You cannot file an O-1 petition for yourself. But since January 8, 2025, a company you own can file it for you. Nine days later, on January 17, the H-1B rules changed to let founders holding more than 50% of their own startup get sponsored by it, capped at 18 months for the first petition.
EB-2 NIW remains the only true self-petition, and it became harder in January 2025, and for Indian founders it no longer produces a green card in any reasonable timeframe.
- Three separate USCIS changes in nine days opened all three founder paths.
- O-1A: your company petitions. You don’t.
- H-1B: controlling interest is no longer disqualifying.
- NIW: self-petition, but EB-2 India is currently unavailable.
Can I petition for my own visa?
Only for the EB-2 National Interest Waiver. Everything else needs a petitioner that isn’t you.
| # | Who files | Self-petition? | What it gets you |
| O-1A | Your company, or a U.S. agent | No | 3 years, renewable, no cap |
| H-1B | Your company | No | 18 months initially, then extensions |
| EB-2 NIW | You | Yes | Priority date and an approved I-140 |
That distinction confuses almost everyone. “Self-sponsorship” gets used loosely online to describe both a company you own filing for you and you filing for yourself. They are not the same thing legally, and mixing them up is how petitions get built wrong.
Can my own company sponsor my O-1A?
Yes. USCIS confirmed this in the Policy Manual on January 8, 2025.
A separate legal entity that you own, a corporation or an LLC, may file an O-1 petition on your behalf. Practitioners had been doing this for years, but the written guidance was ambiguous. Now it isn’t.
Two things the update did not do. It did not permit you to self-petition. And it did not relax the employer-employee requirement. Ownership is simply no longer disqualifying on its face.
What your company has to prove
USCIS looks at two questions: is this a real, separate legal entity, and can it genuinely act as your employer?
The second one is where petitions fail. Your company needs demonstrable authority to supervise your work, evaluate your performance, set or approve your compensation, and terminate you. If you own 100% and answer to no one, that authority is hard to show.
This is where a board of directors earns its place, not as a formality, but because your corporate documents need to actually say who holds that power. Bylaws, board resolutions, and an employment agreement that gives the board real termination authority do more work here than any letter you can write.
When an agent petition makes more sense
If you work across several companies or haven’t formed a single U.S. entity yet, a U.S. agent can file instead. It’s a recognized structure under the O-1 regulations.
One limit worth knowing: your petition covers only the employers and engagements listed on the itinerary at filing. USCIS does not permit speculative employment under O-1. If you form a new company after approval, you cannot start working for it without an amended petition.
For the evidence side of an O-1A, see our guides on strengthening your O-1 petition, required documents, and the reasons O-1 petitions get denied. If you’re weighing this against a green card path, we’ve compared O-1 and EB-1A directly.
Can I get an H-1B through my own startup?
Yes, since January 17, 2025.
The H-1B Modernization Final Rule eliminated the old common-law employer-employee test. It expressly allows “beneficiary-owners”, founders who own more than 50% of the petitioning company or hold majority voting rights.
For years, founders either found a co-founder to hold control on paper or gave up on H-1B entirely. That workaround is no longer necessary.
Four conditions come with it:
- Shorter approvals. The initial petition and the first extension are capped at 18 months each. After that, extensions can run up to three years.
- Majority of your time on specialty occupation duties. Running the business is permitted, but it can’t be most of what you do. USCIS wants percentages in the job description.
- A certified LCA, at a real wage. For a pre-revenue startup this is the hard part. Equity does not count toward the wage obligation.
- Site visits. USCIS codified its authority to conduct them. Refusing can mean denial or revocation.
We’ve written separately about what employers get wrong on H-1B for tech roles, and much of it applies to founder-filed petitions too.
Is EB-2 NIW still a realistic path for founders?
Yes, but it got harder in January 2025, and if you were born in India, it will not produce a green card any time soon.
What changed
On January 15, 2025, USCIS issued new Policy Manual guidance on NIW adjudications. It did not change the three prongs from Matter of Dhanasar. It changed how officers apply them.
The biggest shift: officers now confirm you qualify for EB-2 at all before reaching the Dhanasar analysis. Your proposed occupation must itself be a profession that normally requires an advanced degree. USCIS gives its own example, a PhD in engineering who wants to open a bakery doesn’t qualify, because “baker” isn’t such a profession. Having the degree isn’t enough. The endeavor has to match it.
What no longer works for entrepreneurs
The 2022 entrepreneur framework survived. Ownership, a central and active role, investment raised, accelerator participation, revenue growth, and jobs actually created all still count.
What USCIS now rejects explicitly: broad assertions about general economic benefit and potential job creation. Projections aren’t evidence. Progress is.
Our detailed breakdown of Dhanasar for tech and AI professionals walks through each prong, and recommendation letters matter more under the new guidance than they used to.
The part about India
As of the August 2026 Visa Bulletin, EB-2 India is unavailable. India’s prorated limit for the fiscal year has been reached. The State Department projects the date will advance to July 15, 2014 or earlier when the new fiscal year opens on October 1.
An approved NIW still has real value. It gives you a priority date and an approved I-140, which supports H-1B extensions past the six-year limit. What it does not give you is a green card this decade. Anyone telling you otherwise is selling something. The same pressure is showing up in EB-1 India, which is also retrogressing, and I-140 processing times add to the wait.
What about the International Entrepreneur Rule?
It exists, but it grants parole rather than a status, and it fits a narrow profile.
You need at least 10% ownership at the initial request and above 5% afterward, an entity formed within the past five years, and qualified investment of $311,071 or more. Parole runs in two periods of up to 30 months. Since October 16, 2025, a $1,000 parole fee applies to the entrepreneur and dependents.
One warning: some promoters market this as “EB-6.” There is no EB-6 category. Parole is not a green card and it is revocable.
Which path fits your stage?
- Already on H-1B, starting something on the side: concurrent H-1B through your own company is now viable.
- On F-1 OPT with a formed entity: O-1A if your record supports it; H-1B still means the lottery unless you’re cap-exempt.
- Funded, with traction: O-1A now, NIW filed in parallel for the priority date.
- Bootstrapped and pre-revenue: the LCA wage makes H-1B difficult. O-1A depends entirely on your record, not your company’s.
Where this leaves you
The rules opened up in 2025. The green card queue did not.
For most founders in New Jersey and New York, the practical answer is a nonimmigrant path that works now, O-1A or a beneficiary-owner H-1B, with an NIW self-petition filed alongside it to start the clock.
If you’ve formed a U.S. entity, or you’re about to, the structuring decisions you make now determine whether a petition is winnable later. Schedule a consultation before you finalize your cap table.
Common questions
Can I be my own petitioner?
Not for O-1 or H-1B. Your company is the petitioner. NIW is the exception.
Do I have to give up control of my company?
No. Since 2025, controlling interest is permitted for both H-1B and O-1. What you need is documented oversight, not diluted ownership.
Can I hold H-1B and run a startup at the same time?
Yes, through concurrent employment or a beneficiary-owner petition.
Does an approved NIW let me quit my job?
No. An approved I-140 is not work authorization.
How much equity is too much?
For H-1B and O-1, none, ownership itself isn’t the problem. For the International Entrepreneur Rule, too little is the problem.
