Overview

• Approvals for O-1A visas surged from 8,838 in fiscal 2020 to nearly 19,000 in fiscal 2023, making India the third-largest recipient with over 1,400 awards.
• The O-1 visa operates without annual caps or a lottery and maintains a 93% approval rate compared with 37% for H-1B applications.
• Major U.S. companies including Google, Tesla and McKinsey are sponsoring O-1 candidates and covering fees of $10,000 to $30,000 per application.
• Immigration consultancies such as Jinee Green Card report their O-1 client base expanding from 60 to 300 as professionals seek a more predictable work-authorization path.
• Some O-1 petitions can be adjudicated in as few as ten days, offering a significantly faster option than typical H-1B processing times.