{"id":565,"date":"2012-08-22T19:47:49","date_gmt":"2012-08-23T01:47:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.messersmithlaw.com\/?p=565"},"modified":"2026-08-15T23:19:14","modified_gmt":"2026-08-16T05:19:14","slug":"o1-visa-self-sponsorship","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.messersmithlaw.com\/?p=565","title":{"rendered":"O1 Visa Self Sponsorship"},"content":{"rendered":"

I would like to know if it is possible to incorporate my own company to sponsor me for a O1 visa?\u00a0I spoke to one lawyer and was told I can sponsor myself as long as I have strong reference\/creential letters.\u00a0Another lawyer I spoke with told me that I cannot incorporate on my own and self-sponsor.\u00a0So who\u2019s right?<\/strong><\/p>\n

While it is true that O1 visa beneficiaries cannot self-sponsor, if the position is one that traditionally involves self-employment, you may be\u00a0sponsored by a US agent rather than an employer.\u00a0Moreover, USCIS has recently taken a tough stance against self sponsorship in the H1B visa area and is likely taking a strong stance against other visa types.\u00a0It would be risky to self sponsor in this environment but a case could be made and even approved.\u00a0They certainly have been in the past.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I would like to know if it is possible to incorporate my own company to sponsor me for a O1 visa?\u00a0I spoke to one lawyer and was told I can sponsor myself as long as I have strong reference\/creential letters.\u00a0Another lawyer I spoke with told me that I cannot incorporate on my own and self-sponsor.\u00a0So … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[21,83],"tags":[173,224],"class_list":["post-565","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-h-1b-visa","category-o-1-visa","tag-h-1b-visa","tag-o-1-visa"],"yoast_head":"\nO1 Visa Self Sponsorship - US Immigration Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blog.messersmithlaw.com\/?p=565\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"O1 Visa Self Sponsorship - US Immigration Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"I would like to know if it is possible to incorporate my own company to sponsor me for a O1 visa?\u00a0I spoke to one lawyer and was told I can sponsor myself as long as I have strong reference\/creential letters.\u00a0Another lawyer I spoke with told me that I cannot incorporate on my own and self-sponsor.\u00a0So ... 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