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USA
November 13, 2023

These mistakes can seriously hurt your US talent visa case



1. General mistakes
You Confused the Immigration Officer

Everything in your case should be clear, logical and supported by facts. No, this does not mean that your case will be thin (for an O-1 visa, for example, there are approx. 500 pages of documents). But yes, you can leave out something that is not directly related to the case.

We help to sort out the important bits from the unimportant ones and prepare the case so that the immigration officers do not get a headache.


You Have Imposter Syndrome

Often, when working on documents and proofs of criteria, clients themselves cannot formulate their “uniqueness” and “value”.

Each document should clearly spell out and prove what exactly makes you "extraordinary". It's time to forget about the imposter syndrome and start praising yourself!

We are also ready to help with this, focusing on your strengths. And our partners can competently re-think your social media, increase the number of mentions in the media and do everything to make your case shine.


Not Enough Evidence

It is not enough to say that your accomplishments are "important" to your area of expertise. Everything must be supported by documents, stats and so on. It is wrong to think that the officer himself will study the specifics of your field/profession: he must receive an exhaustive package of documents.

For example, if you claim that your salary is higher than the market, you need to prove this with statistics for your region.


Be specific

Be clear about what you did in your previous jobs and what you plan to do in the US.

It is important to give the officer enough facts, but not to bury him in mountains of unnecessary information. Your goal is to clearly state why you meet each selected criterion.


Translate Everything into English

Translation of documents is included in our services.


Letters of Recommendation Cannot Be Too General

They should detail your strengths and specific talents and skills, and not rely on just general phrases like “he is a highly skilled professional”.

We know which letters are read to the end by immigration officers and which are sent to the trash.


Google Doesn't Know You

Believe it or not, immigration officers can easily Google you. And if they can't find anything substantial, your case will be in jeopardy. Work on your social media presence, score publications in the media and so on: it will be useful for the case and in general for your career.



2. How to avoid mistakes related to your media presence
No Ads

Publications in the media should be about you or your project, but not be overly promotional. An article published “as an advertisement” will not be suitable for your case.


Full article

The entire article must be attached to the case, and not just the title or an except.


Time frame

The articles about you can't be too old or too fresh. This rule is pretty vague, but it definitely means that articles cannot be written literally before submitting a case.


Real media

Articles must be published in registered media. Blogs and Telegram channels will not work.



3. How to avoid mistakes related to you role as judge
Relevant documentation

You must have documents that prove that you really were a judge and why you were entrusted this role.


Your role

You must show that you really took an active part as a judge.


Your specialty

If a wide profile of specialists was allowed to judge, this will confuse the immigration officer: it is important for him to understand why you were chosen.



4. How to avoid mistakes related to the authorship of field-specific articles
Correct formatting

Scientific articles have many formatting and formatting rules. Make sure yours are up to the standard.


Don't be too mainstream

A scientific article cannot be written for a wide range of people. Its target audience is professionals from your industry.


You are the author

Your name must not only be mentioned in the material, you must be credited as the author. This can be confirmed by a letter from the editor.



5. How to avoid mistakes related to your membership in associations
The association must be exclusive

If everyone can get into it, your membership will not impress the immigration officer.


Association's Documents

You must attach both documents relating to the association itself (e.g. articles of association) and the ones related to your participation (membership certificate, your profile page).


Association matches your qualifications

If you are a PR manager who is in the Union of Journalists, then it's irrelevant for your case.


You are still a member of the association

You must be a member of the organization at the time of the visa application.



6. How to avoid mistakes related to your awards
These are your awards

Awards received by the entire organization will not work.


Award Description

What merits and talents allowed you to receive these prizes?


The award should be covered by the media

If the award is not creating any buzz, it will not be suitable for your case.


The award must have national or global significance

"Employee of the Month" won't work.



7. How to avoid mistakes related to proving significant contribution to your industry
Global benefits

You need to prove that you have brought value not only to your clients or customers, but to the entire industry.


Detailed letters

Letters of recommendation should not only praise your skills and talents, but also articulate in detail exactly how you changed your industry.


You are helpful to others

If you have invented something, then you definitely need to tell who and how uses your invention in their work.


Availability of materials

It is logical that publications about your contribution should be available publicly. So it is better to attach only those data that the immigration officer can easily verify.



8. How to avoid mistakes related to your role in organizations or establishments that have a distinguished reputation
Confirm the distinguished reputation

First you need to prove that the organization you belong to really has a "distinguished reputation". It's not enough to submit internal documents: you need to present an independent expert assessment (articles, reports, statistics, etc).


Your role in the organization

Immigration officers love facts. Letters of praise from colleagues will not be enough: you need to show documents, certificates and reports that describe your contribution to the work of the organization.


Not your job title, but your overall value

It is not enough to write what position you held in the organization. You need to describe how exactly your activity and your unique talents helped it to reach new heights.


Letters from bosses or former employers

They are the ones who can confirm and describe the importance of your contribution. Letters must be submitted on official letterhead. Also note that immigration officers do not like to see personal emails in said letters and prefer the corporate ones.



9. How to avoid mistakes related to earning high salary
Introduce the market

It is not enough to write that you have a high salary. You need to show that it is higher than that of your colleagues. It is mandatory to bring supporting public data, statistics and so on.


Be specific

If you are a highly paid pianist, then you need to attach salary information for other pianists, not any musicians.


Geography matters

It is not enough to simply convert your salary into US dollars and compare the resulting amount with American salaries. Your income needs to be analyzed in the context of your country.

Learn your chances or book a free consultation with our team to learn more about the USA visas.

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