Immigration: When Only 'Geniuses' Need Apply

Top artists, writers, and musicians are among those awarded O-1 visas each year to add to U.S. culture and the economy

By Moira Herbst

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Editor's Note: This is the second in a series of stories on Immigration in a Recession

In the coming weeks, President Barack Obama will begin his push to overhaul the U. S. immigration system, and almost every aspect of the effort will prove controversial. Millions of undocumented, low-skill immigrants and their supporters will square off against groups like the Minutemen, who want to close the border with Mexico and expel people who are in the country illegally. Technology companies such as Microsoft (MSFT), IBM (IBM), and Google (GOOG) will argue to make it easier for high-skill workers to come to the U.S., while tech workers will lobby fiercely to restrict such programs.

Far away from these debates lies one quiet corner of U.S. immigration policy: the program for what are known as "genius" visas. These visas are awarded to immigrants with extraordinary abilities in the arts, sciences, education, business, or athletics. The program, for what are officially called O-1 visas, began in 1990 as lawmakers sought to separate these applicants from the pool of those seeking H-1B visas, the visa program for skilled immigrants used by many technology companies. While H-1B applicants must hold at least a bachelor's degree and possess some specialized skill, O-1 visas are allotted to a more elite crowd: those who can prove to U.S. immigration officials that they are the very top in their fields. Peter F. Asaad, an immigration attorney and adjunct professor of law at American University, calls the recipients "Nobel prize quality or equivalent."

The awards aren't that rare, but they do go to a small group. According to the U.S. State Dept.—which makes the grants to successful applicants—9,014 O-1s were awarded in 2008, up 40% from 2004. Among current O-1 visa holders are Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki, Canadian author Jennifer Gould Keil, Israeli concert pianist Inon Barnatan, and members of the New York dance companies Merce Cunningham and Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane.

There's no annual limit on the number of O-1 visas, as there is with the H-1B program, and no minimum education level. Still, labor groups in the U.S. often have to weigh in on whether they consider an applicant exceptional. From 2004 to 2008, approvals averaged 94%, according to U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services.

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