fit online influencers. Commercial success can be proven through high follower counts and substantial earnings, they say. Signing a contract to promote a brand could constitute an endorsement of talent. Even being featured at the opening of a store could qualify as playing a leading role in a production or event, Fiona McEntee, founding partner of the McEntee Law Group, tells the paper.
Protima Daryanani, managing partner of the Daryanani Law Group, tells the FT that “people who should never have been approved are getting approved for O-1s.” The quality of those admitted, says Daryanani, has been “watered down.”
“Officers are being handed petitions where value is framed almost entirely through algorithm-based metrics,” New York attorney Shervin Abachi told the paper. “Once that becomes normalized, the system moves towards treating artistic merit like a scoreboard.”
The number of O-1 visas granted is still very small, fewer than 20,000 in 2024, which is less than ten percent of the number of H-1B visas. But, unlike the H-1B visa, there is no cap on the number of O-1 visas that can be granted. The visa is initially granted for up to three years, with one-year extensions available based on ongoing work or projects. There are O-1A and O-1B visas, with differing requirements. O-1A visas are for people in sciences, education, business, or athletics, while O-1Bs are for those in the arts or motion picture or television industries.
Attorney Leon Wildes helped to create the O-1 visa when the Nixon administration wanted to deport John Lennon for his activism, notes the FT. Wilde, defending Lennon and his wife, artist and musician Yoko Ono, lobbied for him in 1972 as an “outstanding person” in the arts. Congress formalized the O-1 visa as part of the Immigration Act of 1990, noting that “immigration and foreign workers should substantially benefit the national economy, culture, and welfare.”