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EB-1 Visa: Extraordinary Ability, Requirements, and Free Resources
What Is EB-1?
EB-1 is the employment-based first-preference immigrant category, generally the fastest-moving of the employment-based preferences for most countries of birth. It contains three distinct subtypes:
EB-1A
Extraordinary Ability
Self-petition · no employer required
EB-1C
Multinational Manager/Executive
Employer-sponsored
EB-1B
Outstanding Researcher/Professor
Employer-sponsored
The remainder of this page focuses primarily on the EB-1A category, since it is the self-petitioned subtype, subject to the most legal complexity, and currently the most volatile in terms of adjudication outcomes.
Key EB-1A Facts
EB-1A Basics
EB-1A allows an individual with extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics to self-petition for a green card under the EB-1 visa category, without an employer sponsor or labor certification, provided the individual can document sustained national or international acclaim placing them among the small percentage at the very top of their field.
USCIS: Employment-Based Immigration, First Preference EB-1
Unlike EB-1B and EB-1C, which both require an employer sponsor, EB-1A requires no job offer at all — an individual may self-petition and even change employers freely after filing. Approved EB-1A petitioners, along with qualifying spouses and unmarried children under 21, may proceed to a green card through adjustment of status or consular processing once a visa number is available.
EB-1A Approval Rate Has Fallen Sharply
From 74.7% (Q1 FY2025) to 41.7% (Q2 FY2026) — nearly halved in five quarters
Record Backlog
27,024 EB-1A petitions pending as of Q2 FY2026, the largest on record
EB-1B/C Remains Stable
EB-1B: 93.8% · EB-1C: 97.0% (Q2 FY2026)
Processing time
6-19 months standard; premium: 15 business days for EB-1A/B, 45 for EB-1C
Figures current as of September 2026 and may change by the time you read this.
Basic EB-1 Eligibility
EB-1A Basic Eligibility Requirements
A petitioner must satisfy at least 3 of 10 criteria, or demonstrate a single, one-time major internationally recognized award such as a Nobel Prize:
Nationally/internationally recognized awards · Membership requiring outstanding achievement · Published material about the petitioner · Judging others' work · Original contributions of major significance · Scholarly authorship · Artistic exhibitions or showcases · Leading/critical role for a distinguished organization · High salary relative to the field · Commercial success in the performing arts
Meeting 3 criteria should be viewed as a starting point; it does not guarantee approval
Since Kazarian v. USCIS, 596 F.3d 1115 (9th Cir. 2010), EB-1A review has followed a two-step process: first, an objective count of which of the 10 criteria are documented; second, a "final merits determination" evaluating the totality of the evidence to decide whether the petitioner genuinely demonstrates sustained acclaim among the small percentage at the top of the field.
USCIS adjudicating officers exercise considerable discretion at this second step, and that discretion introduces real subjectivity: two petitioners with very similar records, evaluated by different officers, will not necessarily see the same outcome. One may be approved while the other is denied, even where the underlying evidence is comparable.
How ProfVal approaches this: ProfVal's EB-1A Expert Opinion Letters include a holistic discussion of the final merits determination itself, addressing the specific factors we have found, through ongoing discussions with immigration attorneys and former USCIS officers, to be most relevant to how this second step is actually decided — not just a restatement of which criteria are met
EB-1A Approval Trends
USCIS's Immigration and Citizenship Data library publishes original, quarterly Form I-140 adjudication data broken out by preference category. The figures below track EB-1A specifically across the most recent five quarters (current as of September 2026)
Filing volume held roughly flat while denials nearly doubled, which several sources interpret as heightened scrutiny at the final-merits stage. Practitioner-reported RFE rates for EB-1A have climbed to an estimated 40-50% of filed petitions.
Common RFE and Denial Reasons for EB-1A
While a portion of ProfVal's clients engage us before filing, the majority contact us after receiving a Request for Evidence or Notice of Intent to Deny, frequently at the recommendation of their immigration attorney. As a result, ProfVal reviews a substantial volume of RFEs and NOIDs shared directly by law firms and their clients.
A key takeaway from our review of RFEs and NOIDs is that even highly accomplished petitioners with strong, well-documented records can face denial. Effective legal representation from a capable immigration attorney can put you in a stronger position to succeed — and, if the petition is unsuccessful, help you avoid mistakes that could undermine a future filing.
