Important Note to Departmental Representative and/or Supervisor of Foreign National: If you have never handled O-1 immigration matters on behalf of your department, please contact Shinsaeng Ko, Immigration and Policy Research Officer in International Services and Student Affairs (ISSA) at (269) 387-5873 or via e-mail at shinsaeng.ko@wmich.edu for a review of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) regulations and processing procedures regarding this immigration status.   

BASIC REQUIREMENTS & GENERAL INFORMATION

The O-1 non-immigrant category is for the employment of individual aliens who have achieved and sustained national or international acclaim for extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, athletics, motion picture, or television industries.  The category permits an employer to petition with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) for a non-immigrant to come to the United States on a temporary basis to work within his or her area of extraordinary ability or achievement.  It also permits family members and, in certain cases, assistants to join the non-immigrant.

• O-1 status is employer and position specific.  This means that an individual in O-1 status is authorized only to work for the employer who sponsored the O-1 petition and may only perform the work described in the petition.  Any substantial change in employment, or a change and/or addition of a new employer requires the filing of a new/amended application. 
• The sponsored employee must have extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business or athletics as demonstrated by sustained national or international acclaim.
• A petition for O-1 classification is filed with USCIS on Form I-129 by a WMU-appointed Immigration attorney.  ISSA is the liaison between the immigration attorney and the employing department.
• The O-1 I-129 petition can be filed up to six months before employment begins.
• The employing department must provide an offer of employment; a non-immigrant may not self-petition. 
• The employing department is responsible for return cost of transportation abroad if the non-immigrant is dismissed before the petition period expires. 
• The O-1 has an initial period of stay up to 3 years with one-year extensions thereafter (no maximum cumulative duration limit like the H-1B.)
• J non-immigrants subject to 212(e), two-year home country physical presence requirement, are eligible for O-1 classification (although such a non-immigrant is not eligible to change from J to O status within the U.S.; they must apply for an O visa abroad and re-enter the U.S. in O-1 status).
• Although they remain subject to the 212(e) even after the approval of O-1 status, they can legitimately hold O-1 status.  
• The spouse and dependents (unmarried children under 21 years of age) of aliens in O-1 Status are eligible for O-3 status.  They are subject to the same limitations of stay as their principal O-1. Individuals with O-3 Status are not permitted to be employed in the U.S.
• The O-1 non-immigrant category allows for “dual intent.” Under the doctrine of dual intent, the fact that a U.S. employer has filed a labor certification, or an individual has filed a permanent residence petition on behalf of the non-immigrant, shall not be a basis for denying the O-1 petition, a request for extension of stay, admission to the United States, or change of status to that of O-1 non-immigrant.

Effective June 1, 2001, the legacy INS (currently USCIS) has implemented a Premium Processing Service to allow organizations the opportunity to obtain faster processing of an O-1 petition to meet their needs for a foreign worker.  Specifically, the USCIS will provide a 15 calendar-day processing time to those who choose to use this service or it will refund the $1,000.00 fee.  Please note this expedited processing fee is in addition to the immigration attorney and filing fees.  Please contact the Immigration & Policy Research Officer in ISSA for further details.

THE O-1 APPLICATION PROCESS

Total processing time for an O-1 petition currently averages between 3 to 10 months.  Once the immigration attorney receives all required documents, the petition is filed.

In general, the O-1 petition process includes the following steps:

1. Consult with the Immigration & Policy Research Officer in ISSA to determine whether the O-1 is the best classification in which to bring the individual to Western Michigan University.  There may be other options available more suitable to the department’s needs.  
2. Once it has been determined that the O-1 is the appropriate status, the hiring department should complete and submit the O-1 Request Forms and all required supporting documents as outlined in the attached O-1 checklist to ISSA in a timely manner (use the O-1 Checklist).