The following reflects patterns identified through ProfVal's review of RFEs and denials
Mistakes, Unforced Errors, and Non-Recoverable Issues
For self-petitions like the EB-1 and EB-2 NIW, a meaningful share of RFEs and denials trace back to filing mistakes or unintentional misrepresentations, most commonly among petitioners who file without an attorney.
Because USCIS retains a record of prior filings, errors of this kind can create difficulties that extend into future petitions.
Read More:
1. Final Merits Determination
Three or more criteria are documented (and sometimes all accepted by USCIS), but USCIS agent determines that the record as a whole does not persuade the officer of sustained, top-of-field acclaim.
Since 2024, ProfVal's EB-1 Expert Opinion Letters have included a Final Merits discussion.
2. Insufficient Independent Corroboration
Evidence relies heavily on employer or personal-network letters rather than independent, third-party recognition.
This is one of the gaps an EB-1A Expert Opinion Letter or Salary Assessment Letter is built to close. Because it is authored by a distinguished expert with no personal or financial stake in the petitioner's success, it functions as independent, third-party corroboration in a way that a manager's or colleague's letter cannot, directly addressing the most common source of this specific RFE.
3. Recognition That Is Not Sustained
A single strong achievement, rather than an ongoing pattern of acclaim over time, does not satisfy the "sustained" element of the standard.
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Analyzes USCIS data, approval trends, and growing RFEs that reflect stricter standards.
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Showcases example approvals with references to capable law firms that collaborated with ProfVal for expert support.
Types of EB-1 Petitions Supported by ProfVal
EB-1 Fields Supported by ProfVal
A summary of ProfVal's EB-1A client work in 2026.
Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning
Generative AI and LLMs · AI agents · AI governance · Machine learning applications · AI-enabled business and government systems
Cloud Computing & Cybersecurity
Cloud architecture · Cloud security · Information security · Software supply-chain security · Infrastructure and compliance automation
Healthcare, Health Technology & Life Sciences
Healthcare technology · Government healthcare systems · Clinical and medical fields · Nutrition · Dentistry · Hearing-health technology · Health data and analytics
One EB-1A client works specifically in AI-enabled government healthcare technology and Medicaid/SNAP systems.
Media, Communications & Digital Content
Media technology · Video and video editing · Digital media · Communications · Media strategy and transformation
Real Estate & PropTech
Real estate technology · Property commercialization · Fractional real estate · Real-estate investment technology
Software Engineering & Technology
Software architecture · Enterprise technology · Distributed systems · Application development · Software engineering leadership · Consumer technology
Enterprise Systems & Digital Transformation
SAP and enterprise resource planning · Human capital management · Enterprise asset management · Systems integration · Digital transformation
A particularly strong area in ProfVal's EB-1A cases — recent matters have included SAP Enterprise Asset Management, SAP HCM/SuccessFactors, enterprise architecture, and global payroll/integration systems
Supply Chain, Logistics & Transportation
Logistics · Freight forwarding · Fleet management · Transportation technology · Customs operations · Supply-chain systems
Customer Experience & Service Operations
Customer experience · Contact-center operations · Quality management · AI-enabled service operations · Large-scale BPO operations
One EB-1A matter specifically defines the field as "the application of artificial intelligence to quality management and customer experience in large-scale contact center operations."
Public Sector & Government Technology
Government modernization · Public-benefit systems · Civic technology · Public-sector data systems · Government healthcare administration
Data Science, Analytics & Data Engineering
Data engineering · Business intelligence · Data analytics · Intelligent data pipelines · Large-scale information systems
Engineering & Industrial Technology
Industrial automation · IoT · Predictive maintenance · Systems engineering · Technical innovation · Asset-intensive industries
Finance, Banking & Risk Management
Financial services · Consumer credit risk · Risk management · Financial technology · Banking · Financial literacy and consumer finance
Business, Management & Entrepreneurship
Entrepreneurship · Corporate strategy · Business leadership · Organizational transformation · Operations · Executive management
ProfVal's Role
What is ProfVal's role?
Since 2019, ProfVal has supported over 1,000 immigration professionals across a wide variety of visa categories. We are a purpose-based company and provide a variety of services to support attorneys and their clients.
A detailed description of your proposed endeavor, either as a professional pursuit or as a business.
Discuss salary based on public and private information, when appropriate.
Via partners, we can source an academic transcript evaluation.
Discuss petitioner's background, endeavor, and national interest implications.
Using government data, provides evidence of the quantitative impact of an endeavor
If you don't have an attorney, we can introduce you to one.
Contact us. We'll respond within 24 hours:
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IMMIGRATION ATTORNEYS
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